Papal award for 30 years of service in the poorest regions

For almost 30 years, Norbert Demmelbauer from Zell an der Pram has been working for the BBM procurement department of the aid organization MIVA in the poorest regions around the world. Now, as he approaches retirement, the Innviertel native has received the award and the “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice” cross of honor from Pope Francis for his work.

There is hardly a corner of Latin America and Africa that 65-year-old Norbert Demmelbauer does not know like the back of his hand: he spent up to six months and sometimes longer each year working for the BBM. The planning and ecological renovation and construction of hospitals in particular became a focus of his work.

“Thanks to his high level of social skills, it was easy for him to bring the expectations of the local project partners and the often differing ideas of the European donors to a common denominator,” said Bishop Manfred Scheuer in his laudation.

Through the successful implementation of such projects, good health care can be offered to many people today. The Innviertel native’s professional activities went far beyond a normal employment relationship. “Norbert Demmelbauer was available to the BBM project partners 24 hours a day, seven days a week. He never let himself be dissuaded from this,” said Bishop Scheuer.

In addition, Demmelbauer has been volunteering for decades in the “One World Circle” in his hometown and is often the link between Zell an der Pram and partners in the global south. Norbert Demmelbauer also organizes group trips to distant countries in order to convince as many people in his area as possible of the importance of social commitment to disadvantaged people.

“I would especially like to thank my wife Tina, who has supported me over the years and given me great support. But I would also like to thank the entire BBM team in the background for their support over the years: work was never a burden for me, but a passion,” said Demmelbauer, who will retire at the end of June.

Hobbies such as motorcycle tours, hiking and travelling will have to wait a little longer: the Innviertel native wants to work on the next construction phase of a mother-child hospital in Bushulo in Ethiopia on a voluntary basis. MIVA Austria (Mission Transport Association) is an aid organisation of the Catholic Church.