April, 2004 - Nr. 4
Dick reports...
Princess Ball
It was the 14th time that the "Youth Group" of the Danube Swabian Society hosted this annual event, which is staged by the Youth Group entirely for their benefit, and as a means to raise funds in support of the group’s activities. Of course the most important part of the occasion is the selection – by a vote of the members of the group - and crowning of the new "Miss Danube" who then becomes the new "Princess" and will represent the club in many of the club’s functions – such as Caravan and Oktoberfest and other festivities and events – during the coming year.
Annie
Hudson, who also donated this year’s crown, opened the proceedings with
greetings to the audience and introduced the group’s elegantly attired
members as they entered the hall.
Brigitte
Wecker, president of the club, also warmly and affectionately welcomed the
guests and the graceful group of young ladies and their escorts.
The
outgoing "Miss" – Alisha Szauter – listed the happenings of the last year in
a well-formulated address. "This year has been an incredible dream – so much
more than I could have ever expected", she said. She mentioned the Rosen
Ball, her inauguration - when her older sister Rebecca put the crown on her
head - and the homemade cakes that were offered for sale, plus the generous
donations by the Bissingers. The "Kindermaskenball" (her first official
function!), the Landestrachtenfest and the Marquis Plaza Hotel in Windsor
were next and included dinner at the Teutonia Club, a visit to the casino
and some shopping the next day. Then came the Mother’s Day Banquet where she
and her runner up Rachel Seilern handed out carnations to the visiting
mothers. And then there was the event at Marylake. She mentioned Caravan,
where she met some of the other ethnic princesses. She remembered the ride
with Caravan President Kirk Jensen, in the double-decker bus. She remarked
on the trip to the festival at Hunter Mountain, NY, and the trolley bus ride
and the rain that soaked the guys on one occasion there, the bus trip to the
"Tag der Donauschwaben" in Mansfield, Ohio.The "Liederkranz" and the "Traubenfest"
in the fall were recalled, as other fun events, the "Kirchweihfest" fund
raiser and the "Kirchweihstrauß", which was won by Mrs. Ams, the "Kinderbescherung"
came next, and the surprising realisation of how many children were present
there This was also the last time to wear her sash at the Christmas Banquet,
and it rounded out a very busy and remarkable year.
"It’s amazing how the year has just flown by", she said. "But when I think of how many incredible memories I had, my experiences and accomplishments, it seems like it should have lasted forever".
Then
came the great moment everyone was waiting for. Who is going to be the next
"Miss Danube". Bill Hoffmann gave the envelopes to Brigitte Wecker, who
slowly and ceremoniously opened the one for the "Runner-up". It was pretty
and bright Natascha Szauter.
The
new „Miss Danube", or Princess is talented and attractive Rachel Seilern,
who did such a great job as runner-up during the previous year.
Rosemary
Kelman, president of the youth group, addressed the audience and
congratulated the new princess with the wish that everyone here would be
able to attend many of the functions planned for the next season. She also
thanked Lori Gruental and Theresa Keilhauer and the many parents involved,
for their support.
Rachel
and her escort Mathias Seilern opened the dance floor with the traditional
first waltz, accompanied
by the popular "Golden Keys" from Kitchener, followed by the members of the
Youth Group and the general audience.
Congratulations Rachel and Natasha!
"Maskenball" for Kids
Eagerly awaited by the member’s youngsters is the annual
carnival-type event staged by the club and hosted in a large part by the
club’s
Youth Group and welcomed by the president, Brigitte Wecker.
It was a Sunday afternoon of fun, games, face-painting, cookies and fruit juice.
Fun & Games
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About 50 youngsters participated in a variety of very creative, ingenious and original costumes. One could see that the kids were very proud of them. And so were the parents and grandparents that were in attendance and most likely had a hand in the creation of them.
A Parade of Costumes & Masks
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Youth Group members arrived in very innovative costumes, as
always. There was an angel (Natasha this year), a clown (Samuel Scully), a
bride (Rachel), an overweight belly dancer (Nicole), a scuba diver trying to
find Nemo (Annie), little Bo Peep (Alysha), Lorrie with fantastic red hair,
and many more.
The Interview
Of course there was music – provided by DJ Mike Nemeth – for the kids to dance to. The Macarena and Chicken Dance were some of the favourites.
XXX
The visionary idea behind this event is of course to
familiarize these youngsters with the club itself and their ethnic
background, roots and culture. This imaginative point of view has a lot of
merit and practically assures the future of the club, a
s witnessed by the
activities of the Youth Group. Many of them started young and grew up with
and in the club, and into the club’s activities. A huge contingent of course
was supplied by the Seilern/Szauter families. We saw them grow up as the
"Forget-me-nots". Let’s hope that others are as loyal.
Jägerball at the Hansa Haus
Well, not really a "ball" per se, but rather a friendly
get-together with the Hubertus Hunt Club – "an undergroup" that was founded
in the 70’s - with the rest of the members of the club. Heinz Green, the
president, explained that the hunters are deeply rooted in the old customs
of the hunt in Germany and strife to uphold even the traditional hunter’s
jargon and to respect and to maintain a high regard of our wildlife.
Reiner Walter, Hansa’s president, welcomed the guests, preceeded by a short musical interlude by Martin Weidenfelder on the "Jagdhorn", a small trumpet similar to a bugle.
With over 200 people attending and the Golden Keys from
Kitchener entertaining with their broad palette of musical delights, the
dance floor was always full. Except during the break, when a
small choir of
the hunters – accompanied by Martin Weidenfelder and his Euphonium –
entertained the guests with a number of select, hunting-oriented songs such
as "Der Jäger aus Kurpfalz" etc.
Henry Bunge, long-time president of the club and now
retired, was honoured by Karl- Heinz Scharfenberg with a book about
Mannheim, Germany and a colourful flag of the city. This was in memory of
the long
cooperation between Henry and Mr. Scharfenberg who was instrumental
in constructing and repairing the clubhouse and kitchen in cooperation with
Henry Bunge when he was still president. A really nice touch!
By the way, the Hansa Club flag and 30 lapel pins where presented to the City of Mannheim – Scharfenberg’s place of birth – and the club’s flag is now in Manheim’s City Hall. This story started about 20 years ago and Mr. Scharfenberg came all the way from his home in Penetang to make the presentation.
For the inner man – or woman – wonderful goulash and spätzle,
schnitzel or sausages with sauerkraut and more,
were available from the Hansa kitchen as well as pastries for dessert, plus the usual liquid
refreshments. I was just a bit surprised that there was no typical hunter’s
fare available.
An upcoming event at the club will be the annual anniversary dinner on the 24th of April, where our own Sybille will be the Master of Ceremonies.
As usual, tickets are available before the event and reservations are strongly recommended.
In good company
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Well, it may not have been a ball, but most of the guests had a ball anyway!
Bundesmanöverball…
…or "Fred Wagner Dance Competition" – the eagerly awaited
final event of the carnival (or Mardi Gras) season – is over. Of course
there is still the "Kindermanöverball" in Kitchener to look forward to where
the young ones are able to strut their stuff on the 24th of April
at the Concordia Club.
But for most of the die-hard fools this event at the Royal
Connaught Hotel in Hamilton is taken very seriously. And it should be! The
girls from the various societies also take it very seriously and they work
very hard all year to get ready and to put their best feet forward during
the performances.
Unfortunately we only had four groups participating this year: 1. KG Blau-Weiss, Sarnia, KG Narragonia, Brantford, KG Treuer Husar, Mississauga and the 1. KG Loreley, Oshawa. Last year we had six participating groups which included Kitchener’s (Narrenzunft) and London’s (Londoner Funken Rot-Weiss) dance-guard.
But it was still an exciting event – especially for the girls. Many of them hadn’t seen each other for a year and were happy to renew old acquaintances and to make new friends.
More importantly, it is also an opportunity for the girls to measure themselves against their peers and they all very closely watch each other’s performances.
After a welcoming address to the girls and guests by Armin
Hellmann, BDKK President, Ingrid Wagner took over guiding the event and
performances that started with the show dances and
solo performances in the
afternoon and concluded with the Guard Dances in the evening. Elisabeth Kiesling, from the 1.KG Loreley, Oshawa, became "Miss Hospitality" this
year.
Here are the results of this magnificent competition:
The prize for "Originality" went to the
KG Narragonia,
Brantford.
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Show Dance category: 4th place Treuer Husar, Mississauga / 3rd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 2nd Loreley, Oshawa / 1st Narragonia, Brantford.
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Funky Solos: 3rd Treuer Husar, Mississaauga / 2nd Loreley, Oshawa / 1st Narragonia, Brantford.
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In the freestyle category: 3rd Blau-Weiss, Sarnia / 2nd Treuer Husar, Mississauga / 1st Narragonia, Brantford (with the Liza Minelli interpretation).
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Guard Dances: 4th Treuer Husar, Mississauga / 3rd Loreley, Oshawa / 2nd Weiss-Blau, Sarnia / 1st Narragonia, Brantford.
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This year the point assignments by the judges were even closer than ever before. In some instances a ½ point made the difference between the positions in the final line-up. The conclusion? They were all very good and deserve to be congratulated for their diligent efforts. Who knows, maybe next year the tables will turn.
Joe Lindlau played wonderful dance music after the competition for the guests that were awaiting the judge’s decisions.
The next event will be the "Kindermanöverball" I mentioned above, and the extravagant and elegant "Bundes Prinzenball" with exciting entertainment from Germany.
As always,
Dick Altermann
Comments to: dick@echoworld.com
