Donations instead of gifts. Marbach supports various aid projects.

Marbach is approaching the end of an eventful year. 2017 has been characterized by innovative products that Marbach has brought to market to enable better customer performance. As well as investments in machinery and buildings. But with all that, Marbach has not forgotten people who are less fortunate. And that's why this Heilbronn-based company has remained true for many years to one key principle: "donating instead of giving". When selecting the recipients of donations, it is important for the Marbach management to divide the money between internationally well-known and regionally respected institutions. This year Marbach donated 7,000 euros to the aid organization Help – Help for Self-Help e.V. and 3,000 euros to the Kindersolbad gGmbH in Bad Friedrichshall.

International donations to Help e.V. – Help for Self-Help
For years people living in the Lake Chad region have been suffering from poverty and accompanying malnutrition, disease and lack of educational opportunities. Their situation has worsened as tens of thousands of people fled from neighboring Nigeria to Lake Chad following the brutal attacks by the Boko Haram terror group. Since then, resources such as water, farmland and food have become increasingly scarce. People's misery is growing.

Marbach Managing Director Peter Marbach: "The people in the Lake Chad region live in bitter poverty. With our Christmas donation, wells are being bored there. This ensures the supply of clean drinking water to people.” The wells are equipped with climate-friendly solar pumps. Help trains pump mechanics and water committees for maintenance, thus enabling them to help themselves. Peter Marbach continues: "The good thing about this donation: the German Federal Foreign Office (Auswärtiges Amt) considers the aid project to be particularly worthy of support. Therefore, Help only needs to raise 10% of its financial resources through donations. The remaining 90% is provided by the German Federal Foreign Office. So for every euro we donate, 10 euros will be additionally invested in the Lake Chad project.” In this way a total of 45 wells will be built and others refurbished, thus providing about 50,000 people in need with drinking water.

On the 1st of December 2017, Bianca Kaltschmitt, vice managing director at Help, received the donation cheque from Peter Marbach.

More information about the project can be found here.

Regional donation to the Kindersolbad Bad Friedrichshall
This year's regional donation of 3,000 euros is to support the construction of the new building for the Kindersolbad in Bad Friedrichshall. The Kindersolbad is an institution that has been promoting and supporting socially disadvantaged young people for over 150 years. At the moment, 80 children and young people are being cared for in 10 residential groups.

The so called "Bohnerts house" is showing its age. The desire to build an extension has existed for a long time. In 2017, the plans were became reality. Construction work began in the middle of the year. A new building, which will extend over two floors, will be added in the immediate vicinity of the main building. In the future, up to 16 children and youths can be looked after here. Peter Marbach: "We have had a close relationship with the Bad Friedrichshall Kindersolbad for many years. It is very important to us to help socially disadvantaged children and young people to have a good start in life and a promising future."

The cheque was handed over to the Kindersolbad on the 30th November 2017 to the managing director Benjamin Kaufmann.

More information:
-    Aid organization “Help e.V. – Help for Self-Help”
-    Kindersolbad Bad Friedrichshall

About „Help e.V. – Help for Self-Help”
Help - Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e. V., is a humanitarian aid organization based in Bonn, Germany. It was founded in 1981. The main focus of Help's work is on global emergency and disaster relief, but also on long-term development aid and reconstruction projects. Help supports people who are in distress due to disasters, persecution or for other reasons. According to the principle of "help for self-help", Help supports the efforts of those affected to improve their living conditions on their own.  

About Kindersolbad gGmbH
The Kindersolbad Bad Friedrichshall is an institution for children who are not fortunate enough to grow up in intact family circumstances. For more than 150 years, this institution has been committed to the promotion and support of socially disadvantaged young people and their families.