From the vision to the club

Oldenburg

The conflict settlement association was co-founded with the aim of actively contributing to the preservation of social peace by Veronika Hillenstedt, who was already involved in the prison system for juvenile offenders in the Vechta prison during her education studies at the University of Oldenburg and her previous training as a lawyer . Her diploma thesis deals with alternatives to arrest and prison.

The association emerged from the “Criminal Policy” working group, in which various people, including fellow students of Veronika Hillenstedt, got involved. After two voluntary years, she filled the association’s first permanent position – at the time in a tiny office on Haareneschstrasse, which was made available by the AWO. The beginnings consisted mainly of development and persuasion work. The first cases were processed in 1987. With significant legislative changes in the penal system at the beginning of the 1990s, the legal situation changed and the work of the association was able to pick up speed. In the beginning it was mainly juvenile offenses that were dealt with, over time more and more cases involving adults were added. In the meantime, nine people work on 300 cases, in which 780 to 800 conflict participants take part, every year in the premises on Kaiserstrasse. The board work is done by volunteers. In 2004 the association was awarded the “Theo A.” award at the nationwide perpetrator-victim compensation forum. Veronika Hillenstedt was the first woman to receive this award. After 34 years, she will retire as managing director at the end of February. Hilke Kenkel-Schwartz will be her successor. The 54-year-old has been part of the team for almost five years as a systemic family therapist and mediator in criminal matters.

The work of the association is financed by fines, i.e. penalties that people are sentenced to in court, by subsidies and donations. The association works closely with various institutions, the city and other institutions.