July 2003
Hi folks,
I´d like to introduce a very good friend of mine, Gisela Kallenbach - here she is enjoying the sun at one of her favourite cafes in Leipzig after returning home from three rewarding (& sometimes frustrating) years as UN administrator in Pec, Kosovo. She´s glad it´s over, but she´s already looking forward to her next assignment in...who knows, maybe even Baghdad!
Gisela brought her three children up more or less single handedly while studying biochemistry at nights and weekends in the days of the GDR(the usual state assistance was denied cos she refused to become a party member) and eventually joined underground political movements, the public prayer meetings and demonstrations which led to the ousting of the old regime. She then played a pivotal role in the formation of the new style city administration, serving them well until the call from the UN. She was recently awarded the highest possible civilian honour from the government: the "Verdienstkreuz am Bande des Verdienstordens der Bundesrepublik Deutschland".
Despite her demanding schedule, she always manages to find time to meet me for a coffee to check on my progress and enquire after my dear little daughter who just turned one a few days ago...
Ok, Gisela: Two portfolios are currently in the hands of the Culture Dept., and David Howard (NZ poet) is writing very special texts for the Canal series..., and yes, Amy is doing very well (and quite delighted with her Buzzy Bee from the grandparents in Gizzie).
Cheers from boring old Dortmund (where I´m sharing a flat with a photography student for a few weeks)
Dean