Munich: Telefonenegel against loneliness – Munich project started by
The “Retla” initiative was founded to counteract the loneliness caused by lockdowns and isolation. Hello introduces the project:
MUNICH The loneliness hit the elderly and single people particularly hard during the Covid lockdown: senior citizens’ clubs and cultural institutions were closed, chatting with neighbors, even a visit to the doctor was hardly possible. Many wished for someone to get them out of this involuntary isolation, to talk to them.
“Those affected have no lobby, many are ashamed to say openly: Yes, I feel lonely,” says Munich-based Judith Prem (55), who decided to become active with an idea. “You can get these older people out of isolation. With phone calls, for example.” The long-standing employee of BR-Sternstunden has a lot of experience: “A nice phone call gives you strength and support in difficult situations.” be able.
Telephone angels as listeners: Retla mediates listeners and the needy
Retla – that’s how the word age reads backwards – has grown steadily, today around 900 people work voluntarily as telephone angels throughout Germany. Prem is happy: “This idea benefits both sides. The sponsorships reach lonely people and people who want to get involved can do so by picking up the phone.”
Data protection is important to her: “We don’t want to call grandchildren tricksters onto the scene. Apart from the phone number in the contact, there is no address information or other details about the seniors.” There are no costs involved: “Only the normal call charges are due, which the telephone angel is allowed to do.”
The association is supported by the Bavarian State Ministry for Health and Care and the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt: “But we also depend on private donations.” Two full-time employees now work for Retla, and two student assistants are also active. With coaching experience, the employees feel which telephone partners fit together.
Telephone angels as listeners: The demand is currently increasing again
“We mediate until we have successfully found sponsorships and callers and those called understand each other well,” emphasizes the founder of the association. Some couples have been saying good morning and good night to each other every day since their first conversation, some talk to each other at length once a week and still others comment on the Bundesliga games over the phone. Now, in the gray autumn, the need for telephone angels is increasing again, says Prem.
Incidentally, the two Munich actors Elmar Wepper (78) and Michaela May (70) have taken over the patronage of Retla. Anyone who wants to get involved with Retla as an “angel” should send an e-mail to [email protected]. If you need a telephone angel, call 18 91 00 26.
With the Hello Munich newsletter informed every day after work about the most important stories from the Isar metropolis.