Dear Jonathan
It's a great honour to me to be able to participate in your election as Mayor of Kendal today. On behalf of our Mayor I would like to read her greeting to you.
The inauguration of the Mayor of Kendal is something special. This is shown by the large number of council members, companions, colleagues from the administration and friends from Rinteln.
You are taking on an important function for your town today which is a great honor. In a solemn ceremony you will take over the office of Julia Dunlop, now you are wearing the red cloak and the chain of office.
I am sure that you will be a mayor for all citizens of Kendal, regardless of their origin, skin colour, religion or social class.
I warmly congratulate you on your election as Mayor of Kendal, I am very happy for you and would like to send you congratulations on behalf of the citizens of your twin town of Rinteln.
It fills me with great joy and pride to say that our town twinning is based on fundamental values such as openness, mutual interest and tolerance which are essential to ensure a peaceful and harmonious co- existance in Europe.
This is not only due to the tireless work of many initiators, sponsors and supporters but also to the extraordinary friendship that has developed between our town halls.
Even before my first visit to Kendal, I had considered town twinning to be contemporary and forward-looking and this is why I have decided to put a special emphasis on this area during my office as Mayor of Rinteln.
Town twinning is still very relevant. They are platforms for dialogue, roots of European values, they are economic, social and cultural opportunities and challenges. Town twinning always brings together people, clubs and institutions who want to make a difference.
With different cultural perspectives and backgrounds they devote themselves to the social issues of our time.
Facebook and PlatformX are modern communication media, but they cannot replace the face to face communication of a town twinning.
If the actions and words of heads of states, governments and bureaucrats sometimes make you shake your head, it is good to send signals of solidarity at the level of citizens and municipalities.
In this way town twinning can also and especially today have valuable effects.
Dear friends in Kendal, I am looking forward to our next meetings.
Jonathan, I am very much looking forward to our collaboration and your first visit to Rinteln for our old town festival in August. It will be a great pleasure to welcome you there.
I wish for both of us that there will always be people in our towns who will think up projects, take initiatives and work hard for this partnership.
It would be great if we could interest and encourage the younger generation too, to get involved in the twinning.
Together with my colleagues, I will do everything to support the many friends of this twin town partnership.
I've got some bottles with yellow liquid with me from a local brewery Detmold. We'll raise our glass when we meet in Rinteln.