“A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed”: German Friends Thank Social Organizations in Beijing for Mask Donations

"Danke! Thank you! Xie Xie!" Kurt Karst, President of Association of Germany-China Friendship Societies (ADCG), thanked the Beijing People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (the BPAFFC) in three languages in his thank-you letter on May 21.

Germany's COVID-19 situation is still ongoing, and some cities have seen clusters of cases as lockdown measures are being lifted. To help German friends through the epidemic and show the mutual friendship through thick and thin, the BPAFFC, in conjunction with Beijing Shunyi District, donated 10,000 disposable medical masks to the ADCG through the Sino-German International Industrial Park on May 15.

 (President of the ADCG accepting mask donations)

As a Chinese proverb goes, “A bit of fragrance clings to the hand that gives flowers.” To put these masks to better use, President Karst distributed masks not only to some aged members, but also to schools, retirement homes and the Association for Poverty and Health in Germany (Vereins Armut und Gesundheit in Deutschland), which was sincerely appreciated by local teachers, students, and relevant principals. Dr. Gerhard Trabert of the Association for Poverty and Health in Germany, said masks would be distributed to homeless people in Mainz this week.

(President Karst presenting masks to Principal Markus Burger on the reopening day of Hessenwald School)

 (Principal Burger posting the good news on the school's website)

 (Presenting masks to Winfried Kraus, Manager of the Oppenheim Retirement Center)

ADCG is an indispensable partner of the BPAFFC in Europe. In recent years, the two sides have carried out various cooperation projects in the fields of culture, trade, Taichi, and educational exchanges. After the outbreak of COVID-19, ADCG immediately sent their regards and issued the "Support China, Not Exclude!" statement. They called on the German people to stop the panic and hatred against China caused by the epidemic. The donation of masks by the BPAFFC in conjunction with Shunyi District reflects the friendship and mutual support, which was described as "an important action that demonstrates the friendship between Chinese and German people" by President Karst.