Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach from St. Ingbert was honoured with the Saarland Nursing Medal in March of this year. She was presented with the medal by Saarland's Minister of Social Affairs, Dr Magnus Jung, at a ceremony in the Villa Europa in Saarbrücken. District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo warmly congratulated Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach on this award and presented her with flowers and a certificate. She also gladly accepted a Saarpfalz district coat of arms pin, which the district administrator gives out on special occasions.
Dr Ulrike Zawar, Head of the Labour, Social Affairs and Health Division, had already accompanied the Müller-Weiffenbach family to Villa Europa, where she presented them with a book on behalf of the District Administrator, and she also attended the ceremony in the District Administrator's office.
"Caring for and looking after a relative at home is a task for society as a whole and requires a lot of strength, stamina and passion. Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach has demonstrated these qualities every day for decades in caring for her 35-year-old son Eric. She deserves all our thanks and respect for this," emphasised the District Administrator.
What makes this story even more charming is that son Eric and his father Egon Müller-Weiffenbach jointly submitted the proposal for the nursing medal, surprising his mother and wife. The two men truly succeeded in their surprise. Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach was delighted to receive this special honour and was touched and grateful. Eric is also very grateful, as he relies on the support of his parents in his everyday life and is well aware of and recognises what they do. Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach also supports her son at work for three hours a day as a work assistant. She is therefore a familiar face in the Saarpfalz district administration, where Eric completed his training and has now joined the finance department. Klaudia Müller-Weiffenbach gives Eric, who was born prematurely and was dependent on a wheelchair from an early age, a certain routine and regularity in his working life. "This is our life, our destiny, and there is no alternative. It never occurred to me to hand over care to someone else, even though it's not always easy for all of us. And as long as I'm fit and healthy, I'll look after them. Otherwise, we are a family like many others, with discussions and arguments on the one hand and fun and joie de vivre on the other," the 66-year-old remarked rather modestly.
Background nursing medal (source: media information MASFG)
The Care Medal is awarded to persons who reside in the Saarland and who have cared for and looked after a person in need of care, sick or disabled in their own home free of charge for a period of at least five years. Churches and religious communities, non-statutory welfare organisations, mayors and local mayors, private associations for the elderly and disabled, the state senior citizens' advisory council, the state representative for people with disabilities, self-help groups, municipalities and districts and any natural person are entitled to nominate candidates.