Pilgrimage group for the Ansgar anniversary

1200 years ago, the Benedictine monk Ansgar set out from Hamburg for Denmark and Sweden. This marked the Vikings’ first planned encounter with Christianity.

To mark the Ansgar anniversary, a group of pilgrims set out from Haddeby near Schleswig on Ascension Day with the goal of arriving in the Danish cathedral city of Ribe by Pentecost. The daily stages covered a distance of 15–25 kilometers. On Sunday, May 17, the 26 pilgrims visited the concentration camp memorial and visitor center in Ladelund in the morning. The group was led by pilgrim pastor Frank Karpa from Hamburg. Here in Ladelund, another 26 people joined them as day guests to accompany the group on the next leg of the journey to Lydersholm (DK). Among them were Bishop Nora Steen and her Danish colleague Marianne Christiansen. Florian Lorenzen, the district administrator of the North Frisia district, also joined the group. Pastor Karpa led a prayer service in the “Garden of Encounter,” which was translated into Danish for the many participants from Denmark and Sweden. Next, the group’s journey continued to the German-Danish border. The border crossing was celebrated with a public worship service led by Nora Steen and Marianne Christiansen in Lydersholm.

This special pilgrimage was made possible thanks to support from Interreg Germany-Denmark, among others.

On 8 May, around 55 visitors attended the opening of the special exhibition entitled “Humour in the Face of Evil” – “Is it OK to laugh at Hitler?”

Professor Maria Leuker-Peltis from the Pole Poppenspäler Förderkreis e. V. opened the evening. Ingrid Quack and Volker Friedrichsen then gave a dramatic reading, accompanied by cellist Claudia Sokollek. The content of the reading was thought-provoking, but also brought a smile to the audience’s faces at times. In particular, it sparked curiosity about the exhibition.

During a visit from a group from Meensel-Kiezegem in Belgium, we naturally mentioned our involvement in the Interreg project ‘Hope & Despair’ and presented them with a book produced as part of the project.

Beim Besuch einer Gruppe aus Belgien, dem Ort Meensel-Kiezegem, haben wir natürlich auf unsere Beteiligung am Interreg-Projekt „Hope & Despair“ hingewiesen und ein aus dem Projekt entstandenes Buch als Geschenk mitgegeben.

During a visit from a group from Meensel-Kiezegem in Belgium, we naturally mentioned our involvement in the Interreg project ‘Hope & Despair’ and presented them with a book produced as part of the project.

Beim Besuch einer Gruppe aus Belgien, dem Ort Meensel-Kiezegem, haben wir natürlich auf unsere Beteiligung am Interreg-Projekt „Hope & Despair“ hingewiesen und ein aus dem Projekt entstandenes Buch als Geschenk mitgegeben.

On Saturday 25 April 2026, with a cold north-westerly wind blowing, around 30 people gathered at the ‘Garden of Encounter’ to prepare it for the new season. Once again this year, a group from Putten (NL) had made their way to Ladelund to lend a helping hand. Together, they weeded, raked and planted. During the breaks, there was plenty of time for lively conversations over a ‘Kopje Koffie’.

The volunteers worked together to plant a hedge around the area near the former anti-tank trench. It serves as a boundary between the newly created path between the ‘Path of Remembrance’ and the new development area.

A new information board about the ‘Garden of Encounter’ has been on display in the garden near the Document House since Saturday.

Once the work was done, all the participants sat down together at the concentration camp memorial and community centre to enjoy freshly baked tarte flambée and bring the day to a pleasant close.

In collaboration with the Pole Poppenspäler Förderkreis e.V. and the North Frisia Museum Association, the special exhibition “Humour in the Face of Evil” will be on display at the Ladelund Concentration Camp Memorial and Community Centre from 8 May to 23 September 2026.

Opening date: 8 May 2026 at 7.00 pm at the Ladelund Concentration Camp Memorial and Community Centre

Staged reading: Ingrid Quack and Volker Friedrichsen; Cello: Claudia Sokollek

You are warmly invited.

Date: Saturday, 25 April 2026 at 9.30 am – meet at the concentration camp memorial

Every spring, a group from Putten (Netherlands) travels to Ladelund to join the locals and other interested parties in preparing the ‘Garden of Encounter’ for the new season and clearing away the traces of winter.

We have some special tasks ahead of us this year:

• A new information panel explaining the garden will be erected in the garden, near the concentration camp memorial building.

• On the site near the anti-tank trench, a hedge of shrubs will be planted to screen a newly created path from view. This path connects the ‘Path of Remembrance’ with the future development area of the municipality of Ladelund. It serves as a fire brigade access route and an emergency escape route.

If we’ve sparked your interest and you’d like to help ensure that the ‘Garden of Encounter’ looks as beautiful as it does in this photo again this summer, you’re very welcome to join us for some gardening. Every helping hand is most welcome.

Refreshments will be provided. To help us plan this, please register by calling 04666 449, emailing info@kz-gedenkstaette-ladelund.de, or contacting Gudrun Jessen-Hansen on 04666 541.

We look forward to seeing you, even if it’s just for a quick chat.

Online Lecture on April 21, 2026

As part of the event series “Right-Wing Trends in Rural Areas,” the online lecture “How’s It Going?” will take place on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, at 6:30 p.m.

Please refer to the attached flyer for further information.