An interesting month
One of the major recent attractions
must have been the "Radio Herz Gala" – celebrating ten years of
Paul Schneider’s "Heimatsender" Radio Station.
The gala was fabulous and sold out in all the various locations
where the event was scheduled.
The famous artists in this delightful program were Lys Assia,
Regina Engel, Christine Schuhmann and Marcel Schweizer. Three of
the artists were finalists at the ‘Grand Prix der Volksmusik
2007’ in Vienna, and are well-known celebrities in Europe.
Kudos to Radio Herz and Wolf Promotions for arranging these
wonderful concerts in he various German clubs in our
neighborhood and Kitchener. Matt Lebar and his band provided
enjoyable dance music for the balance of the evenings.
Another import – also from Austria – was an enjoyable addition
to the recent entertainment offers. Petra Böck entertained at
the Hansa Haus and the Danube-Swabian Club to
well-filled houses. Everyone I checked with proclaimed her as
one of the greatest yodelers they ever heard.
The Mississauga Express also did their best to make the concert
a musical adventure. There was also a great deal of audience
participation I was told, a sure sign that the audience was
warming up to the artist and that the artist is developing
contact with them and is stirring the audience at a more
personal level.
The annual "Kirchweihfest" at the Danube Swabians
was a great success again. It started after mass – at noon – and
continued with DJ Mike Nemeth for the rest of the day. This is
one of the greatest celebrations and very important social event
in the old country in Autumn. Guests came from all over , and
many ‘past due’ visits were postponed until Kirchweih. The
streets in the centre of the village were crowded with itinerant
artists and booth with toys and sweets of all sorts. Carousels
and a midway with pony rides were a much anticipated delight for
the young ones.
 Another celebration – this time in Kitchener – was the 25th
Anniversary of the "Senioren Haus Concordia". I remember
the opening ceremony when the retirement home was first opened
in 1984. We were shown through the building and were surprised
at the level of comfort and livability of this facility that had
been started a year earlier.
 At the 25th Anniversary Celebration last week John
Werner – a member of the Board of Directors and the MC for the
event - opened the celebration as follows: "Today is a special
day in the evolvement of Senioren Haus Concordia Inc. It has
been 25 years since a small group of German-speaking people got
together to fill a void in our community. There was no place in
this community where older German people could live and speak
German as they went about their daily business. They felt lost.
Together this group of people went on to develop and built this
facility". He then introduced various dignitaries such as the
president of the Senioren Haus, founding members, members of
provincial and municipal government, the current and past board
members plus the many others that were involved and responsible
of making this endeavor the success it turned out to be.
He also said that a home is what you make of it. "Our tenants
are what makes our houses stand out above the rest. The tenants
get together for different social events, bingo and card games,
movies, picnics, seasonal parties and of course ‘Kaffee Klatsch’.
It is this companionship that makes our Senioren Haus a home.
He also introduce eight tenants that have been residents since
it opened – including Karin Dissler who has been running it very
capably ever since.
After the official part of the program, a barbeque and
refreshments, as well as tours of the facility were continued
for the visitors.
As always
Dick Altermann
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