At the end of the annual partner day of the municipalities of Borne and Rheine, Gerrit Hermeling and Grietje Rosink were – quite unexpectedly – awarded the highest honour of the municipality, the “Borns Bijtje” (Borne Bee). Both former committee members on the Born side received the award from the hands of their spouses at Hertme’s Ambacht restaurant in Hertme, after Mayor Jan Pierik had once again acknowledged their services to the committee in a short speech.
Gerrit Hermeling has been a member of the Partners Committee since 2009 and was chairman from 2012 to 2020. He was praised for his ability to listen, his easy way of making contacts and an excessive approachability and positive inclination. “Actually, you did almost everything,” Pierik said. For example, he took many initiatives that led to good cooperation between the two communities, including the establishment of sports and student exchanges, and the participation of the German side in the annual 4 and 5 May activities in Borne, the Days of Remembrance and Remembrance.
There were also words of praise for Grietje Rosink. From 2014 to 2020, she was secretary in the. She brought structure to the work and prepared and helped organise the past Partner Days down to the last detail. She was also involved in the many exchanges between the twin towns and provided a professional and comprehensive report on everything that took place in the relations between the two municipalities. And last but not least, she was again the lynchpin in direct contact with Rheine.
Both Gerrit Hermeling and Grietje Rosink remain active in the partner committee. Their network, experience and know-how are thus not lost.
Actually, the awards had been ready in the town hall for some time, after all, the two former committee members had already resigned last year. However, due to the epidemic, some things had to be postponed. The Partner Day on 18 September was a good reason to catch up on the honours.
The official tribute followed a lovely lunch in Hertme’s outskirts, where the German-Dutch group was given a guided tour of the open-air theatre and the haunted house. Afterwards, the 20 or so people went to the Klootschietersbaan of the KV Hertme to face the sporting challenge together. The day ended with a cosy dinner.