The story
In May 2016, I was invited by my friend Bernhard Paul to visit Circus Roncalli once again. Occasion: The anniversary tour. Forty years of The Journey to the Rainbow.
A dreamlike night with Bernhard’s friend Roland Rauschmayer (“Lord of the Rings”).
Africa was a big topic. For years, I had been interested in this exciting diverse continent.
The questions of the evening were:
What can we do?
How can we help?
What can be done to really support the Africans?
Roland Rauschmayer then mentioned Reiner Meutsch and was enthusiastic about his work and his commitment to building schools all over the world. As an FYI, Roland himself has launched a school in Ghana and is doing a lot as a “silent hero” for Africa.
“Christoph, you have got to get to know Reiner,” he repeated enthusiastically.
Three weeks later, Reiner Meutsch stood next us in the doorway and reported extremely vividly, authentically and honestly what led him to the unbelievable commitment of building schools (Reiner Meutsch Foundation FLY & HELP: www.fly-and-help.de).
This convinced me. So, I got an invitation to go on a delegation trip to Rwanda (February 7, 2017 – February 17, 2017) – 18 entrepreneurs, three school inaugurations and Reiner as a knowledgeable tour guide.
The pivotal moment was then in Kigali (Rwanda) when Reiner presented three completed, wonderful schools, and then said in the presence of the director and representative:
“A School should be here, there’s space. We’re now starting to collect.”
Then he went on to tell the story. After three minutes, the media entrepreneur Alfons Thomas interrupted him and said:
“Reiner, stop talking, start building. I’ll pay the 60,000 euros!”
There was a deafening cheer when the whole thing was translated into Kinyarwanda and the many children heard that they were getting another school.
This was a crucial scene in my decision to voluntarily participate in this great organization.
