About Bea

Bea Moedt (1950-2024) was born in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. She grew up in the post-World War II period when life was hard. Yet she always knew that things would somehow get better. Her humor and straightforwardness always saw her through and got her into trouble. Bea never felt she belonged in the Netherlands. After moving to the north province of Groningen in her late thirties, her “somehow things will get better” feeling started to crystalize when she met her future husband, Willem Moedt, who was working in a family construction business.

An advertisement in a Dutch newspaper did the rest. They were looking for a project manager in Curaçao. Bea saw the ad without really looking for a big chance but immediately recognized it as such. Willem got the job, and they moved to Curaçao in 1993 where Willem eventually started his own business, Moedt Property Services NV. Bea instantly fell in love with the island and knew that this was the place she would spend the rest of her life.

After Bea suffered from a TIA (a mini stroke) in her fifties, she picked up photography as a means of therapy to help her remember what happened during the day. These functional photographs soon made her realize that she had an extraordinary talent for photography.

Others noticed her talent, and over the years, Bea became a well-known photographer for newspapers, the Royal House of the Netherlands, the Curaçao North Sea Jazz Festival, the Marine Force of the Netherlands, the Coastguard, Curaçao International Airport, KLM, and many more.
The Government of Curaçao honored Bea by producing a special edition stamp of one of her aerial view photos. She also won several photography competitions and received the Grote Paul Huf award for her work.

In March 2022, Bea Moedt was told that she did not have long left to live and that she should start preparing for a departure from this world. Her health deteriorated in a way that made it impossible for her to stay home. A heartbreaking decision had to be made by her and her partner Willem. Bea moved out of her home and checked into the hospice Arco Cavent, where she would spend her final days surrounded by health professionals who could provide the care she needed.

Bea did not exactly know what happens at a hospice—she called it a hospik at first, which is a Dutch term used in the military, meaning medic—she simply surrendered to the inevitable. In the first week, all she could do was cry. Not because of her diagnosis but because she was so overwhelmed by the love and attention the carers at Arco Cavent gave her. “They don’t even know me; how can they be so kind? What did I do to deserve this?”

“What did I do to deserve this?” gradually changed to “Everybody deserves this in the last period of life,” and Bea wouldn’t be Bea without thinking of a plan to make that happen. First, she started raising money for the hospice through a joke. She posted a picture of herself on Facebook with Golden Earring’s lead singer Barry Hay and challenged people to “like” the post. For every “like,” she donated fifty cents. Before she knew it, she had raised thousands of guilders because people decided to donate to Arco Cavent even without liking her post. Bea cried again, but for joy this time.

During her stay at Arco Cavent, Bea started to feel more energetic. The care, the attention, the people, the food—everything helped to get her spirits up, and the three months the doctors thought she had left to live passed by. A more durable plan started to root. Bea had shot pictures of her beloved Curaçao for more than twenty years. And not just of Curaçao but also of many other places in the world she visited. What would become of that legacy? And could she somehow give back to the island that had given her so much?

Her book Curaçao—My Lasting Love Affair was the starting point to give back on a permanent basis. The proceeds of this photobook are fully donated to help Hospice Arco Cavent create a fund to cover the costs of those who are not (completely) insured for the care this institution offers.

The next step was to secure all of her photography and place the rights with the Bea Moedt Foundation. Every print or product with Bea’s photography on it will help create funds to support good causes that will give back to our community.

Bea Moedt Foundation
LINK naar Good Causes

In her lifetime Bea published Carnival on Curaçao (2011), Wings over Curaçao (2012) and Curaçao—My Lasting Love Affair (2022).