Social commitment
Social commitment has been part of Dr. Weigert’s corporate culture for decades. There is good reason for this. Chemische Fabrik Dr. Weigert has had close links with Hamburg – where its headquarters and production facilities are located – since the company was established in 1912. Consequently, we feel a special sense of obligation to our home and our surroundings.
This is reflected in our production, in which preservation of the environment and resources is the top priority. We are also committed to social projects at local level. Our aim is to live out and support values such as responsibility, fairness and partnership, important foundations for our commercial operations, including in specific social contexts.
Project: Sternenbrücke children’s hospice
Dr. Weigert has been supporting Sternenbrücke children’s hospice for many years. Since 2003, Sternenbrücke has been helping children and adolescents with short life expectancy to live out their lives with dignity. Young adults up to the age of 27 have also been admitted since 2010. Throughout their illness, which can often last for several years, their families can stay at the children’s hospice for at least 28 days a year to gain strength for the difficult road ahead and to relax. Carers, medical staff, therapists, teachers and chaplains are on hand at the Hamburg children’s hospice to provide support and loving care for the sick young people and their relatives.
As only part of the costs of palliative medical and nursing care for the sick young people are borne by the health-insurance and care-insurance funds and most families cannot afford the further costs due to financial constraints, since caring for the child limits work opportunities and any reserves are quickly used up, Sternenbrücke relies on donations of EUR 1.85 million per year.
Further information: www.sternenbruecke.de
Project: Ghanahilfe e.V.
The Ghanahilfe e.V. (Ghana aid) project has been helping to build and equip hospitals, schools and houses for street children in Ghana with the assistance of donations for nearly 20 years. Dr. Weigert has also been supporting this association for several years. During this period, Detmer Hasselmann, initiator and coordinator of the association, has completed major projects and initiated others. These include a school project in Asamankese and a school in Kumasi, near Offinso, which currently has 480 pupils.
When Detmer Hasselmann visited the projects in Ghana again in spring 2020, he was accompanied by a television crew from Cologne. In the resulting video he reports, among other things, how the Ghana project promotes help for self-help.
https://youtu.be/myCxlFtBVsQ
Further information: www.ghanahilfe.de
Project: Renovation of playhouses
To give children the space to play and enjoy exercise, which is so crucial to their development, the playground association “AKTION KINDERPARADIES Betreute Kinderspielplätze Hamburg e.V.” has provided 28 playgrounds with the necessary space for children to be supervised by nursery school teachers outdoors as an alternative to kindergarten.
In the event of bad weather, it is possible to take shelter in heated playhouses. But these, too, require maintenance and upkeep. To support this social initiative, Dr. Weigert wanted to do its bit to maintain the playhouses by supplying muscle power and painting skills. Unfortunately, due to April showers in Hamburg, the renovation work had to be performed by a specialist firm rather than Dr. Weigert employees as intended. Even so, the results are still impressive!
