Marbach traditionally donates at Christmas. 10,000 euros become 82,000 euros for charitable causes thanks to a funding programme.

We traditionally donate to a good cause at Christmas. Also, in our 100th anniversary year. Last year under the motto "Donations instead of gifts", we supported aid projects in connection with the war in Ukraine. As this topic is tragically still current, we will also support an aid project of the organisation "Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V." in Ukraine with the largest part of our donation (8,000 euros) in 2023. A further 2,000 euros goes to the Wartberg School in Heilbronn. In total, we donate 10,000 euros.

Peter Marbach: "What we are particularly pleased about is that the German Federal Foreign Office considers the project of the aid organisation Help that we are supporting to be particularly worthy of support and is funding 90 percent of it. The Marbach donation flows into Help's own 10 percent contribution and will thus be increased tenfold. In plain language, this means: 8,000 euros in donations trigger 80,000 euros in aid money." Together with the donation to the Wartberg School, this means that a total of 82,000 euros will reach people in need.

Help for the people of Ukraine
Bianca Kaltschmitt, Managing Director of the aid organisation Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V.: "Even after more than a year and a half, the war and destruction in Ukraine has not lost anything of its intensity. Destructive missile, drone and grenade attacks are targeting communities throughout the country, with tragic consequences for the civilian population and civilian infrastructure. Almost 18 million people in Ukraine, that is half the population, are now dependent on humanitarian aid."

Since the beginning of the war, Help has been supporting affected people through local partner organisations in eighteen regions of the country. The basic food supply in Ukraine is currently in large part secured via local markets. But in winter, stoves and heating material are needed to survive the coming Winter months. Our donation goes to Help's "Winter Aid" campaign. This includes insulation and repair of windows and doors as well as the procurement and distribution of stoves and fuel. Our donation will provide many people in Ukraine with a warm home in the coming winter.

Bianca Kaltschmitt from Help: "On behalf of Help and the people in Ukraine, I would like to express my sincere thanks for the Marbach donation. This is the eighth consecutive Christmas donation from Marbach and shows the trust that Marbach places in us."

Help for children at the Wartberg School in Heilbronn
The second part of the donation goes to the Wartberg School. The pupils at Wartbergschule in Heilbronn are very diverse. There are many immigrant children and young people from Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria. Many of the children need support. 

Bärbel Hetzinger, headmistress of the Wartberg School: "We will use the donation from Marbach for the "Fit at the Start" project. This is a special support programme for our children starting school, in which an occupational therapist helps develop the basic skills of first-graders. Development needs are also evident in basic characteristics such as punctuality, willingness to make an effort, perseverance and structure. Fit am Start supports the children when they start school and provides them with basic know-how for their further schooling. In addition, the donation will be used for learning aids to support the development of individual children. The donation from Marbach will help us enormously in supporting our children and young people. A big thank you to Marbach – also on behalf of our children and young people."

About Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V.
Help – Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe e.V., is a humanitarian aid organisation based in Bonn. Help was founded in 1981. Help's work focuses on worldwide emergency and disaster relief as well as long-term development aid and reconstruction projects. Help is committed to helping people who are in need caused by disasters, persecution, or other reasons. Based on the principle of "helping people to help themselves", Help supports the efforts of those affected to improve their living conditions through their own efforts.

About the Wartbergschule Heilbronn
Wartbergschule is a primary and secondary school in the north of Heilbronn. Children and young people have been taught here since 1959 and has been an all-day school for more than 20 years. Many of the children who learn at the Wartbergschule also need additional language and creative holistic support programmes. Emotional and social security, personality-building measures and good co-operation in the heterogeneous school community are given centre stage.

Picture caption: left: Donation handover Help, right: Donation handover Wartberg School