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Deutsch Impressions of the ceremony
Impressions of the ceremony
"Gütersloh is a feeling"
On Sunday, May 18, the city of Gütersloh celebrated its 200th anniversary with an official ceremony in the Stadthalle. Around 1,000 guests from politics, culture, business and delegations from the twin towns of Grudziądz, Falun, Broxtowe and Châteauroux took part in the event. All of the performers in the two-and-a-half-hour program came from Gütersloh. The event was also broadcast live on the internet.
Mayor Matthias Trepper opened the ceremony with a welcoming speech. In it, he described Gütersloh as a "charming village" and emphasized the well-known saying that the city is both a kaffir and a cosmos. This was followed by greetings from the President of the State Parliament, André Kuper from Rietberg, and from the District Administrator of Gütersloh, Sven-Georg Adenauer. Kuper sees Gütersloh's past 200 years as a prime example: "Tradition and progress can produce great things!" He also paid tribute to Germany's first community foundation, founded in Gütersloh in 1996 by entrepreneur Reinhard Mohn. "Each individual can make the city a little more liveable," concluded Kuper, who also made an appeal. Adenauer made it clear how important Gütersloh is as a city - also financially - for the district. He highlighted the anniversary program, which is as colourful and lively as the city with 200 highlights throughout the year. "Community, diversity and commitment - that's what makes Gütersloh special," said the district administrator, praising the 200-year-old district town.
The ceremony was hosted by Susanne Zimmermann, the city's former and long-standing press spokeswoman, with a lot of Gütersloh flair. She herself had waved to the Queen during her visit to Gütersloh in May 1965, recalled the abbreviation HVP (Hertie-Vorplatz / Berliner Platz) and asked the audience who else had learned to swim in the old swimming pool. The event was accompanied by music from the brass ensemble of the Gütersloh fire department's symphonic wind orchestra. The Gütersloh Boys' Choir under the direction of Sigmund Bothmann was introduced by presenter Zimmermann with a comparison to the Vienna Boys' Choir. The Gütersloh choir presented - as always - highly professional works from the Renaissance, accompanied by Yamato Hasumi on the theorbo and Michael Freimuth on the arcilio.
Another highlight was the dance choreography by the Neumann sports and ballet school, which delighted the audience with a specially rehearsed dance and tap dance performance. Dr. Christoph Lorke from the LWL Institute for Westphalian Regional History, together with moderator Zimmermann, offered a historical review of 200 years of the city's history with reference to the second part of the book on the city's history. In Lorke's opinion, Gütersloh is a city that needs a retrospective explanation. The comedy trio Vox Rindvieh provided humorous accents and a satirical look at "our Gütersloh" with excerpts from their anniversary show "200 years of Gütersloh - and how much longer do we have to go?". Gütersloh cannot be described, because "Gütersloh is a feeling". At the end of the performance, the 1,000 or so guests at the ceremony stood clapping enthusiastically and sang "Oh Gütersloh" to the tune of "Sweet Caroline".
As part of the ceremony, the partnerships with Grudziądz (35 years) and Falun (30 years) were also honored with the signing of certificates. The ceremony concluded with the cutting of the anniversary cake by Mayor Trepper, accompanied by the musical sounds of the brass ensemble. Afterwards, the town invited guests to a champagne reception with anniversary cake in the foyer of the town hall, where they had the opportunity to sign the guest book.
The ceremony was part of an extensive anniversary programme with a total of 200 events that the city of Gütersloh is organizing together with committed citizens over the course of 2025. Further information and dates are available on the official anniversary website at www.200jahreguetersloh.de. A photo gallery of the ceremony is available at www.guetersloh.de.
- Video: CarlMakesMedia