It is so important for us as a student body to expand our worldview and strive to understand different cultures, as well as learn new languages. Christopher Dawson once said, “The greatest obstacle to international understanding is the barrier of language.”
On Monday, Oct. 5 from 4-7 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom, the 11th annual German-American day will be held.
“For the first time in 11 years, the focus is on Liechtenstein, Austria, and Switzerland or ‘L-A-CH’ which also means “smile” in German (lach!),” said Professor of German Margrit Zinggeler. “The t-shirt says therefore ‘Lach mit uns.’”
This event was originally created because of the German-American holiday, which celebrates people of German cultures here in the United States. Here at EMU, the event has several different grounds, like helping to reach out to any students interested in German, recognizing donors of endowed scholarships, recruiting high school students and helping students at EMU earn LBC credits.
Zinggeler also shared that her favorite part of the event is, “Seeing and feeling how the enthusiasm about German language and culture learning transfers from the various presenters to the audience and reflects back to them by their applause and excitement.”
“There are about 100 German HS students who attend with their teachers,” she said. “They join about 100 EMU students, German Club, faculty, administrators, alumni, donors, sponsors from industry and community and guests as ‘Friends of German.’ The German dinner is prepared for 200. This year, it's an Austrian dinner and the recipes were given to us by German lecturer Silvia Grzeskowiak.”
After asking her what she is most looking forward to this year, she replied, “The students' presentations of my German 343 (German Culture and Civilization) class. They focus on a particular cultural aspect of Liechtenstein, Austria, and Switzerland… and of course the Austrian dinner.”
