A quarter years ago the 55-year-old Claudia Prall from Rhineland-Palatine moved back to Kamenz. Having an apartment and a job was a prerequisite for the return. Another reason was homesickness.
Saturday morning shows its friendly side. In a leisurely stroll, Claudia Prall walks past St. Annen, the large monastery church with the sacred art treasures and landmarks of her new home. The little woman with the smile lines and the cheeky short haircut moved from Hachenburg in Rhineland-Palatinate to Lessingstadt a good quarter ago. “It was homesickness”, she says.
Claudia went to the old federal states for work. It was the perspective of work, good income and prosperity. In addition, she wanted to offer her children the best starting opportunities for life. Claudia Prall raised four boys in the “West”. Again and again she visited the families of brother and sister, who also live in the Bautzen district. “As long as the children were small, it was unthinkable to return” says the 55-year-old. “The children were tied to school and friends, so I didn't want to intervene.” Her boys grew up, started training and studying and started their careers. The reasons for staying became less and the mother's longing for home grew. During a visit to the brother's family in autumn 2011, the decision matured: “I wanted to come back”.
Five years should pass from the first thought to the final move. “Even with the greatest homesickness it is a huge step”, Claudia Prall thinks about the time of the return planning. It was important for Claudia Prall that she could go to work and have an apartment immediately after the move. For her, staying with the family was out of the question. With the help of the employment agency, the trained mechanical engineer and office clerk found a job at a company in Pulsnitz.
The SWG Kamenz supported the search for an apartment. When the children gave the OK, Claudia Prall also signed the lease.
When you ask Claudia Prall what she appreciates about the region, her eyes light up: “It may sound silly, but every day is like a little vacation for me. The area is so wonderful. People look at each other, it's not so terribly anonymous. There is a friendliness and warmth that I do not know from the old federal states. I haven't regretted my decision for a minute.”
The project office was a huge help to Claudia Prall with the many questions about her return. “It is good and immensely helpful to have a regional insider as your contact person.” She enthusiastically describes the good support from the region.
She has many wishes for the future. She would particularly like to volunteer, preferably in the social field, and she has a dream that one of her sons, who has just finished his studies, will come to the “Wachstumsregion Dresden” with his girlfriend. “As wonderful as it is here, I hope, that he chooses to live here. Then the region will have a young family again”, she says, muddling through her short hair.
Interview and Text: Kristina Kroemke