OWWF Honorary President Josef Döllner receives high award

In 2018, our Honorary President was awarded the Nymphenburg "Bavarian Lion" by President Eberhard Sinner during the ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of the OstWest WirtschaftsForum Bayern as founder of the precursor association OWWC. For his many years of work for reconciliation between Bavaria and Bohemia, the native of Egerland was previously honoured with the Federal Cross of Merit on Ribbon and the Federal Cross of Merit 1st Class.

On October 2, 2019, Josef Döllner was invited to visit His Eminence Dominik Cardinal Duka, who awarded him the Episcopal Medal of the Archdiocese of Prague for his special services to the reconciliation of our peoples.

Josef Döllner was particularly concerned about the largest pilgrimage in Cheb, Maria Kulm. Already during the communist period he supported the clergyman Dr. Method Haban, who was forced to move to Maria Kulm. The provostry with the church, which was built according to the plans of Christoph Dientzenhofer, was in a miserable state after the end of socialism. Josef Döllner got never tired of raising funds for the renovation and saving Maria Kulm from oblivion.

Cardinal Duka honoured him for this and for his tireless commitment to reconciliation between the peoples. The Cardinal was himself a victim of Communist persecution and was also in prison, where he shared a cell with Vaclav Havel, who later became President of the Republic.

We congratulate our Honorary President on this high distinction.