Exhibition Photos and Stories
Melanie Spee - The Fry Enthusiast / Bütgenbach
“My family didn’t want me to work in fast food, but this has always been my passion.”
Melanie Spee followed in her father’s footsteps of owning her own Fritture business. Her first job was in a Bakery at 14 years old. But pressure from her family led her to work a nine to five job in an office. She quickly realized this type of job was not for her, and she began to follow her dream of one day having her own Fritture restaurant.
Melanie quit her job and began to work in a Fritture in St. Vith. After five years, she was able to begin on her own and Snackeria was born.
“It’s not really about the fries. It is the entire job in general. Plus, fries are such a big part of our culture here in Belgium and I get to be a part of this. I get to represent my culture.”
Werner Posch - The Mechanic / Oudler
"When I was a child, around five years old, I saw a Porsche and my heart was racing. I loved it from the beginning.”
Werner Posch has been a car mechanic for 35 years in Sankt Vith. It’s no coincidence where he works now used to be a Porsche workshop back in the day. The garage has an old history of fixing race cars from the 70’s and 80’s. When he was fifteen, he would come here with his father to look at the cars and hear the sounds of the engines.
The Porsche 911 from 1980 has always been Werner’s dream car to own. He loves this type of vehicle because of the body and sound it has when it drives. A few years ago, Werner finally found this car in Germany and purchased it to have for himself.
Tom Löfgen - The Buffalo Care Taker / Eimerscheid
“Of course it’s not always easy but my animals which are very personal and special to me, show me every day that I have done everything right.”
When Tom was 18, he watched a documentary about water buffalo that changed the course of his life. He immediately wanted to learn more about the beautiful animals so he began to do research and bought himself five buffalo. Now, together with Natagora and the forestry office, his five buffalos have turned into 35 and he uses his buffalos in the nature reserves in East Belgium for landscape maintenance.
Tom works alongside a farm run by two women. Together, they have made dairy from the buffalo milk and also fresh cheeses, curd, Camembert and other cheeses.
Georges Jost - The Bee Keeper / Mürringen
“ When I work with bees, I am immediately in another world.”
Georges Jost’s fascination with bees began when he saw a colony of aggressive bees at a neighbors house. He wanted to understand why they were acting this way. He began to learn with a beekeeping course. Now, 10 years later, he teaches his own lessons to people and is also a member of the BeeKeepers Association in Sankt Vith. "My passion with bees and connection to nature grows everyday,” says Georges. “It’s a never ending story.”
Michaela Schumacher - The Herb Collector / Eupen
“I find it incredibly exciting to deal with the healing power of nature.”
Michaela Schumacher’s happy place is in her garden filled with medicinal plants and flowers in the middle of the city in Eupen. Here, she teaches many people about the healing power of plants through workshops courses and counseling sessions as well as making tinctures for clients.
"Nature has given us everything we need, but unfortunately we humans have forgotten and unlearned this. Therefore, I like to practice the old traditional healing knowledge, and combine this with modern scientific knowledge.”
Mike Deconinck - The Skateboarder / Rodt
“It is important to me that the children in the community of Sankt Vith see that there are also alternative sports, where the focus is not on performance, but on one's own ambition to push oneself forward, the fun of movement and learning that mistakes and falls are not bad, but drive you all the more to keep going.“
Mike Deconinck starting riding his brother’s skateboard around the neighborhood when he was 8 years old. Being on a skateboard made him feel alive and full of energy. This gave him ambition to push to create more and learn tricks and stunts.
On several occasions, Mike had been approached by parents asking if he could teach their children how to skate. This sparked the idea of opening a skate school in Sankt Vith. Since April 2021, every Wednesday at 18h Mike is surrounded by about 40 children who are also filled with the same feeling of fun and ambition he had when he was 8 years old.
“The children learn about their bodies and their abilities, and support each other. There are 4-year-old children, but also 12-year-olds, so there is a colorful mixture. There is no enrollment fee or mandatory training, the school is free-form, you just come when you feel like it. So no one is forced to do something they don't want to do.”
Eric and Carina Pankert - The Wine Lovers / Sankt Vith
“It is such a big pleasure to talk to people about the wine. Where it comes from, what food it is paired with. And it’s even more of a pleasure discover this new passion together with my wife.”
Eric Pankert is the master chef at the Michelin star restaurant Hotel zur Post in Sankt Vith. His wife, Carina, works by Eric’s side in the restaurant as the front of house manager.
When their Wine Sommelier suddenly quit 10 years ago, Carina and Eric had to quickly learn about his position. They were completely new to wine and found themselves handling the wine lists, wine cellar, and learning what food paired with which wine. Eventually, they found themselves enjoying this new task that was brought upon them and wanted to take over the job as Wine Sommelier themselves.
Christophe Voss - The Permaculture Gardener / Lascheid
“The fact that you can seed your own carrot, grow it and then cook it… well, I just absolutely love this idea.”
Christophe Voss spent many years traveling and cooking in different restaurants around the world. From cooking in a fine dining restaurant on a glacier in Switzerland to volunteering on a Permaculture farm in Nicaragua. Eventually, the lifestyle of cooking in restaurants and seeing how much food was being wasted began to haunt him.
Christophe found his home again in East Belgium and has been pursuing Permaculture. His garden, next to his home, is filled with a huge variety of vegetables and fruit. Through permaculture, he has learned to understand the cycles of nature and work with people who want to learn the same. His main goal is to grow vegetables in a very small area that lives up to the organic label.
Marc Siquet - The Goldsmith / Montenau
“It’s a beautiful feeling to finish a piece of jewelry and see the look on the clients face. I am happy I can offer a service to people that makes them smile.”
After studying and working in Antwerp for 9 years, Marc returned to his home in East Belgium to open his own Goldsmith Studio. Clients come from all over the region and country to have Marc create jewelry for them made out of diamonds, gold, silver or special stones.
Gold was a big part of Montenau’s culture in the 1800’s. People would take the stones out of the ground and search constantly for gold. Although this precious metal is no longer found in Montenau, it is very significant and special that Marc creates his pieces in an area of East Belgium that was once associated with gold.
Sophia Schroeder - The Runner / Weywertz
"Athletics gives me a very special feeling. When I run or more precisely, when I do sprints, it feels like I'm flying. I just think of nothing and feel the speed that I constantly try to increase. It's also a way to learn more about my body and to connect with it.”
Sophia Schroeder is a runner who competes in the 100m, 200m sprints and 100m hurdles. She first got in touch with athletics when she was 12 years old and now gets the opportunity to compete in competitions all over Belgium.
Although there are only 2 tracks in the entire German speaking region of Belgium, Sophia wants to share her passion and love for athletics with other students in hope to inspire them to try something new and also find their passion. Whether it is also running or something else.
Linda Peters - The Fitness Trainer Trainerin / Deidenberg
“Training in the the beautiful forests is extremely therapeutic for the mind.”
Linda Peters is a Personal Trainer, Nutrition Coach and Kinesiologist. Her daily regimes she gives herself and her clients consist of focusing not just on the body, but also on nutrition and mental health. When she was 27 years old, Linda began to feel uncomfortable with her body, which also made her mind feel just as uncomfortable. She did not want to continue this way so she changed her way of life.
“Oftentimes, clients begin their session in a bad mood, but they always leave smiling and feeling better than ever. To me, there is no better feeling than helping others become more confident with their health.”
Ramona Kheddache-Leufgen - The Horse Trainer / Amel
“For me, horses are family members, colleagues and inspiration.”
Together with her family, Ramona Kheddache-Leufgen built the riding center, Equicenter Leufgen. The Equicenter is a riding school, training center, a place where people and horses come together. Her job is to organize and manage the farm and horses and to give riding lessons to the adults and children.
Through the riding lessons, the customers learn not only how to ride the horses, but how to take care and nurture for them. To also understand the personalities and form a relationship with the animals. Ramona also is beginning to make the horse world more sustainable by creating care products for the horses.
Axel Brück - The Brewer / Richtenberg
“It’s never too late to start your dreams.”
For two decades, Axel Brück has worked night shifts as a security guard at an Asylum centre in Manderfeld. Twenty-five years ago, prompted by a love for saving older, storied, country homes, Axel moved from the German speaking municipality of St. Vith in Belgium to a seventeenth century house located 15 kilometers to the south in the tiny german village of Richtenberg.
As he began to meet and befriend the other twenty-three inhabitants of the village, he was inspired to create something special for those in his new home. The Richtenberger beer was born, a Belgian Blonde Ale of 6.2% ABV brewed with pilsner malt and wheat malt, the addition of coriander and bitter orange peel, and hopped with Nelson Sauvin hops from New Zealand.
When Axel takes off his camouflage military jacket, a back tattoo of the Richtenberger beer logo peeks out from his t-shirt.
Ricarda Grommes - The Michelin Star Chef / Sankt Vith
“ I stepped into a restaurant when I was 16 years old. From this moment I knew my life’s purpose and destination and I haven’t looked back since.”
As a teenager, Ricarda was already dreaming of owning her own restaurant. When she was a child, she played outside in the countryside village of Schönberg, and enjoyed creating dishes in her family's kitchen and learning recipes from her mother. For her parents and three older sisters, she would often cook less mainstream meals such as veal tongue with a madeira sauce, served with croquettes and cauliflower.
Since Ricarda found her passion at a very young age, she knew there was no other alternative and began working in different restaurants to learn from chefs she admired. A dream became reality and Restaurant Quadras was born in 2016.
Anouk Reitz - The Chicken Girl / Amel
“My grandfather always had chickens. I learned my passion for taking care of chickens and animals because of him.”
Anouk Reitz has nine chickens, one rooster, and six chicks. From a young age, she began to learn from her grandfather about how to take care of them. Anouk always felt a strong connection to animals and wanted to also make her grandfather proud. At 10 years old, she received her own Chicken Coup for Christmas. “I know all my chickens by name and can describe the different character traits of each one,” says Anouk. “I love my animals and taking care of them is just fun for me.”
Sonja Lampertz - The Bird Protector / Lommersweiler
“Only what you know, you can love and what you love, you will protect”.
Sonja’s first experiences of nature was walking barefoot through the grass and stream of the Our and collecting stones. She would do this regularly as a child and watch the birds in fascination.
For several years, Sonja has been an active member of Aves Ostkantone and serves on its board of directors. Aves East Cantons is committed to sensitive bird species and their habitat, such as Whinchat, Black Stork, and also the Red Kite.
“The red kite is a migratory bird and every spring I am happy to see the first red kite again in the sky. It is a messenger for the spring. Watching him gives me a sense of freedom, ease and enjoy life and be connected to the distance and nature.”
Nicola Peiffer - The Rallye Driver / Schlierbach
“I think this is something, that everyone should experience. Being surrounded by people who support you is such a nice feeling.”
Nicola Pfeifer has been following Rally since he was born. He would constantly attend various Rallye races around Belgium with his father, cousins and friends. His father drove Rallies in his early 20’s and shared the passion with his son. This is how Nicola began to find his own interest in the sport.
3 years ago after completing his studies, Nicola decided he wanted to learn to drive the Rallye cars himself. After a lot of training, he had his first Rallye in East Belgium. Nicola’s father helped with the planning, his mother made food for everyone, and his girlfriend and friends encouraged continued to encourage him. Everyone around Nicola was helping make his dream come true without them, it would not have been possible.
Yvonne Schröder - The Leather Maker / Eupen
“I love to create without machines and electronics - only with my head and hands. The bags I produce are sewn exclusively by hand and this makes them all individually unique.”
Yvonne Schroder has been running her small leather factory in Eupen for about two years now. She always loved to sew, and one day decided to challenge herself and learn to also sew with leather.
Yvonne is also a full time graphic designer, which consists of many hours on a computer touching the keyboard and mouse. Working with leather in her hands gives Yvonne a sense of freedom and independence. She does not want to create mass-produced goods, but pieces that are sustainable, durable and to the wishes of the customer.
“Sometimes, it takes me over 20 hours to make one bag. The handwork makes me, as well as my customers appreciate the products more.”
Rudi Plattes - The Cello Player / Wiesenbach
“I love playing the cello because it is one of the instruments most similar to the human voice. Although I am getting older, I will always be able to bring a piece of my heart into the world through my music.”
Rudi Plattes has been a lover of music ever since he was a child. But at age 26, a colleague changed his life forever when he asked Rudi if he was interested in learning about the Cello. Now, 56 years later, the Cello has become a part of who he is. His favorite Cello, which he made himself from the wood of the region at a workshop, is inspired by the bell flower, Campanula.
Albert Brodel - The Priest / Manderfeld
“My father was my inspiration. Not only did he introduce me to the Catholic Religion, but we were fortunate enough to travel the world together.”
Albert Brodel’s life has been filled with both church and adventure. When Albert was a child, he would join his father in church to listen to him play the Organ. He came to love the world that the church offered him, and he began his passion for vocation at 16 years old. He continued his life working as a pastor and became a Catholic Priest in 1993.
Albert always looked up to his father. He not only introduced him to his life’s calling, but also gave him a curiosity for exploration. Albert and his father spent many years flying in planes and sleeping in vans on road trips to places such as Morocco, Russia, Iceland, Canada, South America and Australia.
Raphaël Barth - The Paramedic / Burg-Reuland
“The effort is more than worth it when you see that you have helped people or saved a human life. This makes you very proud and motivates you to keep going.”
Raphaël Barth is a paramedic and firefighter for Sankt Vith. He found this passion through his father who is also active in the fire department. It can be an intense job, with regular training sessions and being on call on night, Sundays and holidays. But Raphaël wouldn’t trade this job for anything. He loves helping his community and people who are in emergency situations and also the camaraderie of the team.
Daniela Dries - The Mountain Biker / Weywertz
“It is important to me that they not only learn about the sport, but also about orientation, their homeland, the treasures of nature and self-confidence.”
Daniela Dries is an intensive care unit nurse with a love for mountain biking. It allows her to find balance from her work in the hospital and lets her concentrate into the moment of nature and sport, where she can feel nothing but the wind on her face and the terrain under her tires.
Daniela trains the children of Eifelbiker East Belgium two times a week in 3 different groups,
divided by age and strength. They ride around different parts of East Belgium while Daniela teaches them about technique, agility, and the basics of mountain biking.
“It is possible to lay a foundation for a passion at a young age that one may rediscover as you get older. There is everything here that makes the bikers heart beat faster.”
Marcel Vaessen - The Guardian / Lanzerath
“I am honored to give something back to all these brave US soldiers who gave their life for our liberation and freedom.”
Marcel Vaessen’s passion for WWll and the US Vets came by chance. About 20 years ago, he met a USA Officer who had fought and resisted the German invaders with his platoon in the village Marcel grew up in. This was the beginning of a thrilling story and passion for Marcel.
In the village of Lanzerath, Marcel adopted the grave from a US Soldier. A two years long research brought the details about his family, life, time passed for his formation in the States and finally his time on the different fronts in Europe until he was killed on December 29th, 1944 in Bütgenbach. Marcel wrote a biography about his short life.
Since then, hundreds of people came to see the memorial and Marcel has also helped about ten to fifteen other US citizens find the place where their relatives fought during the Battle of the Bulge.
Marcel was awarded the Flag of Friendship in December 2021 for all of his hard work from the President of 106th Infantry Division that fought in St.Vith.
Patrick Margraff - The Tractor Collector / Recht
“I used to ride on my grandfathers tractor with him. It was such a special experience for me as a child. I remember the excitement of the engine while looking into the landscape of Recht. Now, on the same tractor, I get to ride my children on it and give them a similar experience.”
Patrick Margraff’s grandfather used his tractor for the farm, but also to go into the village for shopping or to visit his children and grandchildren. When he passed away, Patrick took on the responsibility of taking care and fixing up his grandfather’s 60 year old tractor.
Now a member of the ‘Oldtimer Club Ostbelgien’, he is able to share and express his love for vintage tractors and cars with other people, while always keeping his grandfather in mind.
Helmut Hahn - The Wood Artist / Hünningen
“This process of working with wood is very exciting and gives me a lot of energy. I love this creative feeling and it continues to drives my work.”
Helmut Hahn is an artist and woodworker who has built over playgrounds for 150 children's schools in Belgium/Germany/Luxembourg as well as treehouses, garden houses, woodsheds for animals, huts, and sitting corners. His specialty is building with natural shaped logs which he often has to improvise to get a result.
As much as Helmut enjoys the creative process of working with wood, his driving factor is also to build things for people that they truly love and feel comfortable in. He enjoys being able to provide a safe space for people with his designs.
Christophe Schommer and Rene Heinen - The Comic Artists / Neundorf
“This is the aspect I like best about our work. I always learn something new about my homeland.”
15 years ago, Christoph had the idea to combine his interest in the local history of East Belgium with his passion for writing stories and comics. As a comic fan ever since he could read, Christoph’s dream was always to create and publish a comic of his own.
Christoph teamed up with East Belgian illustrator, Rene Heinen to make his vision come to life. The story in their first comic is about a great battle that took place in Amel about 1300 years ago. Their second comic, published in 2020, is about the story of how the East Belgium came to be. This was the year East Belgium celebrated their 100 years of belonging to Belgium. “This is a topic that was not really talked about much in the area,” says Christoph, “I hardly knew anything about it until I started working on the book.”
Guido Schumacher - The Organ Builder / Eupen
“It was important to try something else at first. I wanted to go out and study and be on my own for awhile. The more I was on my own, the more I realized my calling was always working with Organs. It was always my calling.”
Guido Schumacher is the second generation Organ Builder in his family. His father had a small workshop in Eupen, fixing organs. At first, Guido wanted no part in this type of work but he changed his mind after studying at University.
Now, with a team of 14 employees, Organ Building Schumacher is the largest organ building company in Belgium. They have built and restored many organs all over the world including the Schyven-organ in the Antwerp cathedral, the renaissance organ in Saint James' Church in Liège and the Saint Martin's Church in Gent.
Steven Gass - The Trumpet Player / Schlierbach
“Imagine an exquisite wine, or a good meal... it’s very exciting and satisfying to enjoy it with all your senses. That's exactly how I experience music, with all my senses.”
Steven Gass came in contact with music from a very young age through his parents and grandfathers. After a few years in East Belgium participating in numerous projects, concerts and also as a student at the Music Academy. He went to study bass trombone in 2007 and then received his Master of Arts in 2012.
Aside from teaching instrument lessons to about 30 students, Steven also conducts a music club and is active in many volunteer projects and still plays in several concerts himself.
“The constant exchange of roles between musicians, listeners, cultural managers and teachers always brings a breath of fresh air and variety into my life. It is exactly the variety I need to be creative again and again.”
Klaus Theissen - The Model Train Creator / Sankt Vith
“The creation of a fantasy world in 1:87 scale was extremely exciting to me.”
When Klaus Theissen was 9 years old, his parents gave him a model railroad for Christmas. This lit a fire in him and he began to add to his collection of trains every year.
When Klaus and his wife built a house near the Bütgenbach train station, he would spend time watching the weekly freight trains go by. He was completely fascinated by trains and how they worked, and was determined to create a world of his own using trains as the driving force.
Since the first day of his retirement in 2014, Klaus builds almost daily on his layout. His model world is filled with a world just like ours. It consist of houses, trains, cinemas, people farms, houses on fire, and even walls with graffiti. Not only does he put together each structure manually, but he also puts together the digital technology himself.
“The model railroad keeps me fit. The feeling I had when I received my first model train at 9 years old stays with me every day.”
Didier Scheuren - The Artist / Sankt Vith
“When I was young, I was always impressed by my father’s strong, working hands. Now I’m 45, and when I look down, I see my father’s hands in my own.”
Didier Scheuren is one of the people responsible for the transformation of the Kuckuck; an old bar that has been vacant for 2 years in Sankt Vith. His passion is not only creating different types of art such as drawings and sculptures, but to also make a space where people can come together to create and share moments with each other.
It’s important for Didier to share his love for drawing and art with his 7 year old daughter. He also wants her to experience a safe place where she can create and be herself.
“Hands are an extension of the mind,” says Didier. “My father used his hands to create, I use my hands, and now my daughter will create through hers also.”
Richard Sarlette - The Gardener / Weywertz
Richard Sarlette was a farmer his whole life. He worked with cows for many years until he retired and his son took over the business. Although Richard was no longer working on big farms, he still could not let his love for nature go.
Age doesn’t get in the way of Richard’s love for nature, bees, and growing vegetables. He has an impressive garden next to his house in Weywertz where he tends to many vegetables and herbs. His most impressive part of the garden is his greenhouse filled with tomatoes.
Stephanie Colonerus - The Painter / Neidingen
“Through the rural life and landscapes of my village, I have the opportunity to build my studio outside. The nature and painting combined lets my intuition run free.”
Stephanie Colonerus woke up one night and describes she saw colors so strong that she could not longer sleep. She needed to discover what this was, so she rose from her bed, grabbed her paint brush and painted throughout the entire night. She quickly realized that painting helped her through tough emotions and she was able to express her feelings such as fears,, sadness and anger.
Since she had very little experience, Stephanie watched numerous video tutorials and took various painting courses. She found the feeling of painting came very naturally to her and decided to continue to learn and let her passion flourish.