Austrian students’ performance
In less than a week, the vocational school students and their companions completed their task: they built and insulated the prefabricated walls and flat roof of a nearly 200 square meter community house. Our Austrian partners have done their part, now it’s our turn to finish the building. We are asking for your donations to do so!
Twenty-one profesional school students, six teachers and three chaperones arrived in the village of Cotuș in the municipality of Sângeorgiu de Mureș under the leadership of teacher Josef Wolfsgruber as part of a youth education program to participate in the local people’s dream of a space for rapprochement. The nearly week-long volunteer work camp was preceded by months of preparatory work in the assembly hall of the HTL1 Bau und Design Linz. Many of the adults are not participating in this kind of action for the first time, as they have already built turnkey toilets that are still working well today at two camping sites: the Szent Gellért Foundation camp in Selters and the former CariTábor in Jigodin Băi.
All this would not have been possible without the decades-long, well-functioning partnership, as Caritas Oberösterreich continuously supports our organization with both financial and professional expertise. The local donor circle, the Freunde der Caritas, also plays a significant role in this, as they once again fully supported the Austrian part of the community facility. Their representatives, Ingrid Trauner, the chairwoman of the donor circle, Marion Huber, the head of foreign programs, and Dieter Gallistl, member of the economic council, visited the ongoing construction and our community programs and services in Odorheiu Secuiesc, Sângeorgiu de Mureș and Stremți.
In their opinion, we are facing a very good initiative, which is why they considered it worth supporting. They saw how serious the situation of families living in difficult circumstances is, and they know very well that a way out of this can only be achieved through upbringing and education. This is where the future lies, because those who are still children today will be adult, active citizens of our society tomorrow. They visited several Caritas programs, and were filled with a pleasant feeling by the enthusiastic attitude of our staff and the friendly atmosphere of our working groups. Visiting the homes of our beneficiaries in Odorheiu Secuiesc, they were surprised by the internal order and cleanliness, but at the same time they also experienced the lack of responsibility of the state authorities.
They considered the presence of young Austrian vocational school students in this environment to be good: they look out into the world and get closer to a different reality, things are revalued in them on the basis of compassion. The young people also supported this, because for example, when they had a field trip day, no one wanted to go, but rather worked in the scorching sun. They also noted how kindly the locals welcomed and offered them, and valuable encounters took place between them. This was also the case on the day when, with the help of our colleagues, they played with the children attending the daycare center, sang together, and then walked them home holding hands.
The meeting with the mayor was not forgotten either, in addition to visiting them at the construction site, Sófalvi Szabolcs also welcomed the guest workers in the noblest sense of the word at the Máriaffi Castle. He briefly explained the situation of the village, thanked the Austrians for their support and sacrifice, and gave them a gift.
Eldi offered the young people and their teachers delicious pastries while they worked, and also provided them with plenty of food for the journey.
Thank you!
Molnár József
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HTL1 – Soziales Holzbauprojekt >>>
Building walls >>>