Missio magazine: people, church, continentsMOTHER GERTRUD For over 25 years, a woman from Munich has been saving money to support the children in AfricaWith printed t-shirts, orphans from the west-African Guinea are thanking their mother Pöflinger. In the course of her life, the 78-year old woman from Munich has donated 70,000 euros to the orphanage in the country’s capital Conakry. “I want to fill my life with meaning. And that becomes possible only by giving to others,” says Gertrud Pöflinger. She has the means to donate only because she herself lives on very little money. She makes ends meet with 2,70 € a day; she has never been on a holiday. However, Mrs. Pöflinger does not mind. When she meets Father Stefan Stirnemann, the head of the orphanages in Guinea’s capital, he tells her about the progress his fosterlings make. With Father Stefan’s commitment and the help of his supporters, more than 200 boys have found a home. About 30 educators provide the children with an education and help them find apprenticeship training positions. Listening to these reports provides Gertrud Pöflinger with the joyful feeling of a holiday.Elisabeth Tyroller, Missio magazine no. 5/2006 |
