Kasteelpark van Heihuyzen met hortensias en zicht op het kasteel

Heihuyzen Estate · Oostmalle

History and foundation

The Private Stichting Heihuyzen was founded on 3 October 2005 at the initiative of Mr Godfroy Lenaerts to safeguard the estate, which had been in the family for generations, from being split up and divided through inheritance.

The Heihuyzen estate was formerly owned by the Talon family, as is the eponymous Talondreef in Oostmalle. Between 1850 and 1865, the Brussels notary family of Gustave van Merstraeten and his father George purchased the land from the Talon family. Gustave had three children: George, Idesbalde and Marie.
Idesbalde had no wife or children and sold his share around 1934 to the Ackermans family.

Marie married Paul Degroux. George, who married Marie Louise Pourbaix, was the father of Alice and Marguerite van Merstraeten.
Margueritte also never married and therefore had no direct heirs. Alice married Armand Lenaerts and had one child, Godfroy Lenaerts.

The foundation has three charitable objectives:

  1. advancing the frontiers of knowledge in the medical sciences by stimulating, supporting and funding fundamental and applied scientific research, and improving its quality
  2. combating poverty and assisting the socially and physically disadvantaged in society, so as to provide them with a dignified and qualitatively better existence and give them additional opportunities to develop their talents.
  3. promoting the interests within the framework of the care philosophy of the Christophe Lenaerts family and his descendants, including the support and funding of their scientific, material, commercial, educational, intellectual, artistic and other projects

The Private Stichting Heihuyzen has an external board of directors that is managed independently of the Lenaerts family. Christophe Lenaerts is regularly in contact with the board of directors to support the management of the estate and its financial aspects by managing the estate like a business, with a view to sufficient income so that it can operate independently.

An additional role for the private foundation that is fulfilled by Christophe Lenaerts is the ecological aspect. He strives to make the estate serve as an example of the three pillars of ecology, economy and enjoyment in Flanders and even Europe.

Historische dreef tussen bomen en grasland op Heihuyzen
Het landschap van Heihuyzen: dreven, bomen en open ruimte.
Dennenbos met jonge bomen op Domein Heihuyzen
Bosbeheer en natuurlijke verjonging op het domein.

History and foundation

The Private Stichting Heihuyzen was founded on 3 October 2005 at the initiative of Mr Godfroy Lenaerts to safeguard the estate, which had been in the family for generations, from being split up and divided through inheritance.

The Heihuyzen estate was formerly owned by the Talon family, as is the eponymous Talondreef in Oostmalle. Between 1850 and 1865, the Brussels notary family of Gustave van Merstraeten and his father George purchased the land from the Talon family. Gustave had three children: George, Idesbalde and Marie.
Idesbalde had no wife or children and sold his share around 1934 to the Ackermans family.

Marie married Paul Degroux. George, who married Marie Louise Pourbaix, was the father of Alice and Marguerite van Merstraeten.
Margueritte also never married and therefore had no direct heirs. Alice married Armand Lenaerts and had one child, Godfroy Lenaerts.

The foundation has three charitable objectives:

  1. advancing the frontiers of knowledge in the medical sciences by stimulating, supporting and funding fundamental and applied scientific research, and improving its quality
  2. combating poverty and assisting the socially and physically disadvantaged in society, so as to provide them with a dignified and qualitatively better existence and give them additional opportunities to develop their talents.
  3. promoting the interests within the framework of the care philosophy of the Christophe Lenaerts family and his descendants, including the support and funding of their scientific, material, commercial, educational, intellectual, artistic and other projects

The Private Stichting Heihuyzen has an external board of directors that is managed independently of the Lenaerts family. Christophe Lenaerts is regularly in contact with the board of directors to support the management of the estate and its financial aspects by managing the estate like a business, with a view to sufficient income so that it can operate independently.

An additional role for the private foundation that is fulfilled by Christophe Lenaerts is the ecological aspect. He strives to make the estate serve as an example of the three pillars of ecology, economy and enjoyment in Flanders and even Europe.