Notes referring to contacts between the Boniface cities:
1926: August 26, the first National Pilgrimage around the
Boniface Chapel in the making takes place. Initiator Titus Brandsma welcomed
Jos Diemen Schmitt, Bishop of Fulda, among others.
(source: Historia
Doccumensis.
In the post-war years, contacts with Germany were of course
at a low level. But
there are hardly any other international contacts in this period". The mobility of the people is limited and there is hardly any
money for “excesses in the field of leisure”.
Photo from left to right: L.M.Hugo (Bishop of Mainz), H.van de Wetering (Bishop of Utrecht) and J.D. Schmitt (Bishop of Fulda).
left hand side at the rear: Titus Brandsma
Excavations and visit Queen Juliana
A booklet with a travel report from the archives of the Roman Catholic church of an anonymous Dokkumer mentions a visit to Fulda during a holiday trip in September 1952. The (undoubtedly Roman Catholic) Dokkumer is impressed by the beautiful Cathedral of Fulda and the tomb of Saint Boniface. He stayed in the hotel Zum Ritter, still a popular hotel in the old town
At the commemoration of the 1200th anniversary of Dokkum, an official delegation from Crediton is welcomed. The bishop of Crediton is also in this company. A memorial service is held in the chapel, there are excavations on the Markt, a play by Fedde Schurer is staged and an exhibition is organised. Besides the city festivals, the visit of Prince Bernhard and the naming of the minesweeper Dokkum, this is one of the highlights of the year. “S'an jier krije wy net wer (We will never get a year like this again)” says Mayor S. van Tuinen.
1984 - 2002
1955
In the English/Anglican tradition, the murder of
Boniface was committed in 755 and the 1200-year commemoration takes place in
1955. Mayor of Dokkumer S. van Tuinen attends the commemoration in Crediton.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is also present. Mayor Van Tuinen philosophizes
about this: “Would the contact be lasting? I would say yes. These kinds of
contacts are fashionable today. It would be nice if we could also get in touch
with a city in Belgium, France or Germany. Completely in the spirit of Boniface. ”
1956
From August 27 - 31 the church
choir of Crediton visits the Netherlands and gives concerts in Dokkum, Bolsward
and Utrecht and for the NCRV radio. Mayor Van Tuinen, who speaks highly of the
choir he had listened to the year before, is personally committed to this and ensures
that the choir members are housed with private individuals. The proceeds of the
concerts aim to erect a Boniface statue in Crediton. Dokkum should also have
such an image and official M. van Duyn makes a proposal to that effect.
1958
In that year the number of
contacts with Germany grew, which, as its closest neighbour, is more accessible
than England. The train connection between Groningen and Bremen will be
restored and the first sporting, cultural and church exchanges will take place
again (LC 4/6/58).
In April 1958, the motorcyclist
association “De Stormvogels” from Dokkum, under the chairmanship of a municipal
official, C. Mulder, launched the plan for a
motorcycle and automobile trip to Fulda in 1959.
The tour will serve as a “bridge”
for a cultural and sporting exchange between the places that played such an
important role in the life of the missionary Boniface.
Everywhere in the world there is
a cry for peace and friendship. If we want to strive for this, it will have to
start from the bottom up. Personal contact is the best guarantee for a better
understanding of each other (NDC 28/1/1959).
Dokkum has been working towards
this first exchange for more than a year. Collective lessons in the German
language are even organised.
1959
Exchange from Friday 12 to Monday
15 June 1959.
Participants about 250 people in
three NOF buses, private cars and motorcycles. Members of MC De Stormvogels,
the Dockumer Muziekkorps with drum band, music association Euphonia, the church
choir of the Ned. rev. municipality and the Dockumer Accordion club are on the way to Fulda.
One of the associations that
hosted in Fulda was the Städtischer Konzertchor “Winfridia”, under the
inspiring leadership of chairman Hans Will, who from then on became the great
animator of the exchanges for several decades.
This first exchange, organized
and led by Cornelis Mulder, was a great success and plans were immediately made
for a return visit by Fuldaërs in 1960.
An official English delegation
was present at the unveiling of the Boniface statue by the then Crown Princess
Beatrix.
1971
An invitation arrived fro Crediton to attend the
Boniface commemoration on 5 and 6 June in the presence of Princess Margaret.
Mayor Miedema, who has only just arrived in Dokkum, hands over a red oak from
Dokkum that is being planted by Her Royal Heighness. In an internal note the mayor wrote after a conversation with H.
Kingma of the Toonkunstkoor:
“There has been a Fulda committee for a long time and
so far contact with Crediton has mostly been via the municipal council. Strive
for a situation where both Fulda and Crediton by a. population and b. community
is treated equally. I share that view.”
Fifteen years after the first
exchange, a large group of Dokkumers returns to Fulda. It is a group of about 220
people from the Toonkunstkoor, Sursum Corda, RK church choir, Reformed church
choir, Domuco, the drum band of Orange, the tennis club, football. Dockumer and
volleyball player from DVC.
They will visit the German sister
city from 23 to 26 May.
The Winfridia choir, chaired by
Hans Will, is still one of the biggest hosts. The organizing committee that was
set up in 1972 includes: F. Houtkoop, chairman, M. van Duyn, secretary, J.J.B.
Demes, J. Rosier and G.S. Scherstra. The group, accompanied by the mayor couple
Miedema, among others, travels by special direct train. The budget is almost 32
thousand guilders with a deficit of almost eight thousand.
In 1974 the Bonifaciussteden
Crediton-Dokkum-Fulda Foundation was also established in the presence of notary
K. D. de Vries. The aim of the foundation is to promote and stimulate contacts
in the cultural, social, sporting and recreational areas. It is stated in the
articles of association that in the event of liquidation a positive balance
must accrue to a corresponding purpose.
In 1973 and 1974 there is still
some correspondence with Crediton, where Raymond Skinner, the head of the Queen
Elizabeth's School, makes a case for contacts with Dokkum and also Fulda, but
this does not lead to anything concrete.
Journey to Fulda 1963, no written records, just pictures.
1975
On February 22, a letter from the
Foundation is sent to the Dokkumer associations to come to an exchange
with Crediton. There is insufficient response to this.
However, during a meeting in
March, the trip to Fulda in 1974 is evolved and preparations are made to
receive the Fuldaers in Dokkum in 1976. Crediton is somewhat more difficult in
terms of travel time and finances. Maybe a smaller group can go there first.
In any case, Mayor Miedema and his family paid a
private visit to Crediton and invited Mr. Skinner to meet the Fuldaers in
Dokkum in 1976.
1976
From 27 to 30 May, no fewer than
three hundred Fuldaers will arrive in Dokkum.
This “biggest exchange ever” had
highlights such as the performance of “Die Jahreszeiten” by the German music
choir Winfridia, which was celebrating its centenary. The accompaniment was in
the hands of the Frysk Orchestra. Tennis and football matches were also held
and the exchange concluded with an ecumenical service in the Boniface Chapel
where the Fuldaer Domchor sang and the Posaunenchor blew.
In this year it is busy on the
exchange front because from June 28 to July 9 29 Fuldaers will go to Crediton
and “per return post” from 10 to 24 July sixty residents of Crediton will go to
Fulda. In the same summer, Granada television makes a documentary about “The
Christians” and films in Dokkum, among other places.
In the meantime, Mayor Miedema
has left for Baarn and the Crediton-Dokkum-Fulda Foundation receives a letter
that "due to the lack of the necessary means of cover" in 1977 and
1978 no municipal contribution for exchanges is expected. It is possible that
some budgetary space can be found again before 1980.
Mister Skinner repeatedly tries to
establish an exchange between Crediton and Dokkum, but the interests and the
time schedule are not synchronized, besides: there is no money!!
1978
A group of eight cyclists rides
from Dokkum to Fulda and joins about one hundred and eighty Dokkumers who again
went by train to the German city of Boniface. Toonkunstkoor and Sursum Corda
gave concerts together and the RC church choir and the Bonifatiuscantorij
cooperated in church services. There was also plenty of sport by basketball
players, football players and tennis players and showband Domuko once again gave a
perfect show in the city center.
Despite the municipal letter from
1976, a municipal contribution of five thousand guilders was requested for this
exchange. In the end, the foundation received 2500 guilders (about €
1200).
Another sporting achievement took place in the summer
of this year when theology students Cees Glashouwer and Gerrit Groeneveld from
Leeuwarden made a pilgrimage from Dokkum to Crediton together with seven fellow
students. The idea came from fellow student Dick Kruyt, who, however, did not
get around to realizing it himself. They left Dokkum on 3 July and walked a
large part of the route to Crediton where they were received by the bishop. On
July 30, the pilgrimage was concluded with an ecumenical service in the
Boniface Chapel.
1979
A small group of Englishmen come
to Dokkum to discuss the festivities in 1980, the celebration of the 1300th
birthday of Boniface.
Communication with Crediton continues to be difficult
and the Crediton-Dokkum-Fulda foundation is not brimming with enthusiasm to
organize an exchange in 1980. There are already agreements with Fulda for an
exchange that year. Moreover, England is too far and too expensive.
1980
All in all, a Dokkumer delegation
will go to Crediton, it is an official one. Mayor Sybesma,
Scherstra and Van Duyn of the Foundation, Reverends Boiten and Woltjer and Pastor
Ros represent Dokkum at the commemoration of the 1300th birthday of Boniface.
The festivities will run from June 4-10 and the memorial service on June 8 will
also be attended by Princess Alexandra of Kent.
From 15 - 19 May, there are again about two
hundred Fuldaers in Dokkum. The exchange runs again via the proven concept.
Winfridia, the Brassband, the football players and tennis players are all
there. The Dokkumer Bonifatiuscantorij gives a concert and there is a closing
service in the Bonifatiuskapel in which the Fuldaer Domchor participates.
1981
The year in which a large group of residents of
Crediton visit Dokkum for the first time. A bus full of Cretonians arrives in a
partying Dokkum after a long journey. The city festival lasts for a week and a
large part of the Dokkumers are dressed up for 400 years of Strongholds. The
English and the Frisian humor appear to be closely related and the guests from
Crediton, led by mayor Mrs. Blamey, enjoy themselves to the full. It is also
the year in which Willem de Boer takes a seat on the committee. He will be one
of the driving forces behind the contacts for the next twenty years. In
England, where the committee has a more ecclesiastical character, it is Maurice
Mardon, the sexton of the church in Crediton.
1983
From May 12 to 15, another eight
cyclists will go to Fulda to join the approximately 150 Dokkumers who are once
again guests in Germany. The silver jubilee of the contacts between Fulda and
Dokkum will be celebrated this year with performances by the well-known choirs,
the music associations Oranje and Euphonia and sporting water polo players,
basketball players and football players. During a festive gathering in the
Kolphinghaus, the Dokkumer committee members Van Duyn, De Boer and Ter Horst
received a silver medal of honor, as well as the mayors Sybesma and Miedema,
who had come over from Baarn. The Dokkumers had a Bonifatius medal for Messrs.
Steibing, Müller and of course for chairman Hans Will, who has also been a
member for 25 years and heads the exchange committee in Fulda. He is appointed
an honorary member of the Dokkumer Foundation Crediton-Dokkum-Fulda.
1984
Finally the time has come. Thirty
years after the first contacts with Crediton arose, a large group of Dokkumers
visits the English birthplace of Boniface. The exchange will take place during
the autumn break of October 12-16. The fact that municipal threadmills do not
always have to run slowly is apparent this year in the new municipality of
Dongeradeel.
Despite the fact that people are invited very late (6 weeks in
advance), it appears possible (even through the regular council meeting) to
reserve an amount of 2100 guilders (approximately € 1000) for this exchange,
although this at the expense of membership of the Council of European
Municipalities. The city council responds to the invitation and accompany the bus full of
Northeast Frisians. An occasional choir composed and led by Anne de Bruyn gives
a number of concerts as well as a brassband of the music association Oranje. The
Dokkumers are surprised by the hospitality of the English, which is not
inferior to that of the Germans. Also the official reception by the Bishop of
Crediton and the city council headed by Mayor Mrs. Gillian Ponsford are very
cordial.
All in all: it is the first, but certainly not the last visit to Crediton.
1987
From May 28 to June 1, Fulda will
return to Dokkum as wel as some
representatives from Crediton. The enthusiasm for the
exchanges seems to be waning because after the hundreds of visitors, there is now
one bus full and a single passenger car. They are mainly members of the
Dompfarrchor, who gave a concert together with the Orange band, and a
delegation of basketball players. The official reception emphasizes that
exchanges should be held more frequently. Maurice and Josie Mardon from
Crediton invited the Dokkumers and Fuldaers to the festivities in 1988 on the
occasion of the 300th anniversary of William III becoming king of England.
Onboard the ms De Silverwind, the Fuldaers and Cretonians
sailed with a representative of the host families across the Lauwersmeer and to
Schiermonnikoog. After the departure of
L. Dijkma and H. ter Horst, the
Dokkumer exchange committee now consists of only two people: M. van Duyn and W.
de Boer. The latter wants to expand the committee to at least five people. An
exchange with Crediton in 1988 is still in the making, but whether Fulda will
come in 1989 is the question. In any case, the time of meetings around Ascension
(usual until now) will most likely be changed.
1988
The Dokkumers are once again
heading for Crediton, this time from 12 to 17 July. The group only needs two buses. Brassband Orange now goes to Crediton with all its musicians and the occasional choir of Anne de Bruyn
is also present. In addition, there are of course also municipal administrators
and a number of people just for the fun of a journey.
A “flower exhibition” is held in the
characteristic church of Credition and the children of the Queen Elisabeth
School perform a musical. Oranje and the Credition Town Band give a concert
together and friendship certificates were exchanged.
1989
Meanwhile, the construction of a community center is being prepared at the church in Crediton. The Dokkumer committee is also committed to this and succeeds in recruiting several dozen sponsors who, in addition to money, also give goods for this St. Boniface center.
1993
Crediton visits Dokkum with a bus
of people during the city festival week from August 27 to September 1. The
Crediton Town Band, which maintains such good contacts with Orange, and the
choir of the Anglican Church in Crediton participate in a church service in the
chapel, among other things.
1994
During the autumn break in October, two buses
full of Dokkumers will travel by night ferry from Hoek van Holland to Harwich,
to Crediton. Vocal ensemble Bonifatius conducted by Pieter Koole and (Orange of
course) provide concerts and in addition the municipal delegation led by Mayor
Sybesma will host a number of individual guests. Jo and Hillary Ward have
since taken over the organizational baton from Maurice and Josie Mardon, while
H. Ter Horst has resigned from the Dokkumer Foundation Board.
1998
In June of this year, the signing
of the friendship treaty between Dokkum and Fulda by Mayor Sybesma and
Oberbürgermeister Hamberger will take place in Fulda.
The board of the Dokkum -
Crediton - Fulda Foundation informs the municipal council and the council of
Dongeradeel in a letter that it will dissolve the Foundation as of December 31,
1998. The last board members L. Dijkma chairman, Willem de Boer, secretary, and
M. van Duyn, treasurer, are of the opinion that the new set-up concerning the exchanges does not fit within the mission statement and the working method
of the Foundation, which has been around for some twenty-five years now.
1999
During the autumn holidays, two buses full of Dokkumers will go to Crediton. At the request of the
municipality, former foundation director Willem de Boer is responsible for the
organization and ensures that everything runs smoothly again.
Vocal ensemble Bonifatius and Brassband Oranje will give concerts in Tiverton and of course Crediton. Hillary Ward and her people
manage to accommodate everyone again and the Vonicate center does a fantastic
job of serving as a meeting, dining and banquet hall. The center now also has
its “Dokkum room”.
In 2002 the municipal council
asks Willem de Boer to form a common friendship committee that will take care
of the contacts in the future.
In the almost fifty years that
the mutual bond between the Boniface towns has been worked on, there are a
number of people who, as volunteers, clearly left their mark on these contacts.
In Dokkum these were "the first man" Cornelis Mulder, Freek Houtkoop,
chairman of the committee in the seventies and conductor of the Toonkunst
choir, Marten van Duyn, who served the committee for decades as secretary and
chairman, and Willem de Boer who experienced an exchange as a journalist and
subsequently pledged his heart to the contacts between the Boniface towns.
For
his extensive work he received an award from the city of Fulda (2000) and in
2001 a royal award. In Fulda, Winfridia chairman Hans Will was the main driving
force behind the contacts for decades.
He also received a royal decoration and
a Boniface pin.
In Crediton, sexton Maurice
Mardon, conductor Wilson Foster of the Crediton Town Band and Hillary Ward
stood out, who to this day are the connecting link between the residents of
Crediton and the other Boniface towns.
Mayor Sybesma and Mayor Jenny Pitts exchange friendship certificates.
Hilary and Joe Ward in Crediton divide the Dokkumer guests among the host families in the Boniface Centre.
Rear: Henri
Geursen, Rein Hof, Roel Munneke, Gerrit Bijker
front: Marjan Dreves-Veer, Cees van Staalduinen, Tsjeerd Jorna en Jaap Zijl.
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