Stories of memory: Bad Saulgau students explore war history

Stories of memory: Bad Saulgau students explore war history

In an impressive initiative, the working group "SLG-traces made alive" published its trilogy entitled "From the gray of war-stories behind history". This collection provides insights into the fates of contemporary witnesses from Bad Saulgau and the surrounding area. They share personal memories of their childhood and youth during the war, which stimulates deep reflections on loss and displacement.

A particularly moving story is that of Anton Franz Schmid, the great uncle of Bad Saulgauerin Conny Scheck. Anton lost his life at the age of 25 when his plane collided with another German fighter plane over the Netherlands. For many years, both his remains and that of his crew remained undetected. It was not until 2019 that the remains of the planes were discovered, which led to Douwe Visser and his team's research trip, which finally found what they were looking for in the Bad Saulgau City Archives. Anton and his comrades are now buried at the German soldier cemetery in Ysselsteyn.

educational trip to Ysselsteyn

A central goal of a project week of the Helene-Weber School is the war graves in Ysselsteyn, where over 32,000 war deaths have found their last rest. This trip enables the students to better understand the scope of the events at that time and to recognize their importance in today's world. The group is housed in the nearby education center of the Volksbund.

In the cemetery, the graves, including that of Anton Franz Schmid, stand for the stories of the families behind these names. Each grave urgently reminds of the consequences of war and violence. The multimedia exhibition in the visitor center gives the young people deeper insights into the history of the war burial site, which is considered in a German-Dutch context. Workshops and seminars also take place here that link current social issues with historical events.

Wolfgang Schneiderhan, President of the Volksbund Deutsche War Gräberfürsorge, confirmed the importance of the war grave as a place to learn in discussions with the students. The Volksbund has the responsibility to preserve the memory of the war dead and at the same time sensitize the importance of peace. "Wars don't just break out, they are planned and brought about by humans," he emphasized, which underlines the relevance of educational work.

The tasks of the Volksbund are diverse and not only concern the care of graves, but also the support of relatives and the promotion of international cooperation. Today the Volksbund maintains 832 war graves in 46 countries with almost 2.8 million war dead. Thus, the war grave care represents an important element of the culture of remembrance, which should always be considered in an international context.

Access to youth and school education is also a central concern of the organization. Under the motto "Together for Peace", the Volksbund organizes international projects every year that combine young people together and do active school work. The aim is to convey values such as human rights and peace through dealing with historical and current topics, and to counter extremism, nationalism and racism.

Through practical work in the cemeteries and the examination of biographies of war dead, young people are encouraged to learn from history and to promote cooperation in a future, peaceful Europe.

For more information about the background and goals of this important project, See the current reporting on www.schwaebische.de .