East Cape Branch

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Lyn Haller gave the meeting a talk on Down Memory Lane in Port Elizabeth.  She has an incredible collection of photographs of old Port

Elizabeth.  Buildings that existed in main street Port Elizabeth that no longer exist.  The old tramline that ran down Main Street, Port Elizabeth as well as the double decker buses. Photographs of the old Post Office building that eventually turned into the Baakens Street Police

Station.  The old Bioscope and OK Bazaars in main street that were demolished and replaced by office buildings.  The building of the Campanile that lies at the entrance of the harbour.
Happy  Valley done up in all its Christmas decorations, beautiful as it was before the floods damaged it.  The beachfront with the old bathing house where you could still rent a bathing costume.  These bathing costumes were a thick black wooly material and covered your whole body.  The Elizabeth Hotel which was always used by the visiting Springbok rugby teams, and after a game everybody used to go there for a drink hoping to meet the Springboks.  The Elizabeth Hotel was demolished and replaced by the Radisson Blu Hotel.  The McArthur swimming pool which was a tidal swimming pool being filled by the sea at high tide.

Translated from Afrikaans to English by Carol Beneke

On 18 June 2009 a small group, seven to be precise, decided to form the German Interest Group. Since then we meet once a month at the house of one or other of the members of the group. On average we are 14 members per evening, but in the past we have been between 20 and 25 friends that have visited together. Our meetings are friendly and informal. We do not have a committee, do not ask membership fees and do not make long speeches. A guest speaker is normally invited for the evening. After the talk we adjourn and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and some eats which are donated by the hostess. The discussions thereafter sometimes become so interesting and the members become so enthusiastic about the topic, and the speaker is peppered with so many questions that it becomes difficult to go home. They are wonderful friendly constructive and instructive evenings. Sometimes we have a members evening which is particularly popular. Anyone who has anything to show which he inherited, or has something to tell of his German ancestors gets an opportunity to do so. In this manner we have heard and seen many interesting things. We all have an interest in our “Heimatland”, as each of us has one or more German ancestors. Our ancestors originate mainly from the groups of Germans who founded themselves during 1857 to 1859 in the Eastern Cape. Sadly there are few members that still speak German. Our language choice is English or Afrikaans, according to personal preference. Once a year we attend a service at the Lutheran Church. Rev. Felix Meylahn leads the services. The services are held in English, with two additional German services a month.
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The Lutheran Church community holds their Christmas fair during November, where authentic German food, cake and handiwork are offered for sale. If I may highlight particular high points, at least for me personally, I would mention when I took the group for a weekend trip to the King Williams Town area. In order not to be repetitive, I will combine highlights from a number of tours. We left Port Elizabeth early on Saturday morning for Kidds Beach, where we overnighted.

Geskryf deur Trudie Marais.
5 Februaie 2013

Op 18 Junie 2009 het 'n klein groepie, sewe om presies te wees, besluit om 'n Duitse Belangstelling Groep te stig.
Sederdien vergader ons een maal per maand aan huis van een of ander lid van die groep. Gemiddeld is ons nou so 14 lede saans, maar ons was ookal 20 en 25 vriende wat saam gekuier het. Ons vergaderings is gesellig en informeel. Ons het nie 'n komitee nie, vra nie ledegeld nie en maak nie lang toesprake nie. Daar word gewoonlik 'n gasspreker vir die aand oorgenooi. Na die praatjie verdaag ons en geniet 'n
koppie tee of koffie en iets te ete daarby, wat deur die gasvrou geskenk word. Die gesprekke daarna raak soms so interessant en die lede raak so entoesiasties oor die onderwerp, en die spreker word so met vrae gepeper dat dit moeilik raak om huis toe te gaan. Dis heerlike gesellige opbouende leersame gespreks - aande. Soms hou ons 'n ledeaand wat nogal baie gewild is. Enigeen wat iets het om te vertoon wat hy geërf het of om mee te deel van sy Duitse voorgeslagte, kry 'n beurt. Op die wyse het ons al baie interessante dinge gesien en van gehoor.
Ons het almal 'n belangstelling in ons Heimatland, aangesien almal een of meer Duitse voorouers gehad het. Meestal stam ons voorouers af van die groepe Duitsers wat hulle tussen 1857-1859 in die Oos-Kaap gevestig het. Jammerlik is daar min van die lede wat nog die Duitse taal magtig is. Ons taalgebruik is

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{module Belangegroep}

Engels of Afrikaans volgens eie keuse. So een maal per jaar woon ons 'n kerkdiens in die Lutherse Kerk by. Rev. Felix Meylahn lei die dienste. Die dienste word in Engels gehou, met twee addisionele Duitse dienste per maand. Die Lutherse Kerk gemeenskap hou hul Kersmark gedurende November, waar eg Duitse kos en koek asook handwerk te koop aangebied word.

Walter Renze addressed the members of the East Cape Branch of the GSSA on Monday16 July. Walter hails from the Eastern Cape. He did not know much about his family history and his immediate relatives were hesitant in discussing the family. He embarked on a journey into the family's past and soon came to know why there was a hesitancy to talk about the family's history.
A family tree that has some very colourful branches to it.  Walter: "I do not profess to know all there is to know about it. I just want to relay my personal experiences relating to this as it impacts directly on my family. When I look at my collection of family photos that I have, I notice that there hardly seem to be extended family in it, except for some of my maternal family. And it was always something I wondered about. It never bothered me too much as a child, but as I grew up, it bothered me more and more. My father used to speak to me about family, but not too much. And I always wondered why".
A colourful look at our Sensitive History