At the beginning of December 2023, two volunteers set off for Timișoara, Romania, together with Dirk Zinner, the coordinator of the Chemnitz 2025 volunteers programme, to accompany the closing celebrations of the European Capital of Culture 2023. Leonore and Jörg are part of the so-called basic team of volunteers. They are gaining experience in the preparation process so that they can pass this on to new volunteers in the coming months. The assignment in Timișoara was a special experience for everyone.
The volunteer programme of the European Capital of Culture Chemnitz 2025 is an opportunity to get directly involved in the diverse activities for Chemnitz 2025. The commitment of many dedicated citizens from Chemnitz and the Capital of Culture region is important because they support this unique project as ambassadors. Over 100 volunteers are already active. This is the so-called basic team, with whose help many hundreds more interested people will be integrated into the volunteer programme from summer 2024.
Dirk Zinner, head of the volunteer programme for Chemnitz 2025, has written down his impressions of the assignment in Timisoara 2023: "The onset of winter at Munich Airport, rail strikes, sick notes and changes to the travel plan. After a bumpy start, a team of three volunteers (Dirk, Leonore and Jörg) from Chemnitz set off for Timișoara in Romania, one of the European Capitals of Culture 2023. The volunteers from Chemnitz wanted to actively support the Romanian team with the final programme. The welcome from the Romanian colleagues is warm and the stay very eventful.
After arriving in Timișoara on 8 December and briefly freshening up, we met the Italian volunteers from Matera, the European Capital of Culture 2019. We were all invited to a get-to-know-you dinner in the restaurant of the university's impressive main building right in the city centre.
And then we went straight to our assignment. We experienced the big open-air closing event on the "Piata-Unirii" from a volunteer's perspective. While some volunteers worked with security staff to ensure that thousands of visitors entered the square in an orderly fashion, other volunteers were responsible for handing out programme booklets and rain jackets. After a brief introduction by the young volunteer Carina, we were also assigned to the latter.
Carina spoke good German and was therefore responsible for us. The Italian team was assisted by an English/Italian-speaking volunteer. Many of the approximately 15,000 guests gladly accepted the information we distributed and were directly interested in where we came from. After the event with pop stars such as Katie Melua, Roísín Murphy and Jessie J, we helped with small dismantling jobs such as putting up posters and folding flags. Around midnight we fell into our beds, exhausted but happy with many new impressions.
The next day started with breakfast together in one of the many small but cosy cafés in the old town. Afterwards, volunteers showed us around Timisoara and showed us their city, its sights and history, such as bullet holes on buildings that bear witness to the 1989 anti-communist revolution. On our tour, the Romanian volunteers also asked us questions about Chemnitz. They also wanted to get to know our city.
Together with other volunteers, we also supported a postcard workshop. Citizens of all ages used watercolours to design Christmas postcards, which were then to be sent to Capitals of Culture across Europe. With Leonore and Jörg, we had postcard experts from Chemnitz with us. They had already been involved in several workshops in Chemnitz where cards were designed.
We continued with a support mission to prepare a thank-you meeting for the Romanian volunteer base team. Finally, around 50 volunteers flocked to the Volunteer Centre for refreshments after a major final assignment. The last big event of Timisoara 2023 was over. Everyone is very tired but also proud of what they have achieved. They want to continue after the Capital of Culture year.
We presented each other with gifts to say goodbye. In addition to Italian pizza, Christmas stollen from the Ore Mountains and egg liqueur from chocolate cups, our CultureBags were very popular.
Leonore received a personal gift from volunteer Anna from the Timisoara team - a home-made pearl necklace. Neither of them speak the same language, but they still got on really well. Leonore's summary of the trip: "I am overwhelmed by the warmth of the volunteers here. We don't need words to understand each other. We have facial expressions and hearts."
Jörg didn't miss the opportunity to toast once again with egg liqueur from Chemnitz. He was also impressed and summarised: "It was a great time. We are taking an incredible amount back to Chemnitz and are looking forward to seeing our Italian and Romanian friends again in 2025. Looking back, I have to say that if I hadn't been on the volunteer programme, I would have missed out on this experience."
