SAGSE 50th Anniversary 1967-2017

Visits to an Austrian salt mine, the fairytale Neuschwanstein, coldly-sobering Dachau, and the joy and wonder of a wide variety of Christmas Markets, among other attractions, round out this great adventure and cultural experience. Homestays are arranged with volunteer host families in the state of Hessen and the city of Essen in Nordrhein-Westfalen , at no monetary cost. In return, families reciprocate when the German students come to Queensland in our winter (July–August). German host families are usually very generous and students are often lucky enough to experience skiing holidays and trips to various cities, castles, villages and local sights in Germany and Europe. Similarly, when in Queensland, the Germans go on a one week bus tour to Cairns and host families show them typical Queensland hospitality. Many teachers have commented that students who go to Germany with SAGSE come back with much improved German. There is no doubt that staying with a host family and experiencing an authentic German Christmas – as well as attending school for a few weeks – does wonders for the students’ language skills. They also gain in confidence, independence and maturity. They walk off the plane in January simply glowing! A frequent student comment is that the SAGSE trip is the experience of their lifetime. Many families have sent several children in succession to Germany with SAGSE and many lifelong friendships have developed between family members on both sides of the world. This is a true measure of the success of this program. Over the years, the SAGSE Queensland Inc. committee has send more than 2,500 exchange students to and from Germany – a remarkable achievement! There is no doubt that SAGSE Qld Inc plays a very active and valuable role in forging friendships and facilitating the exchange of cultural and educational opportunities for teenagers in Queensland and in Germany. SAGSE Qld thanks the German Australian Community Centre Queensland (GACCQ) for publishing this booklet, in particular its President Detlef Sulzer for initiating this project and assisting Matt Tesch, principal of Masthead Design & Creative, who designed this very special publication. Introduction Linda Mains, Qld President

Past President Detlef Sulzer with Linda Mains in 2010

The Society for Australian-German Student Exchange (SAGSE) was founded in 1967 in Melbourne by Fritz von Einem-Joosten (1916–2003), a German businessman who had been seriously wounded while fighting on the Russian front and who emigrated to Australia soon after the war. He believed such conflicts could be avoided if young people from different countries could meet and learn to understand each other. He set up a trust fund to pay for scholarships to enable young Australians and young Germans to participate in an exchange. A Queensland branch was formed in 1971 as a non-profit group with a committee of people interested in the promotion and exchange of German language and culture. Professor Keith Leopold from The University of Queensland was the first SAGSE Queensland President. In 1983 when Detlef Sulzer became President, the exchange concept was amended to enable a larger group of students to participate, by supplementing the scholarships with funds from schools and parents.This proved to be very successful and the exchange has continued to operate in this manner since I became President after Detlef Sulzer in 2000. The volunteer committee members organise to transfer up to 50 Queensland school students as a group to Germany on exchange, and to place up to 50 students from Germany in Queensland homes every year. The annual SAGSE exchange group consists of students from state and private schools across Queensland. It is ideal for teachers in schools where there are not enough students able to go on a dedicated school trip. The students are brought together to make an economically viable group. The more students who participate, the lower the individual cost becomes. The students participate in a reciprocal exchange for 6½ weeks, leaving at the end of November and returning mid-January. A one-week bus tour is arranged, with the group staying in Nürnberg, Salzburg, München and Rothenburg o.d. Tauber.

3