“A life of hardship and the special challenges people had to face during Adolph Kolping’s lifetime and the answers he came up with show that great things may come from small beginnings. Following the example of our founder, Kolping brothers and sisters meeting for the International Kolping Day in Salzburg/Austria in 1969 decided to take on new responsibilities and to break new ground even though at first sight this looked like they were leaving behind the boundaries of traditional Kolping work. In the past fifty years, this initiative generated a remarkable number and variety of activities worldwide. Our primary concern, however, must be to strengthen the connecting idea of being mindful of the dignity of the human person, in particular the dignity of the underprivileged, of the weak, of those who are a bit slow and of those who we seem to have lost. If this idea unites us and continues to be our driving force, all people – no matter where they live in this world – who still feel a connection with KOLPING will have a great future.”
Christine Leopold, President of KOLPING Austria
