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S.I. Mainz - 20th Anniversary Celebration
27-29 August 2004

On the occasion of the 20th Anniversary of the founding of the Mainz Soroptimist Club, the Mainz sorores hosted representatives of five of their sister clubs: Krems (Austria), Zagreb, Rome-Tiber, Stafford (U.K.) and Haifa-Neve Shaanan (Israel).
Judith Brosh and Fannette Modek had the pleasure to participate in the festivities.

On Thursday 26th, we were met by Irmgard Shreiber-Kaspers at the Frankfurt airport at noon and whisked off to our hostess for the week-end, Renate Glaser von Roman, who made us most welcome in her home.

The next day, Renate took us on a tour of historical Mainz, on the way dropping in on club member Nicole Deger's boutique of exclusive and antique jewelry. At the St. Stephan's Church we marveled at the Chagall windows. We visited the famous "Dom" (cathedral) first built over a thousand years ago. We enjoyed the hustle and bustle of market day in the town square.

In the afternoon, our visit to the restored Wiesenauer Synagogue left a deep impression on us. We are grateful to Dr. Heinrich Schreiner for taking the time to tell us about the history of the Jews who have lived in Mainz for the past thousand years. Dr. Schreiner together with Rabbi Tepper (born in Mainz) have been instrumental in restoring the synagogue and the age-old link between the Christians and Jews in the community.

The 20th Anniversary festivities began on Friday evening with an informal get- together supper on the top floor of the Municipal Theatre. The twinkling night lights were an appropriate background for the lively conversations with old and new friends around the tables.

On Saturday, we continued these conversations on our tour of the Rheingau, visiting the ancient Kiedrich Church. The organist first told us about the history of the church and then treated us to a recital on the famous organ. From there the group went on to the Eberbach Monastery where, by the way, the "Name of the Rose" had been filmed.

The formal dinner of the week-end took place at the Favorite Park Hotel, chaired by S.I. Mainz President Regine Fassbender. Friends from various clubs in Germany and from abroad brought many good wishes and gifts.

The climax of the week-end, on Sunday morning, was devoted to the S.I. Europe Federation theme for 2003-2005 "Women Building Peace". The festive assembly took place in the Council Chamber of the Municipality and was honoured by the Mayor who opened the procedures.

The very moving key address, "Women Role in Peace Building", was given by Ms. Susanne Gelhard, Foreign correspondent of ZDF Landesstudio Berlin. The representatives of each of the five sister clubs present also spoke about the role of women in building peace in their countries.

The guests from abroad said their goodbyes to their hostesses on Sunday evening at the home of Club President Regine, looking forward to meeting again soon.

S.I. Mainz has been our sister club for nineteen years and members of both clubs have had the opportunity of visiting each other on a number of occasions. On this visit, we had many personal conversations that further served to strengthen and deepen the ties of friendship between us.

Judith Brosh
Fannette Modek
S.I. Haifa- Neve Shaanan

s.i._mainz_20th_ann._celebration

S.I. Mainz - 20th Anniversary Celebration 27-29 August 2004

S.I. Mainz - 20th Anniversary Celebration
27-29 August 2004