Enthusiastic encounters: Tempelhof-Schöneberg celebrates Barnets for 60 years!
Enthusiastic encounters: Tempelhof-Schöneberg celebrates Barnets for 60 years!
Tempelhof-Schöneberg, Deutschland - On May 23, 2025, a delegation from Tempelhof-Schöneberg traveled to Barnet to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the British district. Under the direction of district mayor Jörn Oltmann and district councilor Stefan Böltes, numerous events took place from May 9th to 11th, 2025. The partnership between Tempelhof-Schöneberg and Barnet, which was founded in 1955 between the Tempelhof and Hendon districts at the time, is rooted in common historical experiences, including the air bridge. These two districts were connected by the Hendon and Tempelhof airports, from which the "raisin bomber" started and landed. Today these airports are no longer available in their original function; The Royal Air Force Museum is now home to the site of the former Hendon Airport.
During their visit, the representatives explored various youth and volunteer projects and visited the "Phoenix cinema", which is considered the oldest cinema in the UK. Another focus was on the exchange of scouts of different age groups with children and young people from Tempelhof-Schöneberg. The exchange was supported by the district mayor as well as Tony Vourou and Mark Russel, the Deputy Lieutenant von Barnet. Barnet's newly elected district mayor Danny Rich also showed himself to be a supporter of closer cooperation between the cities when he took office on May 20, 2025.celebrations for the Kennedy anniversary
Another important historical event in the region is the upcoming citizens' festival for the 60th anniversary of the famous speech by US President John F. Kennedy. On June 24, 2023, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. in front of the Schöneberg town hall, the historical moment is reminded when Kennedy spoke in front of 400,000 Berliners in 1963. The speech took place on the occasion of the 15th anniversary of the air bridge, which West Berlin supported during the Soviet blockade. At 6 p.m. a ceremony will take place with greetings from the governing mayor Kai Wegner and US ambassador Amy Gutmann. In addition, the original Kennedy speech is transferred to a big screen, followed by a special ringing of the freedom bell.
The speech by Kennedy, who at that time spoke and explained about the challenges of freedom and democracy: "I am a Berliner", remains a symbolic highlight of the history of Berlin. The ceremony is musically framed by choirs from the John-F.-Kennedy School and the USAir Force jazz band. In view of the fact that Kennedy was murdered only months later on November 22, 1963, the event contributed to the city's collective memory and testifies to the hope of peace and freedom that was finally met with the fall of the 1989 fall.
International connections of Berlin
Berlin's partner cities play a crucial role in the international networking of the capital. Berlin currently maintains partnerships with 19 cities worldwide, which were largely completed before and after reunification in 1990. These connections to cities such as Brussels, Madrid or Tokyo are not only limited to political relationships, but also contain cultural, economic and scientific exchange. The cooperation aims to offer the citizens of Berliners concrete advantages and, among other things, promote youth exchange as well as joint seminars and events. This exchange reveals the relationships between the metropolises and supports the internationalization of business and science in Berlin.
The continued thematic focus of these partnerships is in areas such as culture, youth promotion and business. Berlin thus creates a network that works far beyond the city levels and leads to active cooperation between citizens and institutions in different cities.
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| Ort | Tempelhof-Schöneberg, Deutschland |
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