President ’ s Message
“ And all at once , summer collapsed into fall .”
— Oscar Wilde
After a quiet summer , at least for those who remained in Hamburg , one can already hear the engines revving up as we get ready for autumn and the associated activities . Summer is a time for visiting family and friends , tanking up some sun , and just taking life a bit easier . For me , the start of summer is always the Fourth of July celebration — and what a fun time we had this year at the Auswanderermuseum in Ballinstadt . As we jointly celebrated the end of our Spring Challenge , which virtually ended in Hawaii , we donned colorful attire accented with flower leis and enjoyed a traditional hamburger buffet .
The summer brought an exciting new group to the club : Through The Lens photography group . What a great combination : exploring highlights of Hamburg and learning photographic tips . Thank you , Jess and Jordan , for getting this going ! We will certainly miss Jess as she sets off on her next adventure , this time in Oxford . Always a great source of ideas , positivity , and creativity — we wish you all the best ( and are happy that you are keeping your membership ). S ’ n ’ B , which continued their meet-ups throughout the summer , is now also in need of a new coordinator . It may take two to replace Jess , but we remain confident that someone will step up .
Many of our activities continued throughout the summer , and we are so thankful for our many group leaders and Hamburger Helpers who organize these events . Our philanthropic activities slowed down over the summer break — but late August brought a
AWCH board members hosted several social hours over the summer . This was mine , with a fun group at The Botanic District in Eppendorf . ( Photo courtesy of Carol H .)
burst of activity : Tracy organized a sewing bee for our From the Heart Pillow Project ; Shelly brought groups together to prepare school bags , sort clothes , and set up a Help Store for Hanseatic Help ; and a large group of our members with their families and friends joined us for the annual Laufend Gegen Gewalt charity run to support the autonomous women ’ s shelters in Hamburg .
As we sense the return of autumn , we start making plans for our traditional fall events — Halloween and Thanksgiving . We welcome ideas and support as we make plans . I would like to take this opportunity to remind you all that this is your club … get connected , get involved !
To an exciting and active fall .
Best , Carol Harbers president @ awchamburg . org
4 AWCH Currents Spring Edition