For the love of his granddaughter: 99-year-old builds a bird house

Created: 08/12/2022, 09:56

By: Verena Moeckl

Proud of his last masterpiece: At the age of 99, Johann Lang made a birdhouse for his granddaughter.

Today he celebrates his 100th birthday.

From now on he wants to give up the handicrafts.

© Private

At the age of 99, Johann Lang was still in his workshop making things for his granddaughter.

Today he celebrates his 100th birthday.

Bianca Hermle has a special surprise for her beloved grandfather's anniversary.

Dachau – Johann Lang has many passions.

Craft is one of them.

The man from Dachau tinkered, screwed, sawed - for more than eight decades.

At the age of 99, the owner of the former household goods store Lang (today: Betten Wirth) finally put down his saw and hammer.

Before that, however, he fulfilled one more wish of his beloved granddaughter.

For the love of his granddaughter: at the age of 99, Johann Lang built another bird house

For weeks he stood in his workshop - despite all his efforts - and made a bird house.

"Grandpa really got into it," says granddaughter Bianca Hermle.

The birdhouse now adorns her garden in Stuttgart.

It is a copy of Lang's own aviary and looks more like a villa than a cottage - and is actually not intended for Vögek, but for Hermle's cat Luke.

In the past, the velvet paw was often allowed to vacation with the grandparents when the granddaughter was away with her family for a longer period of time, and had eaten a fool at the birdhouse.

So Johann Lang also made a little house for the granddaughter's 18-year-old cat.

That's not the only thing that Johann Lang has made for the cat in the past.

The cat also got a cat ladder.

I have a picture book grandpa.

He is always there for me.

My whole life.

Bianca Hermle

For her 60th birthday, Bianca Hermle gave her grandfather a small bouquet of flowers.

Even 40 years later, the grandfather gets his flowers from the granddaughter.

(Collage) © Private/ Verena Möckl

"Grandpa is extremely talented with his hands," enthuses Bianca Hermle.

Her grandpa is her hero.

She doesn't have to say that, you can tell by the way she talks about her grandfather.

"I have a picture book grandfather.

He is always there for me.

My whole life.” The 41-year-old is particularly impressed by how fit her grandfather still is.

"Grandpa and the cat are both our Methuselahs," says Bianca Hermle and laughs.

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By the way: everything from the region is also available in our regular Dachau newsletter.

85 years at ASv Dachau: Sport is also his passion

But Johann Lang was not just a gifted hobbyist.

"My grandfather was also a great athlete." His heart beats for ASV Dachau.

And that for 85 years.

Johann Lang was passionate about playing handball, going hiking and skiing.

Even at the age of 85, he still went cross-country skiing.

Bianca Hermle also skis.

Of course her grandfather taught her that.

Sport is still an important part of Johann Lang's life.

Even though he can no longer do any sport himself, he reads the sports section of the newspaper every day and watches sports programs on television with his wife Johanna.

Last year, the two die-hards from Dachau celebrated their platinum wedding anniversary.

Today is a special day for Johann Lang: he is celebrating his 100th birthday.

What does he want for his anniversary?

"Nothing!" He was perfectly happy.

But a few more years would certainly be nice, he says and grins.

Lang suspects the secret of his long life to be in his mother's genes.

And perhaps also in the morning gymnastics exercises that he practiced for decades.

Today is celebrated with the family.

Johann Lang gets a song he composed himself and ten jars of homemade strawberry jam from his granddaughter – and of course lots of kisses and hugs.

The great-grandfather has a self-painted birthday picture of the eight-year-old great-granddaughter.

Special surprise for the 100th birthday

And Bianca Hermle has a very special surprise.

It's a portrait of her grandparents.

"I just don't know yet if they'll be happy or if they'll shake their heads." She had the picture taken so that she can always carry her favorite people with her.

Immortalized: Bianca Hermle carries her grandparents with her forever.

© private

But not as a photo in the purse, but on the inside of her left forearm.

under the skin

"My grandparents have been with me my whole life," says Bianca Hermle.

"With the tattoo, they also accompany me when they are no longer there."

You can find more current news from the district of Dachau at Merkur.de/Dachau.