Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk

The Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. (MKW) is a German humanitarian aid organization and registered non-profit association based in Freiburg im Breisgau. It was founded on 19 October 1973 by the Zentralkomitee der deutschen Katholiken (Central Committee of German Catholics) together with thirteen Catholic associations, driven forward by Alfons Erb, then vice-president of Pax Christi Germany. Its purpose, set out in its statutes, is to contribute to understanding and reconciliation between the Polish and German peoples and with other countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and to support former concentration camp and ghetto prisoners from Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries regardless of their religion, denomination, or worldview. The organization traces its origins to a penitential pilgrimage to Poland in May 1964, when members of the German section of Pax Christi traveled with Alfons Erb to the Auschwitz-Birkenau memorial. An encounter with a Polish couple who were camp survivors in difficult financial and health circumstances led the pilgrims to collect money on the spot. From this spontaneous initiative grew the "Solidaritätsspende" (solidarity donation) campaign for survivors in Poland in 1965. The MKW was officially founded in 1973 and became a pioneer of reconciliation with Poland in both political and ecclesiastical contexts. Its first managing director was Alfons Erb. Today the work of the MKW rests on three pillars: "Helfen – Begegnen – Erinnern" (Helping – Encountering – Remembering). Under "Helping," it provides concrete humanitarian aid to camp and ghetto survivors, many of whom are in poor health and lonely. This includes annual grants to around 1,500 people, support for home nursing, medical therapy and counseling centers in Łódź and Kraków, a lending station for medical aids, and annual spa and holiday places. Under "Encountering," it has organized rest and encounter stays in Germany for survivors since 1978, with over 12,000 invitations issued and around 400 participants per year from Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries. Under "Remembering," it carries out remembrance work so that the history does not fall into oblivion. Since 1992 the MKW has also supported camp survivors in successor states of the Soviet Union, including Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and the Baltic states, initially through 26 aid transports and since 2002 through aid and encounter projects in Moldova, Russia and the Kaliningrad region, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. The organization is funded primarily by private donations and occasional church collections, and has carried out aid projects totaling more than 60 million euros. Since 2001 it has held the donation seal of the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI). It is a member of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Stiftung (Maximilian Kolbe Foundation) network and maintains a board and general assembly of volunteers alongside a full-time management. Its namesake is Father Maximilian Kolbe, the Polish Franciscan who died in Auschwitz in 1941 after offering his life for another prisoner and was canonized in 1982.

The Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. (MKW) is a German humanitarian aid organization and registered non-profit association based in Freiburg im Breisgau. Its history begins with a penitential pilgrimage to Poland in May 1964, when members of the German section of Pax Christi, led by Alfons Erb, traveled to the Auschwitz-Birkenau memorial. There they encountered a Polish couple, both camp survivors, who were in a difficult financial and health situation. The pilgrims collected money for the couple on the spot. From this spontaneous initiative, the "Solidaritätsspende" (solidarity donation) campaign for survivors in Poland emerged in 1965. At that time, gestures of reparation and financial compensation from the West German government were not in sight, and political relations between Germany and Poland were extremely difficult. On 19 October 1973, the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk was officially founded by the Zentralkomitee der deutschen Katholiken (Central Committee of German Catholics) and thirteen Catholic associations, driven forward by Alfons Erb, then vice-president of Pax Christi. The organization thus became a pioneer of reconciliation with Poland in both political and ecclesiastical contexts. Its first managing director was Alfons Erb. The choice of namesake was a clear signal: Father Maximilian Kolbe was already well known and revered in Poland. Kolbe, a Polish Franciscan Minorite born in 1894, founded the Franciscan monastery town of Niepokalanów and established the largest Catholic press center in Poland. Arrested in February 1941, he was sent to Auschwitz, where in late July 1941 he offered his life in exchange for a Catholic countryman and father, Franciszek Gajowniczek, who had been selected for death by starvation. After two weeks in the hunger bunker, Kolbe was killed by a phenol injection on 14 August 1941 and cremated in the Auschwitz crematorium. He was canonized as a Catholic "martyr of love" in 1982. A key turning point came at the 1978 Katholikentag (Catholic Congress) in Freiburg, where six Polish survivors of the Ravensbrück women's concentration camp attended. Elisabeth Erb, who took over the management in 1982, was convinced by this encounter that meeting between people was the prerequisite for reconciliation. Since 1978, the MKW has organized rest and encounter stays in Germany for concentration camp and Holocaust survivors. Over 12,000 invitations have been issued since then, with around 400 people from Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries participating each year in these stays supervised by volunteers. Often these visits are the first contact with the "land of the perpetrators" after the war. The re-encounter with Germans, the German language, and often with the sites of suffering leads in many cases to a psychological liberation. In terms of humanitarian aid in Poland, the MKW supports survivors through concrete measures: annual grants of between 150 and 600 euros on application to about 1,500 people; professional and financial support for home nursing by nurses and other caregivers; medical therapy and counseling centers in Łódź and Kraków with doctors of all specialties; a lending station for medical aids; about 500 spa places annually and 150 places for single people over the Christmas holidays and New Year; and German volunteers visit around 800 bedridden camp survivors in Poland each year. In almost all of the 49 former Polish voivodeships, camp survivors act as trusted representatives coordinating the MKW's aid offers, organizing special medical consultations and running the social-medical centers in Łódź and Kraków, which also serve as meeting points and counseling centers. Since 1992, the MKW has also supported camp survivors in successor states of the Soviet Union. In Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and the Baltic states, 26 aid transports were carried out, each providing 1,200 to 1,500 people with financial and material aid from German volunteer helpers. Since 2002, aid and encounter projects have replaced the aid transports in Eastern European countries: MKW staff meet camp and ghetto survivors at central gatherings and make home visits to the sick. All survivors receive financial support. Since 2002, such projects have been carried out in Moldova, Russia and the Kaliningrad region, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. Annual visits continue in further regions. The MKW is funded primarily by private donations and occasional church collections, and has carried out aid projects totaling more than 60 million euros. Since 2001 it has held the donation seal of the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI), marking it as worthy of support. The organization is a registered non-profit association with volunteer bodies—a board and a general assembly—and a full-time management. The board is elected for four years by the general assembly. The general assembly includes representatives from the Central Committee of German Catholics, the Bund der Deutschen Katholischen Jugend, the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, Kolpingwerk Deutschland, Caritas Internationalis, Renovabis e.V., Pax Christi, the Polish Bishops' Conference, the German Bishops' Conference, and others. The MKW is closely linked to the Maximilian-Kolbe-Stiftung (Maximilian Kolbe Foundation). Its work today rests on the three pillars "Helfen – Begegnen – Erinnern" (Helping – Encountering – Remembering).

• 2002

  Aid transports replaced by aid and encounter projects in Eastern European countries.

• 2001

  Awarded the donation seal of the German Central Institute for Social Issues (DZI).

• 1992

  Start of support for camp survivors in successor states of the Soviet Union.

• 1982

  Elisabeth Erb takes over the management; Maximilian Kolbe is canonized.

• 1978

  First rest and encounter stays in Germany for camp and Holocaust survivors; key encounter at the Freiburg Katholikentag with six Polish Ravensbrück survivors.

• 1973

  Official founding of the Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk on 19 October by the Central Committee of German Catholics and thirteen Catholic associations.

• 1965

  Launch of the "Solidaritätsspende" (solidarity donation) campaign for survivors in Poland.

• 1964

  Penitential pilgrimage to Poland by German Pax Christi members led by Alfons Erb; encounter with Polish camp survivors leads to spontaneous fundraising.

A Catholic humanitarian aid organization dedicated to helping survivors of Nazi concentration camps and ghettos, fostering reconciliation between Germany and Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries, and preserving memory.

• Annual financial grants to survivors

  Grants of between 150 and 600 euros on application to about 1,500 people annually.

• Home nursing support

  Professional and financial support for home care by nurses and other caregivers.

• Medical therapy and counseling centers

  Centers in Łódź and Kraków with doctors of all specialties.

• Medical aid lending station

  Lending of medical aids to survivors.

• Spa and holiday places

  About 500 spa places annually and 150 places for single people over Christmas and New Year.

• Encounter stays in Germany

  Rest and encounter stays for survivors since 1978, with over 12,000 invitations and around 400 participants per year.

• Aid and encounter projects in Eastern Europe

  Projects in Moldova, Russia and Kaliningrad, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan since 2002.

1. 1Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. – Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V.maximilian-kolbe-werk.de
2. 2Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. – Geschichte des Maximilian-Kolbe-Werksmaximilian-kolbe-werk.de
3. 3Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. – Jobsmaximilian-kolbe-werk.de
4. 4Maximilian-Kolbe-Werk e.V. – Gremienmaximilian-kolbe-werk.de
5. 5Wikidata – Maximilian-Kolbe-Werkwikidata.org
6. 6Wikipedia (German) – Maximilian-Kolbe-Werkde.wikipedia.org