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caption: Helping Refugees
Kathy Naumann, left, and her husband Richard Naumann, of Thompson, are helping Ukrainian refugees into German life. Between them are two members of Hannover Ukrainian Club. They are helping refugees at the Hauptbahnhof in Hannover (main train station) in Germany. Courtesy photo.
captions, page 2:
Minister for the exterior Annalena Baerbock (yellow coat) during a visit in Hall#27 with refugees children.
Tent city in Hall #27.
By Linda Lemmon
Town Crier Editor
What can we do? We must help. A Quiet Corner couple, Kathy and Richard Naumann of Thompson, who also have a home in Hannover, Germany, are in Hannover helping Ukrainian refugees. “We are doing what we can,” said Kathy Naumann.
She said the Ukrainians coming to Hannover have come from Poland to Berlin’s Cold War-era Tegel Airport which has been closed for about 10 years. Germany reopened it to service the refugees.
From there, the 1.1 million refugees are distributed all over Germany. Hannover has received over 100,000. They are processed in Hannover at the Messe Hall 27 (convention center) which has been converted to a tent city, she said.
Each tent holds a family, typically the mother and children. Four tents make a village with a total of more than 250 villages. Most refugees are only processed through Hannover and are quickly integrated into the German society.
Many work in similar types of jobs as they had back in Ukraine. Many German families offer an extra room for the refugee family. Many hotels in Hannover have committed rooms, free of charge, for 6 months or more.
She added that she speaks some German and helped out at the train station. Her husband Richard is a native of Germany.
Kathy said: “Many volunteers here teach German lessons to help facilitate integration. Richard (former owner of the Inn at Woodstock Hill) does food and supply distribution and assortment for each village at the Messe. Our volunteering is coordinated through the city of Hannover in conjunction with the military, church, and social services. I just helped a bit at the train station. This was a large area in the center of the station which collected goods.
"Now it is a more permanent place supported by the Hannover Ukrainian Club. They offer free information, coffee and baked goods to refugees. Any women and children we have encountered are kind, well kept, and very appreciative.”
She added: There are many support services In Hannover which are offered to the Ukrainians like medical care and pet services. It is just amazing to see the coordinated effort. She said “the biggest challenge remains the integration of the children into the schools — particularly with the language barrier.”
“We are doing everything we can."
Her personal story,
'Because I Had To ... Help' --- page 2
Because I Had To … Help
Politics aside, war is a circumstance which can devastate families but unite people. Regardless of whether you are a soldier, a civilian, an activist or a sympathizer, watching videos of scores of innocent children fleeing their homes can be heartbreaking; yet, meeting just one of these children can fill your heart with an unconditional love and an overwhelming desire to help...
The war in Ukraine, amongst other things, has resulted in the need for those who may classify themselves as sympathizers (or humans) to rally service efforts to help the innocent children and their families who have been forced to leave the care and comfort of their homes in order to survive. Many neighboring, and some distant, countries have offered to provide space for these small refugees not because they have to, but because they want to.
As a parent, could you imagine having only a few minutes to pack up everything you need and want in your house? I can only imagine that fairly quickly you might come to the realization that the only things you need are your children and the only things you want are a source of communication and comfort items for your children. And as I continue to write this, I am also entirely grateful that I only need to use the phrase “I can only imagine” as actually living through such a trauma is, fortunately, not something I need to endure.
With the TV images steadfast in my brain and my heart, my husband and I headed to a refugee processing area with the intent to help in any way we could. To be honest, I am not sure what I could actually do that would be considered ‘help’ but we went anyway.
We were not alone. Hundreds of other local people also wanted to help, and these helpers spoke fluent German; had special helping paperwork; COVID vaccinations and negative tests; and, in some cases, educational degrees in how to help during a crisis such as this.
I only had a bit of German language, all of my vaccinations, no special helping paperwork, and an ‘almost advanced degree’, but they let me help anyway … by standing at the counter in the main train station and giving future would-be helpers the proper forms to fill out and collecting and storing the goods and supplies they bring in.
Although my husband helps in a more hands-on way, I am immensely grateful for the opportunity I have been given to assist; so much so that I am not sure if my help is actually increasing my own wellbeing more so than that of the children I wanted to assist.
However, recently, when I had an opportunity to meet my husband after his helping shift at the processing area, I also had an opportunity to watch (from a distance) several children jumping circles around their mothers in an impromptu jumping competition of ‘who can jump the highest?’. To me, they were all winners!
Resilience. Resilience.
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!
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