SEASON’S GREETINGS
Drawing by A. Thiam.
The mayor, the deputy mayors, the members of the municipal council and the municipal staff wish you a merry Christmas and a happy 2014. May it bring you joy, health and happiness!
PRIMARY PUPILS PLANT A HEDGE
It is often said that anyone who has planted a tree during their time on earth has done something useful. Even the smallest tree absorbs and stores carbon dioxide from the air to feed itself, and releases oxygen into the atmosphere. It helps reduce the greenhouse effect. Planting a tree is good for the planet.
On Thursday 28 November 2013, about fifteen pupils from the class of Mr Gabriel Cuirin and his assistant, Mrs Tania Pereira, each planted two young plants to create a hedge along the southern boundary of the Eguelshardt village school grounds. The operation was led by Mr Sébastien Mangin, assisted by Mr Loïc Bollinger, instructors from the Grange aux Paysages in Lorentzen, commissioned by the Northern Vosges Regional Nature Park.
A hedge is a fence of thorns or shrubs that have taken root. Among the smallest are those people plant to mark the boundary with the neighbouring property. In grazed or farmed plains, however, there are very large windbreak hedges. When the large hedges of chalky Champagne were grubbed up to increase farm yields, people came to regret it: the winds dried out the fine, fertile topsoil and blew it far away. Along roads, hedges act as screens that hold back the snow and prevent drifts. A hedge is a centre of life, a refuge or shelter for domestic animals, a home or hunting ground for wild animals such as foxes, martens, weasels, squirrels and other rodents, insects and birds. Animals find food in hedges: leaves, flowers, fruit and all kinds of berries.
Hedges serve us well and we must respect them and protect them from their enemies: sheep and cattle, roe deer and red deer. The mayor pointed out, however, that hedges cannot be planted just anywhere or in any way. The municipal land use plan and the municipal afforestation regulations must be respected: in some areas they prohibit trees, to favour livestock or farming, or simply to protect the landscape, or so as not to block the valley, as woodland can stop the air circulating and encourage fog to linger, which is bad for our health.
Mr Mangin, a biodiversity gardener, explained that to plant a hedge on your own property you must keep at least 50 centimetres from the neighbouring property and accept that the shrubs will never be more than 2 metres high. They will therefore have to be topped at 2 metres when they reach that height. If you want trees taller than 2 metres on your property, you must plant them at least 2 metres from your neighbour’s plot. In all cases, the branches of trees, wherever they are on the property, must not spread beyond the vertical line of the boundary with the neighbour.
The plants put in the ground on 27 November by the children of our primary school were provided free of charge by the association “Plus d’arbres, plus de vie” (More trees, more life). The municipality prepared the ground by stripping off the turf.
It was a pleasure to see the enthusiasm, passion and joy with which the children dug the small planting holes, put in the young shrubs and firmed the soil to anchor the roots: hornbeams, birches, field maples, hazels and St Lucie cherries… Such an activity is a lesson for life.
WELCOME
Mr Mickaël Rawung, Mrs Sophie Fleckenstein and their son Enzo have moved to our village. We wish them a warm welcome.
BIRTH
Paul Levesque was born in Haguenau on 5 December 2013, son of Mr Mathieu Levesque and Mrs Marie Plus. Congratulations to his happy brothers and sister, Raphaël, Blanche and Constantin, and to his happy parents.
SENIORS’ CLUB CHRISTMAS MEAL
As every year, the Seniors’ Club held a Christmas meal for its members on 5 December. The atmosphere was festive and warm.
THE SCHOOL CHRISTMAS PARTY
The traditional school party took place on Saturday 14 December 2013 in the salle Rapin. The mayor praised the pupils for the enthusiasm and passion with which they planted a hedge this autumn, and for their care, recently, in baking Christmas biscuits with advice from the seniors. The pupils then put on short shows and songs under their parents’ admiring gaze. For all these reasons, a particularly gentle Father Christmas gave them lovely books and chocolates – all well-deserved rewards. The audience could see how much the teachers had invested to bring the “troupe” to such a high standard of singing and performance. The morning ended in good spirits over a friendly drink.
A PIECE OF FRUIT AT BREAK TIME
On 2 December, as part of the “A piece of fruit at break time” scheme, Mrs Elodie Lett of the Moselle Mountain Economy Association gave the pupils of Eguelshardt school a workshop on fruit and vegetables. Through various hands-on activities and games, the children discovered different fruits and vegetables and their nutritional benefits. She also stressed the importance of eating seasonal, locally grown fruit and vegetables. The municipality of Eguelshardt and the AMEM will pay for the fruit served to the pupils of our school.
RECENT SENIORS’ CLUB ACTIVITIES
On Thursday 12 December 2013 the Seniors’ Club held an intergenerational get-together with the pupils of our school to bake Christmas biscuits. The children were very interested and listened carefully to their elders’ advice. An experience to repeat.
On Saturday 7 December 2013 a group of Seniors’ Club members visited the charming Christmas market in Bouxwiller. It was a lively, festive afternoon.
IN MEMORIAM
Mrs Andréa Kruger died in Bannstein on 19 December, aged 63. We offer our most sincere condolences to her grieving husband.
A MESSAGE TO JOB SEEKERS
The three Mission Locale sessions at Point-Emploi in Bitche, Lemberg and Volmunster are increasingly busy, with nearly 326 young people being supported. Since 15 November 2013 the Point-Emploi session in Bitche has been reinforced by a second Mission Locale adviser.
The days and times are unchanged: every Friday from 8.30am to 12 noon and from 1pm to 4pm. Don’t hesitate to get advice.
Call 03 87 95 72 74 for an appointment.
MILITARY CEREMONY IN EGUELSHARDT ON 19 DECEMBER 2013
On 19 December 2013, under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Dampierre, the initial training centre of the intelligence brigade stationed in Bitche held a military ceremony in Eguelshardt, presenting the unit’s soldiers with their certificates of completion of initial training. After the ceremony, the colonels and the mayor exchanged a few friendly words in the presence of the soldiers and the civilians present. In his speech, the mayor expressed his village’s pride at having been chosen to host this military ceremony.
In his thoughts he associated with this noble event the people of Eguelshardt who died for France, and recalled that during the 1939-45 war the people here showed exemplary patriotism. More than 40 of them were on the list of those forcibly conscripted into German compulsory labour or the German army. Many deserted to go into hiding, and several fell in Russia or were reported missing. Several civilians died in the village in the bombings of 1945. Finally, at the risk of their lives, several residents secretly became guides who helped escaped French prisoners of war reach the free zone. All this patriotic conduct earned the village a citation with the Croix de Guerre with bronze star, dated 1 July 1948.
The mayor said he was convinced that, through the testimonies of their fathers and grandfathers, the people of Eguelshardt know the price of peace and freedom; that is why they feel close to their soldiers and are proud of their army, which protects people around the world wherever they are oppressed and their lives are in danger.
The mayor thanked the soldiers for their visit and invited them to come back to Eguelshardt as often as they can.
REGRETTABLE OMISSIONS
In our last newsletter, at the end of the article “Eguelshardt: getting to know our village”, we said that 8 businesses were registered, and listed 6 of them. By copying the data supplied by our consultants, we unintentionally left some out. The list should also include an electrical design and installation firm and a roofing, zinc work, heating and plumbing firm. We could add a few self-employed timber traders and loggers. We wanted to put these omissions right.