ERGO staff prepare over 1,000 packages for orphans in Romania

ERGO’s ‘Christmas package drive’ was again a Yuletide hit. Staff at all locations put together packages for children in Romania. This time we managed to put together over 1,000 packages. On Monday they begin their journey to Eastern Europe, together with thousands more packages.

There was plenty of Christmas cheer on Friday morning at the loading zone at the Düsseldorf location as a large delivery van from the charity, the Neusser Rumänienhilfe, rolled up. Over the next 90 minutes, Hans Blinken and Ulrich Stange, volunteers from the aid organisation, had their hands full trying to load all the packages from ERGO staff.

They had already collected packages from ERGO locations in Cologne, Hamburg, Mannheim, Munich, Nuremberg, Berlin and Düsseldorf over the previous few days. Andrea Linssen and Annette Schillig from the Staff Council office in Düsseldorf sorted through the mountain of presents and were amazed at their colleagues’ creativity. Linssen: “The presents were all wrapped with such care.” It’s important that the packages have the right age range written on them as Neusser Rumänienhilfe then makes sure the children in homes and orphanages in Romania are given suitable gifts. 

“It is important to us that the packages make it to where they are needed most,” says Michael David, the head of the ERGO Staff Council in Düsseldorf and member of the ERGO charity, “ergo: wir helfen e.V.” Michael initiated the drive together with management over ten years ago.

All years again

Neusser Rumänienhilfe collects Christmas packages for orphans in the Arad region of Romania each and every year. For many children and teenagers in these institutions, this is the only Christmas present they receive. These donations have become a fixed highlight for them over the years.

The colourful mix in the packages provide a little Christmas cheer to the needy children in Arad, whether it’s with chocolate, gummy bears, toothpaste, a toothbrush, a harmonica, memory game, crayons, pencil sharpeners, colouring blocks or caps and gloves. “They are really in need there,” said Hans Blinken. He has been volunteering at Neusser Rumänienhilfe for many years now, and has visited the location in Romania.

The packages start their journey to Arad on Monday. The city of 400,000 lies in the northwest of Romania, 1,440 km from Düsseldorf. They will be shared among the children before the festive season begins, so that a bit of Christmas magic can be brought to the neediest of children in this region.

By Willy Lünstroth