Communications and Marketing

Christmas wishes of 450 children fulfilled: Wishing tree campaign was a complete success

Wunschbaum_Geschenkeausgabe_Rheinbach_19122023_02

Wednesday 20 December 2023

Books, painting materials, a bicycle lock, a basketball, a winter jacket or make-up utensils: citizens have fulfilled over 450 Christmas wishes from children in need. Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences (H-BRS) had called for the Wish Tree campaign at its campuses in Rheinbach and Sankt Augustin. The children have now been able to collect their presents. H-BRS and the participating institutions are certain: the Wish Tree 2023 was a complete success.

It took just ten days for all the wish cards to find recipients. Esther Hummel, organizer of the Wish Tree campaign, is overwhelmed by the willingness of the gift-givers to help: "It's just great that so many people got involved as Christmas angels. When we handed out the presents, we could see how happy the children were," says Hummel.

Geschenkeausgabe Wunschbaum Sankt Augustin und Rheinbach 2023

The team of helpers at the gift distribution in Sankt Augustin. Photo: Pascal Schröder

This is the third time the university has carried out the campaign. University President Hartmut Ihne emphasizes how important it is to stand up for each other as a society: "Those of us who are doing well financially should also regularly turn our attention to those who need our support. And when we give gifts, everyone benefits because it makes both the giver and the recipient happy," says Ihne.

At Christmas, we give each other presents to show our affection and love. This time is particularly special for children. For some families, however, even buying small gifts is a financial burden. In order to reach these children, the university in Sankt Augustin cooperated with the town and the food bank. In Rheinbach, the town was also involved in the campaign and the glass museum provided the perfect location for the Christmas wish tree.

In addition to material wishes, which ranged from toys and clothes to entertainment media, the people in responsible positions remembered particularly personal messages: "There were also children who simply wrote a wish for peace on their card. Christmas is particularly stressful for refugees from war and crisis zones far away from home," says Esther Hummel.