Princess Kira von Preussen Foundation
The Princess Kira von Preussen Foundation is a foundation that aims to enable socially disadvantaged children to spend free holidays at Hohenzollern Castle .
history
In 1938 Kira von Prussia married Louis Ferdinand von Prussia (1907-1994) , who in 1951 succeeded the last German Crown Prince and became head of the House of Hohenzollern . Kira von Prussia was born as Grand Duchess of Russia in 1909 in Paris . Her father, Kyrill Vladimirovich Romanov , was a grandson of Tsar Alexander II. After the murder of the Russian tsarist family, Kira's father was declared head of the Romanov family . Kira's parents fled Russia to Finland as a result of the October Revolution in 1917. At the age of 16, Grand Duchess Kira met her future husband, Prince Louis Ferdinand, at Cecilienhof Palace in Potsdam in 1925.
After the marriage, the family moved to the Cadinen estate near Elbing in East Prussia in 1940 . At the end of the war they fled the Red Army via Potsdam to Bad Kissingen. The couple had lived in Bremen with their children since 1947, and had a second residence in Berlin from the early 1960s.
After Prince Louis Ferdinand became head of the House of Hohenzollern in 1951, Princess Kira and her husband founded the foundation named after her on June 15, 1952 . Since this was approved by a resolution of the Hanseatic City of Bremen on June 16, 1952, it has been recognized by the tax office as charitable and tax-privileged.
With funds from the annual charity concert in the Grafensaal of Hohenzollern Castle , children from the then enclosed and destroyed Berlin could spend free holidays at the castle. For this, part of the castle was equipped with appropriate rooms. Since then, over 250 children have been given the opportunity to spend their holidays free of charge at the castle every year.
After the death of Princess Kira of Prussia, the foundation remained active under her husband Prince Louis Ferdinand. After his death in 1994, the grandson and current head of the house, Georg Friedrich Prince of Prussia , took over the chairmanship of the foundation. Today his wife, Princess Sophie of Prussia, heads the foundation.
Todays situation
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Until the reunification, only children from Berlin, which was formerly destroyed by the war, were allowed to stay at the castle. After the reunification, the circle of foundation guests was expanded. In addition to groups from the Kinderschutzbund , SOS Children's Villages and various social institutions from all over Germany, young people from New York City who lost family members in the September 11th attacks are invited . In addition, meetings of Palestinian, Israeli and German youths have been taking place at the castle since 2006, who are trying to contribute to a better understanding and peaceful coexistence as part of a special project.
In total, more than 14,000 (as of February 2020) young guests have been able to stay at the castle.
Board
The board of the foundation consists of the following members (as of February 2020):
- Sophie Princess of Prussia (Chair)
- Gert Overbeck (Deputy Chairman)
- Georg Friedrich Prince of Prussia
- Karl-Friedrich Prince of Hohenzollern
- Christian Freiherr von Humboldt-Dachroeden
- Sandra Countess of Bernadotte
financing
In the early years, Prince Louis Ferdinand von Preussen donated all of the proceeds from his book “Im Strom der Geschichte” to the foundation. Since 1995, the foundation has received a large part of its donations through its annual benefit concerts in the Grafensaal of Hohenzollern Castle. It is also available on online donation portals such as B. betterplace.org represented.
Children at the castle
In the summer of 1954, the first ten Berlin girls from Berlin were able to go on vacation to the castle with their teacher. Then ten boys came - from Berlin to Frankfurt they were transported by the Americans with the children's airlift . Thus the wish of the prince couple to enable needy children from the then trapped and destroyed Berlin to vacation at Hohenzollern Castle was realized.
To enable the children to spend their holidays at the castle, the lords of the castle at the time, Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia and Prince Friedrich Wilhelm von Hohenzollern, made one floor of the castle available. Since the death of Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, the foundation's work at the castle has been continued with the support of the current lords of the castle, Prince Karl von Hohenzollern and Prince Georg Friedrich of Prussia.
Other Projects
Creative and craft projects
As part of the stay in the castle, creative and handicraft projects lasting one to several days take place for the children. The foundation works with regional volunteers. The offer ranges from painting flower pots and canvases to printing bags to a night of reading or building a bird feeder.
Geocaching
In the geocaching community projects, children are supposed to get to know themselves and the environment in which they live in a playful way. This should contribute to promoting teamwork.
Web links
- Foundation website
- General information about the Princess Kira von Preussen Foundation
- Foundation cooperation
- Musical project with young people from abroad