Diakoniewerk invited guests to the main square

It was an unusual sight today at lunchtime on Linz’s main square. Passers-by were invited to sit down at a long table, chat with others, laugh, and have a little something to eat and drink.

The invitation was extended by the Diakoniewerk. The organization is 150 years old this year. Charity is enshrined in its mission, which is lived out like hospitality. The inclusive table community, which celebrated its premiere in Linz on Tuesday afternoon, serves to promote commonality. Talking together, engaging in conversation with one another – that is the most important message of this project, which is offered throughout Austria.

Tourists sat down

People with disabilities, older women and men, and refugees who are given a home by the Diakoniewerk sat at the tables, where passersby could sit down and talk to them. The offer was accepted in Linz. Tourists from Styria sat down at the table, talked and listened to the stories being told.

With the food bank, the Diakoniewerk wants to set an example for successful coexistence. “If the table is richly laid, then you can share the food with others and come into contact with them in the process,” said Daniela Palk, head of the Diakoniewerk. Governor Thomas Stelzer, State Councilor Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer and Linz’s Vice Mayors Karin Hörzing and Martin Hajart, who insisted on being invited to the table, at least briefly, spoke of lived inclusion, a prime example of how to make people visible who are all too often pushed out of sight by society.

Regular action as a goal

The inclusive table community should not remain a one-off event in Linz either. It would be nice if it became a regular occurrence. A first step in this direction was taken for the 150th anniversary.

Not everyone was in favor of the project. One woman mocked as she passed by, saying that “people in this heat” were being used for a cheap advertising campaign by the Diakoniewerk. She declined the invitation. Nevertheless, the tables were well attended and the parasols provided the necessary shade.