Springer Nature employees in Heidelberg support local projects at St Nicholas Christmas Market

Over 26,000 euros were raised for three local projects from the Rhine-Neckar region at the company annual Christmas market

Heidelberg, 9 January 2019 

Employees at the Heidelberg office of Springer Nature have once again raised an impressive sum for local causes. The company’s annual St Nicholas Christmas Market took place at the beginning of December 2018. Colleagues came together to organize a variety of stands such as a second hand books stall, flea market, food and drink stalls, a tombola and many other attractions – all for a good cause. This year’s recipients of the fundraising event were “Mobil mit Behinderung”, an organization that supports mobility projects for people with disabilities; “sT*ernchen”, which is a project that supports young people who identify as trans, inter, genderqueer or other; and “JBO Waldbrunn”, a local brass band. The first two organizations will receive 12,000 euros each and JBO Waldbrunn will receive 2,000 euros. For almost 30 years, the St Nicholas Market has been a fixture at Springer, and the money raised each year is used to support local projects and charities.

The attractions organized by and for Springer Nature employees and the Heidelberg Works Council included a creative array of homemade cakes, a soup stand, mulled wine, sparkling wine, beer and sausages. Employees and their families enjoyed perusing the many stalls selling second hand toys, bric-a-brac and books. Local crafts, homemade jams and honey from local beekeepers were also on offer. The market itself raised 13,000 euros and this sum was matched by the management board – who double the sum raised every year – bringing the total to 26,000 euros.

“We are proud of our employees, who dedicate significant time and effort to continuing the success of our annual St Nicholas Market. Not only is there a wonderful Christmas spirit and atmosphere where everyone comes together, but we are thrilled to be able to support local causes,” said Birgit Kolb, HR Director at Springer Nature, Heidelberg. 

sT*ernchen is a project that is part of the organization called “PLUS – Psychologische Lesben-und Schwulenberatung Rhein-Neckar e.V.”, which is based in Mannheim. The organization sets up meetings and events for young people who identify with a gender other than the one they were born with. A central aim for the project is to allow young people to interact, and gain support as a transsexual or transgender person. Supporting young people  during the coming out process and developing a positive attitude towards life are also an important part of the group’s work.

Mobil mit Behinderung e.V. (MMB) is a charity that works on a variety of projects to help people with disabilities. This could mean giving advice or help to someone who becomes physically disabled due to an accident, or supporting a family with a disabled child. MMB also engages in advocacy work and organizes meetings for its members.

JBO Waldbrunn e.V. is a brass band for children, young people and adults. It is located in the Odenwald and focuses on providing musical education for its members. The band plays a wide repertoire of music and puts on concerts for young and old around the region. JBO Waldbrunn offers early musical education in cooperation with a local school and the donation from the St Nicholas Market will be used to purchase instruments for an additional brass music class.

Image: Presentation of donations: From left to right: Matthias Back (JBO Waldbrunn), Birgit Kolb (HR Director Springer Nature Heidelberg), Heinrich Buschmann (MMB), Annette Czarski (MMB), Iris Daniel (sT*ernchen), Michael Barton (Works Council Springer Heidelberg) © Springer Nature