Fourth NORRES Summer Party – this year in aid of a good cause

NORRES Schlauchtechnik holds its Summer Party 2008

On Saturday August 30, 2008, staff at Gelsenkirchen hose manufacturer NORRES and their families celebrated their bi-annual Summer Party. This popular event was staged last week for the fourth time – and can already be considered a mini-tradition. A long-distance balloon competition, the proceeds of which will be donated to the St. Elisabeth centre for children and young people in Gelsenkirchen, awards to longstanding employees, a colourful programme of activities and glorious weather all contributed to a most enjoyable summer’s day.

Once every two years, Proprietor and Managing Director Burkhard Mollen invites the entire staff to a Summer Party as a small thank-you for their motivation and untiring efforts of the preceding months. A variety of activities and the beautiful summer weather helped make a very pleasant atmosphere for the some 250 adults and 70 children who attended. For the first time in its short history, the Summer Party was held at the second plant on the Am Stadthafen site in Gelsenkirchen. At the previous event in the summer of 2006, Mr. Mollen promised that Am Stadthafen would be the venue for the next festival. Now that large sections of Production and Logistics have been relocated, the time was ripe for the Summer Party to follow suit.

All company departments were involved in the activity programme. NORRES staff organised numerous highlights, including a long-distance balloon competition in aid of a good cause: each balloon cost 50 cents, with the entire proceeds directly benefiting the St. Elisabeth centre for children and young people in Gelsenkirchen. The balloon that flies the farthest will be the ultimate winner. For every balloon coupon that is returned, NORRES will donate an additional euro to the centre and pay the finder's postage. Extra gifts were naturally also welcome. Around 200 balloons were launched last Saturday, making an initial total of approximately 150 euros. However, the final amount of the donation will not be known until October 10, 2008 – the deadline for coupons to be returned. Burkhard Mollen is extremely proud of his staff’s generous initiative: “The idea for the long-distance balloon competition was thought up by members of the NORRES team, who were likewise very keen to support our Gelsenkirchen location. One in every three children in our home town grows up in poverty, and we believe that together we can do something to alleviate their situation. It moves me to see how the NORRES workforce displays the same degree of social commitment as professional dedication in their everyday work”.

Managing Director Burkhard Mollen (2nd from right) congratulates longstanding employees

At the same time, the Summer Party is traditionally an occasion on which to honour longstanding employees. This year, Burkhard Mollen was pleased to congratulate five staff who have been with the company for up to a quarter of a century. After presenting the awards, Mr. Mollen was himself the recipient of a special honour: tribute was paid to the Proprietor and Managing Director for his 15 years official service with the firm and 10 years as Managing Director – “official” because he also worked at NORRES part-time while still a student preparing for his degree in Mechanical Engineering.

The Summer Party was rounded off with coffee and cakes, a spacious children’s corner with attractions like a bouncy castle, a giant XXL table football game, a table tennis tournament, a multi-discipline connector fitting competition, a one-hour tour of the new production facilities and the big NORRES Summer Party buffet. Musical accompaniment was provided by the “NORRES Sales Choir” as well as “Emma Priel”, a live band from Hamburg, and DJ Wolfgang Hacke.

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