The treasure chest of the community

Created: 06/09/2022, 11:02 am

By: Laura Forster

Still waiting for his partner: a sports shoe that was handed in to community worker Jessica Selimi at the Gauting lost-and-found office.

Photo: Municipality © Municipality

Half a dozen finds are handed in to the Gauting town hall every month.

These include everyday objects such as mobile phones, keys and wallets, but also curiosities such as a poisonous snake or a ticket validation machine.

Gauting

– What actually ends up in the lost and found office of the municipality of Gauting?

All sorts, and sometimes there are curiosities among them - like a single shoe.

There are currently stacks of countless mobile phones, hearing aids and around 40 keys - for house entrances as well as for cars, in the residents' registration office.

"It's strange that nobody reports," says Jessica Selimi, the employee responsible.

"After all, you should have an interest in getting into the house or car - and not someone else." Clothing such as sports T-shirts or football pants, which are not always freshly washed, are also handed in at Selimi's lost and found office.

In addition to everyday things, odd finds also end up in the community, explained city hall spokeswoman Charlotte Rieboldt.

Like a shoe that is still waiting in vain for its partner.

The violin notes of the Munich Philharmonic, on the other hand, have already found their way back to their owner, who, according to Selimi, is a friendly and grateful elderly lady.

The ticket validation machine - a "historical" find - has now been handed over to the Munich transport company and is on display there in the MVG Museum.

A walking stick is also reunited with its owner.

Traffic signs that have been handed in have found a home in the building yard of the municipality of Gauting.

The dozens of abandoned bicycles found were not auctioned off this year,

A black trolley suitcase, which the employees of the residents' registration office had reservations about opening, provided a little thrill in everyday town hall life.

"They did this with a lot of courage in their luggage and it turned out that although the smell was strong, the trolley was empty," says Rieboldt.

The badly damaged suitcase has since been disposed of.

Sometimes, over the years, there have also been found objects that were found alive, “which cause a little more trouble”.

A cat, for example, or a poisonous snake.

City officials handed the cat over to the animal shelter, where she is cared for at community expense.

The police had taken care of the poisonous snake.

Seven to ten finds a month accumulate at the responsible residents' registration office in Gauting.

"The local police also regularly bring things that can no longer be assigned to an owner," says Rieboldt.

These include, for example, jewelry, EC cards and mobile phones.

"Either the citizens bring the things to us for inspection or they call and we drive over and pick them up," says Gauting's inspection manager Andreas Ruch.

The municipality keeps the smaller parts for half a year.

During this time, the owners can report.

After this period - if known - the finders will be notified, who can then take over the finds within a further four weeks, except for mobile phones and keys, of course.

The Gautinger registration office is open Monday, Tuesday and Friday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., Thursday from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1.30 p.m. to 4 p.m. and Tuesday afternoon from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.