"Especially in times like these, friendship between people, between the district of Ludwigsburg and the Upper Galilee region, is becoming increasingly important. Personal encounters and exchanges are so important," said District Administrator Allgaier in his speech. The exchange with the Upper Galilee is a matter close to his heart. That is why he wanted to celebrate the 25th anniversary and strengthen the partnership at the same time. After all, the two partners are a perfect match: The Upper Galilee is characterized by its high economic dynamism and its start-up mentality and the district of Ludwigsburg by its high-tech industry and its key automotive technology. "I am proud of our long-standing relationship. For me personally, the partnership has a high value - I would describe our partnership as special, unique and very close," said Allgaier.
The head of the district administration also spoke about the beginnings of the partnership, which was founded on 14 March 1997 in the Pädagogisch Kulturelles Centrum (PKC) Ehemalige Synagoge Freudental by Dietmar Allgaier's predecessor Dr. Rainer Haas and Giora Salz's predecessor Aharon Valency. It all began with the meeting of two young people in the Upper Galilee in 1979, Ludwig Bez and Gadi Lahav. The then District Administrator Dr. Ulrich Hartmann and the former Chairman Avram Broshi then consolidated the friendship in the following years. Over the years, there have been a whole series of impressive and unforgettable encounters. In the past two years, contact has been kept alive despite the pandemic. For example, a short video clip about the special partnership was produced last year. The special focus of the partnership is on young people. This would not be possible without the teachers and principals, whom Allgaier thanked very much. He was pleased that the 8th German-Israeli teachers' seminar could take place and that the student exchanges of all five school partnerships would be resumed this year. Finally, District Administrator Allgaier thanked the Ludwigsburg District Youth Orchestra under the direction of Roland Haug for providing the musical framework for the ceremony: "Music is also a good starting point for mutual understanding. This is another reason why there is close cooperation between the orchestras of the Ludwigsburg district and the Upper Galilee region."
District Administrator Allgaier was followed by his Israeli counterpart Giora Salz. He noted that the way in which life experiences are perceived and have an impact varies greatly from person to person, even when the same experience is shared. According to Salz, the experience depends on the intensity of the experience, the time that has passed since an event and the scope and magnitude of the experience. The Holocaust was a central element of the Second World War and yet the time that has passed since then allows most of humanity to view it as just one event among many. The monstrosity of the Holocaust is no longer recognized today. "Our common mission is: to study the past, to master the present together and, above all, to plan the future as a better world," said Salz.
Afterwards, Eberhard Kleinmann, a teacher at Robert-Bosch-Gymnasium Gerlingen, and Peter McNally from HarVagai School spoke about the 25th anniversary of the student exchange between their schools.
