Philanthropy
Giving without being seen.
Our name carries a promise: to give back, quietly and without expecting anything in return.
The legend of the three bags of gold.
The name Klaas goes back to Nicholas of Myra. According to legend, he learned of a father who could not provide for his three daughters. At night, unseen, Nicholas threw a bag of gold through their window, once for each daughter, and gave them the freedom to shape their own lives.
The three golden spheres in our sign recall these three bags of gold. Arranged as a pyramid, one resting on two, they remind us that every fortune rests on the work and trust of others, that wealth carries responsibility, and that the most meaningful help is often the help nobody sees.
Our family knows what it means to start again with nothing. After the war it was the help and trust of others that made rebuilding possible. Giving back is how we repay that trust.
Causes close to the family.
Health
We support initiatives that improve care for patients and for the people who look after them.
Education
A good start should not depend on where someone comes from. We support young people on their way into education, work and independence.
Young artists
We help artists at the beginning of their careers find space, time and a first audience for their work.
New beginnings
We stand by people and communities who have to start again after loss, as our family once did.
Principles.
Quietly
The cause matters, not the donor.
- No names in the foreground
Personally
We see the people behind every project.
- Long relationships, not one off gifts
For the long term
A few projects for many years.
- Rather than many for a short while