News
Current and recent actions
Activities 2019
Charity Event 'Come Home'
Thursday, september 19
Interview at Hower of Power
Sunday, March 10
Book 'Come Home'
All it takes is a conversation
This book highlights a collection of portraits replicated from my documentary called Home At Last. These still shots were taken by cameraman and friend Dennis Tielkes over a five year period while we were filming in New York, Berlin, London and Amsterdam. These portraits feature direct quotes from the homeless along with applicable song lyrics from well known artists as well as lyrics from my own album entitled Home at Last.
My first encounter with the homeless took place on a New York City subway called The 7 - also known as The International Express - which runs from Manhattan to Queens. I was deeply moved by their grief but also by their beauty. Most of them had lost hope and were left with intense loneliness.
My heartfelt desire with this book is to inspire and encourage people to build relationships with homeless people. “I have learned from personal experience that all it takes is a conversation.” a quote from a homeless woman on the streets of New York. These are the types of encounters and expressions that have deeply enriched my life.
I met Silver at Banhof Zoo in Berlin where he was gravely ill and close to death. I immediately started a relationship with him and after four years we have developed a deep and lasting friendship. With a helping hand, he has managed to escape the perils of homelessness, survived his illnesses, overcame the tragedies of prison life, established a residence, began a study and started a family in Würzburg, Germany. Silver has been my inspiration to continue my work for the homeless.
The Dr. Lens Foundation reaches out to homeless people like Silver. It offers hope and, whenever possible, provides practical support in escaping life on the streets by arranging a safe haven. Being homeless is not a conscious or voluntary decision. It is a truly sad, paralyzing and solitary exclusion from life as we know it. Every homeless person needs compassion. It is a door to hope and the road to dignity.
There are millions of homeless people worldwide. It affects both young and old and people from all walks of life. Just like the rest of us, they are searching for peace, security, warmth, happiness, a safe place to lay their heads and, when hope is ample enough, to return to a ‘normal’ life. Often times homelessness seems worlds away yet it is literally in our backyards. In the Netherlands alone there are more than thirty thousand people living on the streets. Throughout Europe there are hundreds of thousands more. In America that number reaches more than half a million. These people find themselves defeated on the streets and do not know how to escape being forced into a lifestyle they did not choose.
The Dr. Lens Foundation is named after my late father; a caring family doctor from Raalte, the Netherlands. The concept of the foundation arose during my creative journeys as a musician and documentary maker. The foundation calls us to be our ‘Brother’s Keeper’. It hopes to stimulate social inclusion of homeless people and plans to achieve this objective with positive actions. Your support, engagement and donations are greatly appreciated.
A beautiful collection of 94 images and stills from the documentary ‘Home at last Project’ in a hardcover book (29 x 29 cm).
Available in the Webshop of Theo Lens
Article Omroep Gelderland
Heerdenaar laat Jonnie Boer (De Librije) stamppotten koken voor daklozen
Presentation documentary and book
ND story of chairman Theo Lens
The story of Theo Lens in Nederlands Dagblad
Article in the magazine Tot Heil des Volks
EO Visie
Amsterdammers help Amsterdammers
This projects we will support in 2019