50 years of telephone counseling Graz: Help in times of crisis celebrates anniversary!

50 years of telephone counseling Graz: Help in times of crisis celebrates anniversary!

Graz, Österreich - Graz, 18.03.2025 - half a century emergency call for the soul! The “Telephone Sympan Graz-Emergency Call 142” celebrates its 50th anniversary on Thursday. Since its foundation in 1975, the facility has developed into an indispensable contact for people in crisis situations. A total of around 500,000 calls, chats and emails have been registered since then. Under the motto "Always in connection", around 100 volunteers are currently available who have processed around 17,000 calls and 7,700 chats annually. This valuable contact point helps with problems such as loneliness, relationship stress or psychological stress, as the head Daniela Bauer emphasized in an interview.

The development of telephone counseling is impressive: the facility to Austria's largest online consultant has blossomed from a telephone relief service at the risk of suicide. "We react to new challenges with regular further training of employees," said Bauer. In the future, a messenger service will also be introduced beyond the classic telephone consultations in order to better achieve younger people, as is mentioned on the telephone counseling website. The telephone counseling is therefore a lively example of adapting to the needs of society. Callers are encouraged to actively shape their everyday life and to look for small positive encounters.

invitation to the anniversary celebration

The anniversary will be celebrated on Thursday, March 20, at 6 p.m. in the Graz minority hall with a speech by the author and Bachmann award winner Nava Ebrahimi. The celebration offers a varied program through which the editor-in-chief of the "furrow", Doris Helmberger-Fleckl, will lead. Telephone counseling remains available around the clock under number 142 and offers help in a confidential, free form. Chats are offered daily between 4 p.m. and 11 p.m. and emails are answered within 48 hours.

"We are not a therapy facility, but for many we are the first point of contact," says Bauer, the role of telephone pastoral care in society. The most important message: In times of crisis, help and support are available to which you can contact with confidence. For more information on the work of the telephone counseling Graz, the website Telefonselsorge-graz.at is a helpful contact point.