Farewell, Adieu, Arrivederci, Adios, Tot Ziens....
Stephan Meiser can say far more than “Farewell” in all these languages, as he speaks them fluently - English, French, Italian, Spanish and Dutch. At this year's Schweers spring party, there was a sense of melancholy and sentimentality. Head of Project Management Stephan Meiser - a pioneer from the very beginning of the company - has now gone into well-deserved retirement.
The photo with Stephan Meiser (blue sweater) and his successors Julian Courte (white sweater) and Saeed Akhtar (red sweater) could not be more fitting for Stephan Meiser's philosophy of life. Because these three colors of the French national flag also very quickly bring to mind the motto of the French Revolution “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”. And this could also be the leitmotif for Europe, as Stephan Meiser would like it to be and to which his heart and soul is attached. And this solidarity, which is practiced every day by people from eight different nations at Schweers, as well as the company's dynamic international business, which has taken Stephan Meiser all over the world - including the USA, Australia and the United Arab Emirates - are the reasons why his 36 years at the company have filled him with great joy. And this now has reverberations for him. He is now to head the newly established “Ferdinand International - Schweers Club of Friends”, which is based on his full name Stephan Ferdinand Meiser. In this club, long-serving employees - one female employee and two male employees have also been with the company for more than 30 years - and retired former employees are to uphold the company's maxims and also be able to act as mentors for the next generation and thus for the sustainable direction and future of the company. The first two members alongside Stephan Meiser are Arunas Blandis, who manages the activities in Australia, and Torben Andersen, Head of Schweers Nordic in Denmark, both of whom were present at the spring party.
In his speech in praise of Stephan Meiser, Michael Schweers emphasized, among other things, that he had been nominated by Schweers for the Federal Cross of Merit for his services to international understanding in an honorary capacity, which he was actually awarded in November 2021. Michael Schweers also made it clear that Stephan Meiser was an ambassador par excellence for Schweers' products and services on the international stage, to whom the company owes a great deal.
Stephan Meiser was very happy to receive a gift from his colleagues that had a strong individual touch. Each of them had painted a 10 x 10 centimeter pane of glass with a different motif, giving Stephan Meiser a lasting memento of special value. Company boss Michael Schweers caused a big surprise when he said to apprentice Jason Arndt, loosely based on the former crime series “Derrick”, “Harry get the car”. And the car that Stephan Meiser had used as a company car and had also looked after was immediately driven up.Michael Schweers made Stephan Meiser very happy when he announced that the company was giving him the car.
The Schweers spring party was rounded off by the Meerbusch band “SAMBA É VIDA”, which includes Martina Schwarz, Head of International Marketing at Schweers/PanStreet.In addition, three bagpipe players from the Wupper District Pipe Band created an excellent atmosphere with Scottish melodies.A premiere then took place when “SAMBA É VIDA” and the bagpipe trio performed samba rhythms and bagpipe music with very successful flowing transitions - something that could certainly be repeated and expanded in the future.
Food and drink were also well catered for at the spring festival.Employees prepared not only European dishes, but also Pakistani culinary specialties.And finally, in the afternoon, Salvatore Fregapane from Neuss came with his ice cream van for the third year in a row - a tradition in the Rhineland - to celebrate the birthdays of company boss Michael Schweers and employee Christian Dick.
In short, this spring party was once again a great success and contributed significantly to the sense of togetherness of the entire team.
Author: Christian Dick