ALB e.V. | Aphasie | Schlaganfall

The Christmas Café of the Aphasie LV Berlin eV (ALB) took place on Saturday, December 8, 2018, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the "Integral" meeting center in Berlin-Friedrichshain. After the people with aphasia, their families, and guests had taken their seats at the Christmas-decorated tables, the chairman of the ALB, André Laqua, welcomed everyone with a short address. There was plenty of delicious homemade cake and coffee available for self-service. And then everyone ate and chatted. Afterwards, the leader of the Aphasia Choir, Mr. Böhmer, sat among the guests with his accordion and played the chords of many well-known Christmas carols. The lyrics of the songs were available at each seat. All participants sang these songs together. It was a wonderful atmosphere. The next part of the celebration was provided by the singer and musician Dirk Jüttner. He sang many well-known songs and Christmas carols, and most of the guests listened enthusiastically. Some participants danced to the Christmas hits. The atmosphere was exuberant and joyful. Our thanks go to everyone who contributed to the success of this celebration. Margaret Voigt

Report on the trip of the aphasics and their families from September 9th to 12th, 2018, to Herrnhut in Upper Lusatia. On Sunday, September 9th, 2018, 32 people with aphasia and their families, five of whom were in wheelchairs, met at 9:30 a.m. for departure in front of the travel agency for barrier-free travel of the Fürst-Donnersmarck Foundation on Blissestraße. We traveled by coach for barrier-free travel provided by Uhlenköper-Reisen from Uelzen. As every year, we were led by Ms. Christine Busch and the historian Mr. Andreas Chevallerie as driver. We were also accompanied by a travel assistant. All three helped the particularly disabled aphasics traveling alone with the necessary activities during the trip. We arrived in Herrnhut around 3 p.m. We were welcomed at the Komensky guest and conference center of the Evangelical Moravian Church of Herrnhut. There we checked into our rooms. All three overnight stays took place at Haus Komensky. At 4 p.m., we met for a short hike with a guided tour of the Moravian Church. The pastor led us along field paths to the "Gottesacker," which houses a historic cemetery. Approximately 6,000 members of the Moravian Church are buried there. The Moravian Church's roots lie in the Czech Reformation with Jan Hus. Starting in 1457, it developed into the Moravian Church, one of the first Protestant churches in Europe. Religious refugees from the Czech Church found shelter with Count von Zinzendorf in 1722 and founded the settlement of Herrnhut. On our subsequent walk through the town of Herrnhut, we saw the memorial, a statue of Count von Zinzendorf. The Moravian Church was destroyed by arson on May 9, 1945. The church was rebuilt by 1956. We toured the church, and the pastor treated us to a meal and told us more details about the church's construction. At 6 p.m., we had dinner at Komensky's, and we sat together comfortably outside in the courtyard of the Komensky House in the glorious late summer weather. On the second day, after breakfast at 10 a.m., we headed to Görlitz. Mr. Chevallerie told us that Görlitz is sometimes called the "Most Beautiful City in Germany." During World War II, it was almost completely spared from destruction. We took a guided tour in two groups. Görlitz is the easternmost city in Germany. It is also called "Görliwood" because many well-known films were filmed here, for example, "The Reader," based on the novel by Bernhard Schlink, an American adaptation. Görlitz has a charming medieval town center. It would be too much to list all of Görlitz's sights here. There are simply too many. This city is more than worth seeing. You simply have to be there and see everything. We only saw the city center, a fraction of it, probably the most beautiful. Görlitz lies on the Lusatian Neisse River; the eastern part belongs to Poland and is called Zgorzelec. In 2004, a pedestrian bridge from Görlitz to Zgorzelec was opened. Many names in Görlitz are in German, English, and Sorbian. The Sorbs live in Lusatia. They are the only ethnic minority in Germany with their own language. After the tour, we had time to explore the pedestrian zone of the city center. Beautiful cafés and the shopping area kept us busy. After an eventful day, we sat together again in the hotel courtyard after dinner in Herrnhut. The third day woke us up to sunshine again. We drove to Ostrich to the St. Marienthal Monastery, not far from Herrnhut. The monastery consists of a huge monastery complex. It has its own bus stop, mailbox, monastery market, vineyards, and a brewery. We took part in a guided tour of the monastery complex lasting several hours. The monastery was founded in 1234 by Kunigundis of Bohemia. The property was donated to the nuns of the Cistercian Order as an atonement. This monastery has been in continuous operation as a nunnery for 784 years, making it the oldest monastery in all of Germany. It understandably has a turbulent history. In 1833, a devastating fire destroyed most of the monastery complex. In the following years, everything was rebuilt. Another major disaster was the flood of 2010. All buildings were flooded inside and out. Now, there is a threat of the monastery closing due to a lack of new nuns. The average age of the nuns is 68. Each nun must take the vows of poverty, obedience, chastity, and constancy at the beginning of her life as a nun. The service is strenuous and focused exclusively on God. The "German Federal Environmental Foundation" is heavily involved here. In 1992, an international meeting center was founded at the monastery. The meetings take place primarily with Poles and Czechs. After a shared lunch in the garden of the ancient half-timbered monastery tavern, shaded by four hundred-year-old oaks, we had actually intended to drive back to Herrnhut in our bus to visit the star factory there. But things turned out differently: Our bus broke down – the rear wheels were stuck in a depression in the ground. After numerous telephone attempts by Mr. Chevallerie and Ms. Busch, a rescue vehicle from the ADAC arrived after almost three hours and freed the bus from its tilt, allowing us to drive again. The wait until then was pleasant. We filled the time with walks in the monastery's beautiful natural surroundings and drinks in the garden of the monastery tavern. Upon arriving at the Komensky House in Herrnhut, we were invited to a wonderful barbecue in the hotel courtyard in perfect summer weather. There was plenty of meat, something we had missed on the previous two evenings. The fourth and final day began, after breakfast and stowing our luggage on the bus, with a visit to the Herrnhut Star Manufactory. This is a demonstration workshop. The stars are made there entirely by hand. We were able to watch some of the employees at work and experience how a star is created. There was also a short film screening. Over 160 years ago, the first stars, the origin of all poinsettias, were made in the Moravian Church castle and shone in the boarding school rooms. Today, these stars can be admired in almost every Christian church in Germany from the beginning of Advent. Advent means "arrival." The star symbolizes the "Star of Bethlehem," which announced the birth of Jesus Christ. These stars are produced exclusively in Herrnhut. From here, they are exported to many countries around the world. We were also able to purchase such stars locally. We then drove to Pulsnitz. Our destination was the Helios Clinic in Pulsnitz Castle. This is a specialized clinic for neurological and neurosurgical rehabilitation. After a welcome with coffee and cake, we were invited to a lecture. Ms. Antje Lohse, a speech therapist and specialist in dysphagia and tracheostomy tube management, welcomed us. She is the director of the therapy center. Therapy includes both clinical (inpatient) and outpatient care for patients. Patients receive speech therapy, psychotherapy, occupational therapy, work experience, and prevention courses. After the acute hospital, patients continue their treatment seamlessly. Ms. Kretschmann, a marketing specialist with a degree, gave us a PowerPoint presentation. We were then able to ask questions, which were answered expertly. After a guided tour of the hospital grounds, our visit concluded. Our stay in Pulsnitz concluded with a visit to the Gingerbread Museum. We took a guided tour and learned that making gingerbread is hard physical work. The dough contains no pepper, but plenty of oriental spices, and after preparation, it must be aged for at least three months. Only then is it baked. At the end, we had the opportunity to purchase various gingerbreads, which the "fans" made enthusiastic use of. Afterwards, we returned to Berlin by bus and arrived on Blissestraße in Berlin just before 6 p.m. Thanks go to all the helpers who contributed to the success of this unforgettable trip. Margaret Voigt

Miteinander Leben Berlin Trade Fair - Rehabilitation, Care & Mobility from May 24-26, 2018. The Miteinander Leben Berlin trade fair is the trade fair for the fields of rehabilitation, care, and mobility. Numerous exhibitors offer a wide range of information on all the needs of daily life and provide information at the Miteinander Leben Berlin trade fair about products and services for seniors, as well as people with disabilities or limitations, who prescribes them, and where to get them. In addition, visitors to the Miteinander Leben Berlin trade fair can expect an extensive supporting program and forums. Clubs and associations showcase the diversity and colorfulness of life.

2018: December 18th; 4:30 p.m.; Christmas bus tour December 8th; 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.; ALB Christmas Café; Integral November 22nd; 2 p.m.; Slide show; Kiezspinne November 2nd; 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., ALB group meeting; Blissestr. October 30th; 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.; Media and data protection; SEKIS October 22nd; 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.; KK funding; SEKIS September 19th - 21st: Nationwide conference of active aphasia sufferers from the state associations in Magdeburg May 3rd - 5th: 40th anniversary celebration of the federal association in Erkner near Berlin March 23rd - 25th: Seminar on guidance and support for caregivers http://www.zns-akademie.de/#content15. March 17th - 18th Würzburg Aphasia Days https://aphasie-unterfranken.de/zfa/angebot/wuerzburger-aphasie-tage/ March 12th - 17th Brain Awareness Week Berlin https://www.baw-berlin.de/programm.html March 13th Health Self-Help Day; 1-5 p.m. at the Kiezspinne. March 7th ALB Annual General Meeting; 5 p.m. at the "Kiezspinne". Representative of the Federal Association: Dagmar Amslinger, Managing Director. January 24th - 26th AvA Seminar in Kloster, Oberzell.