Make a wish - this is what the local association of Arbeiterwohlfahrt (AWO) wishes for the senior citizens in Germering and the surrounding area.
Germering
- Because for the third time the wish tree campaign is coming up.
And even if it has to look a little different this year than in previous years - the principle remains the same.
Elderly people should be made happy at Christmas.
Normally the campaign works like this: Via care services, homes and the Germeringer Tafel, wishes from senior citizens are collected, anonymized and hung on a Christmas tree in front of the AWO office in the multi-generation house Zenja on Planegger Straße.
People who would like to do something good choose a wish that they want to fulfill.
The AWO then arranges contact with the senior concerned.
In recent years, many wishes have also been collected at the helpers' stand on Market Sunday.
But that is canceled this year.
That is why the AWO office is calling on the seniors.
“We need wishes,” says event coordinator Daniela Kunath.
“We have an unbelievable number of people who want to participate as donors.” A three-digit number of wishes would not be a problem.
Last year it was just under 100.
And what can you ask for?
The range is extremely large.
It can be material things or vouchers, for example for the hairdresser or the pharmacy.
In the past, however, there were also many “temporary requests”, as Kunath says - accompaniment on walks, an afternoon of games, walking the dog or eating together.
The AWO employee remembers that once an elderly lady sat in her office who wished she wasn't alone on Christmas Eve.
"When we formulated the wish, we both had tears in our eyes."
All the better that it worked: The woman was invited into a family and spent a wonderful Christmas Eve.
The material desires of the elderly are often very modest.
Occasionally there are outliers, like last year when an elderly woman's television broke.
Coincidentally, an offer to donate came in that afternoon - someone had a television to give away.
"That was a goosebump moment," as Kunath recalls.
This year there will be no wish tree in front of the AWO office because the old town hall is closed to unregistered visitors.
The wishes can, however, easily be distributed to the donors online via the AWO Facebook group.
Now all that's missing is enough wishes.
Daniela Kunath would like to encourage the older generation to give up their proverbial modesty and to trust each other.
A means test does not take place.
However, the campaign is aimed exclusively at senior citizens.
Requests can be sent to the AWO by the beginning of November.
You can contact us by phone (089) 83 92 74 43 (Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) or by e-mail to wunschbaum@awo-germering.de.
From mid-November the wishes will be distributed to the donors online and in the multi-generation house Zenja.
Material gifts can also be given here between the end of November and mid-December.
The AWO arranges the contact for time gifts - even if their fulfillment would have to wait a little due to the corona.
