| The Danube Swabian Foundation of the U.S.A., Inc. Die Donauschwaebische Stiftung der USA, Inc. |
| And now, another successful youth oriented event which the Stiftung helped sponsor: Jugendlager 2013 This year’s Jugendlager was hosted by the American Aid Society of German Descendents and it occurred on the third weekend in June. The majority of the Jugend and chaperones arrived on Thursday afternoon/evening and began setting up their tents before it became too dark. The evening continued with a short meeting where our president, Siegfried Henz, introduced himself and Renee Stein, Jugendleiterin, provided all of the information for the weekend. A delicious dinner of Chicago pizza was served and afterward we played games and enjoyed a bonfire. Everyone needed to be up bright and early the next morning for our busy day of touring the city of Chicago. After a brief walk to the train station, all 100 of us loaded onto a commuter train that took us straight into the city. Our first stop was the Willis (Sears) Tower where we met our tour guide for the day, Joseph Stein. Before heading up into the tower, Mr. Stein told us a bit about the architecture of the various buildings in Chicago and a history lesson on the Willis Tower. Once up in the Willis Tower, everyone enjoyed the view but the majority of the Jugend loved the newest feature – the ledge! The ledges are glass boxes that extend out from the building. Afterward, we enjoyed a nice lunch in the park and then boarded either a doubledecker bus or a trolley. Each mode of transportation was a two hour tour of the city. Thankfully they were both covered since a thunderstorm decided to roll in. Once our tour was over, the skies opened up and we were able to walk around the city with guidance from Mr. Stein and his wealth of information. Finally it was time to catch the train and head back to Lake Villa. We returned to a wonderful meal of hot dogs, hamburgers and all the fixings. Once it became dark, Matthew Katzenmayer, set up an outdoor movie for us to watch. We were able to watch most of it before it began to rain and everyone headed for their tents for the night. Saturday was our day to learn more about our Schwob culture. We started the day with learning to make Hungarian Wurst, potato salad and sauerkraut. Each Jugend had a chance to cut the meat, peel the potatoes, grind the meat, cut up the onions and fill the casings. As the Wurst was being cooked, Ann Morrison and Joseph Stein talked about the history of the Donauschwaben and how life was for many of them once they came to this country. In the afternoon, we broke up into four groups and participated in four different areas: singing, dancing, pretzel making, and touring the museum. Each station lasted an hour and by the end of the afternoon everyone was tired. Before eating our meal that we had prepared earlier in the day, the Jugend played games, took down their tents or just relaxed. We ended the evening with music and dancing. On Sunday morning we said goodbye to the new and old friends that we had made and left feeling pride of our Donauschwaben heritage. Despite the rainy weather that made many of our tents wet and soggy, everyone had a great time. On behalf of The American Aid Society of German Descendents, and all the clubs that attended, I, Renee Stein, would like to thank the Stiftung for their generous support. This weekend would not have been made possible if it weren’t for the Stiftungs donation and guidance. Please continue to support the Stiftung so that our Jugend can have the opportunity to embrace and learn about our culture for generations to come. Submitted by Renee Stein *************************************************************************************** Please send donations to: Danube Swabian Foundation, USA c/o Rosalia Burmeister, Secretary 12568 Semora St. Cerritos, Ca. 90703 All Donations fully tax deductible in accordance with IRS regulations. |