"It's about creative design with textile remnants. That's sustainability in action. 'A Heart for Chemnitz' is the name of the campaign that will bring us together in a strong and united way." With these words, Annelore Krauß presented her idea for a volunteer project in December 2024 with the aim of enabling people who are no longer able to actively and independently participate in the Capital of Culture year to do so. Together with participants from the sewing circle at Chemnitz Montessori School and with the support of Volkssolidarität Chemnitz, they set out to sew 250 lovingly designed hearts and hand them over to care homes, children's hospices and other social institutions. Over the past few months, many other partners have joined this campaign and helped to sew. These include the trainees at Heim gGmbH, the Vosi Line Dancers, the patchwork circle at the civic centre in Leipziger Straße, the Lösch & Partner hiking club, "Strickliesel" in Stollberg and many more. Together with over 60 Chemnitz 2025 volunteers, they have made over 600 hearts in countless joint sewing sessions. Each one is unique. Annelore Krauß and representatives of the sewing circle handed over the self-sewn fabric hearts to the Volkssolidarität nursing home in Mozartstraße on 16 December 2025.
Annelore Krauß, the initiator of the project, is delighted with this success: "617 hearts are a proud result that could only be achieved through wonderful teamwork. In the spirit of Chemnitz 2025, very different people pulled together and got to know new people as well as new sewing techniques. Incidentally, I also met Minister President Michael Kretschmer and presented him with a heart. But that's for his wife because he's travelling so much."
"We were really surprised at how many volunteers took part and became aware of us," says Bärbel Fischer from the sewing circle. "We got to know a lot of great people and, together with some of the children, we were even able to make little dolphins in addition to the hearts, which we are giving to a children's hospice. We will definitely continue next year!"
Michael Furch, the director of the Volkssolidarität care home, was delighted with the "Hearts for Chemnitz" project: "What a great Christmas surprise for our residents. Some of them had already approached me in advance and placed an "order". It's very impressive what has been achieved here in Chemnitz and the Capital of Culture region through voluntary work. Thank you very much."
As a thank you on behalf of Chemnitz 2025, Dirk Zinner, head of the volunteer programme, presented a Capital of Culture gift basket to the initiator of the heart project Annelore Krauß and the representatives of the sewing circle. He was impressed by this initiative: "It's wonderful to see what this small idea has become. So many hearts have been created with so much joy that we can use them to bring a little joy to people in ten organisations in Chemnitz, Neukirchen, Oelsnitz and Stollberg. Thank you very much for this great commitment."
