Curaçao - Adventure Guide to Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao - page 233

Who is Jacob Gelt Dekker?
The mastermind and hands-on creator of
Kurá Hulanda is Dutchman Jacob Gelt
Dekker who, along with his American
business partner, John Padget, has
poured millions of dollars into renovating
the dilapidated Ijzerstraatkwartier (Iron
Quarter) of historic Otrobanda. Why

would he do this?
The answer is fascinating, and a bit complex.
Dekker is a blond multi-millionaire with California-beach-boy
good looks. On the surface, he's another overindulged baby boom-
er. But outward appearances are deceptive and his story reads
like a Hollywood movie script.
He was born in post-war Holland to a well-educated Jewish father
whose first wife and children were killed during the Nazi Holo-
caust. His mother was the youngest daughter of a Dutch farmer
who sheltered Jacob's father from the Germans. Their marriage
was an unhappy affair, and the family lived in poverty.
To make matters worse, Jacob was a sickly boy who got little at-
tention from his parents and mostly cruel treatment from his
peers. To escape, he spent his days at the public library reading
books that would shape his life. By the age of 12, he was pretty
much on his own.
Through sheer determination, he became a dentist and practiced
in Amsterdam during the 1970s and '80s, all the while continuing
to study, collect post-graduate degrees, and invest his money in
business deals. In 1989, he left his dental practice to travel the
world.
Travel, perhaps, is not the proper word.
When Dekker visits a foreign destination, he arrives as a curious
observer, eager to quickly take in every aspect of the location. He
rapidly soaks up the culture and connects its relevant history by
living with the people and getting involved in day-to-day prob-
lems. He is an impassioned traveler, not a tourist.
Africa grabbed his attention like no other country, and he began
collecting relics of the country's troubled past, as well as objects
that depicted its untamed beauty. In 1995, he visited Curaçao and
was captivated by a deteriorating mansion in a run-down neigh-
borhood that harbored drug dealers and prostitutes. Using the
same intuitive imagination that made him a millionaire, he saw
before him a glorious home, rather than a derelict ruin.