On Saturday 15 May, the Backnang-Chelmsford twinning association hosted a reception to mark the 35th anniversary of the town twinning between Backnang and Chelmsford, followed by afternoon tea. The celebrating guests gathered in the festively decorated music hall of the Max Born Grammar School. Students from the radio club welcomed the guests with a glass of sparkling wine or orange juice. The school’s guitar group, under the direction of the music teacher Herrn Roger Gehrig, set the mood for the speeches and provided the musical backdrop for this part of the event.

First of all, the Chairperson of the association, David Whitehead, addressed the guests. He referred to the reasons for the idea of  twinning, that in the Second World War civilians on both sides had to endure suffering, and now, as partners, they are committed to ensuring that this never happens again and also constantly learn from each other in exchange: yes, you can eat chips with vinegar and, yes, we in Wuerttemberg not only have good beer, but also good wine.

Frau Wuellenweber, Head of Cultural Affairs, spoke to those present on behalf of the town of Backnang about the importance of town twinning. By way of example, she referred to the visit by representatives of the City of Chelmsford to the Straßenfest, the performance by the band Electronique at the Straßenfest last year and this year, the radio programme by the radio club of the Max-Born Grammar School on Chelmsford Community Radio, which features contributions from Backnang for the people of Chelmsford with interesting and informative reports from their German twin town. She also emphasised the diverse cooperation with artists and athletes and mentioned the monthly English Night as an opportunity to get into conversation with each other in English.

In his speech, Herr Dr Ketterer, honorary member and one of the founding fathers of the town twinning, reviewed the hurdles that had to be overcome on both sides before the twinning document was signed in April 1990. He expressed his particular joy that the twinning is still going strong despite current obstacles, such as Brexit.

Margaret Campbell from the Chelmsford Twinning Partnership was presented with an honorary membership of the Backnang-Chelmsford twinning association at this ceremony acknowledging her decades of commitment to the partnership on the English side. In her speech, she expressed her gratitude for the honour and referred to the various activities in which she has participated, e.g. exchanges with the open university or running the stall at the Backnang Christmas market.

All the speakers emphasised the importance of twinning on a personal level, especially in view of the current situation in Europe and worldwide. Walls tend to be built up, while town twinning helps to build bridges and tear down walls. So twinning is not a relic of the past but very much alive and going strong.

Afterwards, the buffet was opened with home-baked delicacies that are part of a traditional afternoon tea: scones, cucumber and egg mayonnaise sandwiches, Victoria sponge cake and muffins. The ceremony ended with animated conversations and a relaxed get-together.   
We would like to thank everyone who made the ceremony possible with their active support and our many guests for coming.