Kaufbeuren - Almost exactly 30 years to the day after the town twinning agreement was signed in Ferrara on September 17, 1991, Kaufbeuren celebrated this special anniversary last Friday in the city hall. Alexander Fichtl from the town twinning association had created a bilingual, richly illustrated commemorative publication containing the history of this Italian-German friendship. In it you could also read all the German and Italian greetings. The celebration was musically framed by students from the Ludwig Hahn Singing and Music School.
An illustrious delegation had come from Ferrara: Sindaco (Lord Mayor) Alan Fabbri was in Kaufbeuren for the first time and had his Vice Mayor Nicola Lodi, Andrea Moretti, the President of the Ferrara Exhibition Center and Luca Sivieri, the President of the Contrada di San Giorgio and a number of others Bring guests. In addition, the Italian Vice Consul Alfredo Casciello had honored the event by coming. Kaufbeuren was represented by Mayor Stefan Bosse, Mayor Dr. Erika Rössler, the former mayors Gerhard Bucher and Ernst Holy, who is also the chairman of the town twinning association. Further representatives from politics were the recently re-elected member of the Bundestag Stephan Stracke, the member of the Landtag Bernhard Pohl and a number of city councilors.The town pastor Bernhard Waltner, the entire dance festival board and the management team, along with some of the founding members of the town twinning association, were of course not to be missed.
The greetings of the mayors of Kaufbeuren and Ferrara, Vice Consul Casciello, Ernst Holy and Luca Sivieri looked back on 30 years of steadily growing friendship between the twin cities and the good and bad times together. City partnerships improved the opportunities for both sides in economic, tourist and cultural terms, it was said several times. Lord Mayor Bosse quoted Isaac Newton, who had said 300 years ago: "People build too many walls and too few bridges." Ernst Holy commemorated the recently deceased long-time managing director of the Sister City Association, László Kasztner, who would have celebrated his 76th birthday on this day. Luca Sivieri finally recalledthat the Contrada di San Giorgio, with its flag-swingers, has been a fixture in the Kaufbeurer Tänzelfest since 1993 and has also been actively participating in camp life with a stand since 2009. After the welcoming speech, the guests from Ferrara signed the Golden Book of the city of Kaufbeuren.
Then the distribution of gifts followed. First of all, the guests from Ferrara received the official gifts of the city of Kaufbeuren. In addition, the twin city association had come up with something special: The new managing director Alexander Müller presented anniversary scarves with which he adorned all guests from Italy. As a further surprise, the same cloth the size of a flag thrower was presented. The club had it made for the Contrada di San Giorgio in two versions - one for waving the flag and one for the clubhouse. But that was not all: Before the buffet, which was cleverly decorated with Italian and German flags, was released for storming, all those present received an anniversary cloth and a set of wheat glasses also adorned with the anniversary logo.During the long, cozy part, existing friendships were deepened and new ones were established in good conversations.
