Celebrating Diversity and Inclusivity: 10th Anniversary of Daimlerstraße Children’s Home

“Come into the circle, then no one will be alone anymore” – this was the motto of the anniversary celebration in the Daimlerstraße children’s home on Saturday, May 6th. Almost 500 guests celebrated the tenth anniversary at a colourful, intercultural festival. Strictly speaking, the social institution is twelve years old, since it opened its doors for the first time in 2011 – with 40 children at the time. Today there are around 100 children from 28 countries, a third of whom have special needs. They are looked after by 35 specialists. Due to Corona, the celebrations for the milestone birthday of the children’s and family home could only take place two years late.

“The world meets at Daimlerstrasse,” stressed facility manager Anita Strassenberger. The daily encounters are there characterized by great mutual respect, which is what makes the work in the children’s home so special. “Every single child with their individual needs is the focus of the educational team, who approach the care and education with a lot of commitment and passion,” Strassenberger praised the inclusive work of the team. The facility management described children, parents and staff as a large, learning community in which humor and laughter are important pillars.

The joy and motivation can also be clearly felt, said Lord Mayor Alexander Putz in his words of welcome. Above all, he emphasized the integrative and inclusive work that has been done on Daimlerstrasse for many years: “Here it doesn’t matter where someone comes from and what language they speak.” The city has facilities that have been excellent for over a decade doing work, especially at heart. Nathalie Götz, deputy head of the child day-care office, also agreed with the words of the mayor.

After the speeches, the guests celebrated in a relaxed atmosphere with an international buffet. The group “Radio canta con noi” provided the musical accompaniment. A diverse children’s program was offered on the adjacent soccer field. Among other things, there is a slide, a bouncy castle, football darts, face painting and much more. This was made possible by the cooperation partners of the children’s home: the Stadtjugendring, the Porschestraße district work, the community foundation, the coordinating child protection agency, mobile youth work, youth social work in schools and Haus International.