President’s & AGM Report, 2023

We have appreciated the return to normal with a full program of activities this last year.

After the AGM last August Leona Coleman gave us a good overview of the Duldig family in Australia. They settled at Peters Hill; later one son moved to Worlds End. They made significant contributions to their communities.

In April our trip to Bethel and Kapunda was well-supported, despite the threat of rain. We were assisted by the local historians, Gary Schmidt and Neil Weichert, who are descendants of the original settlers. They gave us a good account of the Bethel settlement and church and led us to the Steinthal site. Lunch in Kapunda and a visit to the large and varied Kapunda Museum rounded off a great day.

Our History month talk in May was also well attended. John Zwar, OAM, presented an interesting account of his life in horticulture, and especially his involvement in the construction of the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden at Port Augusta. This was John’s vision, and a dedicated group of supporters have helped turn it into reality. John’s love of trees and gardens is related to his upbringing in a Wendish family.

In June John Lowke told us about the Lowke family and their lives at Ebenezer and Light Pass. We were even introduced to some of John’s own work as a distinguished physicist at the CSIRO and overseas.

We have arranged Saturday lunches at various hotels to provide opportunities for members to meet socially. In November we met at the Kensington Hotel, in February at the Goodwood Hotel, and in July at the Earl of Leicester Hotel. Small groups of around 25 people have been coming to enjoy being together, so we will continue to organise these.

Our newsletter continues to advertise our meetings and provide information about Wendish history and culture. We always welcome any contributions. Andrew Kollosche continues to maintain our website which contains many interesting items. We thank him for this. We are still working on our booklet about the Wends in South Australia, but the end is nigh. Can we publish this next year?

Finally, I wish to thank the members of our committee for the time and effort they willingly give. We must especially thank our efficient Secretary, Pauline Burger, and our reliable Treasurer, Leona Coleman, for their extra work. Ruth Walter has taken on the task of looking after our collections of Wendish dolls, which she is bringing to display at our meetings. And we are always looking for new members to come onto the committee.

Lyall Kupke