12/06/2018 | Press Releases

Gifts that bring pleasure and laughter

Frankfurt am Main/Hattersheim, December 6, 2018. Kuraray believes in making dreams come true – especially for people who are disadvantaged, disabled or sick. The Hattersheim-based speciality chemicals producer and its staff have donated around EUR 13,550 to three charities in Frankfurt, Berlin and Wiesbaden.

“Many of our employees are deeply committed to helping people who are less fortunate than they are. And we are naturally happy to support them. Social commitment is an important part of Kuraray’s corporate culture,” says Matthias Gutweiler, Managing Director of Kuraray Europe GmbH (KEG). He adds: “Together with MainLichtblick in Frankfurt, Geschenke der Hoffnung in Berlin and the Clown Doctors in Wiesbaden, we want to help people in difficult circumstances and fulfil some of their wishes.”

A ray of light for three special people
MainLichtblick is a charity that helps children and young people who are seriously ill, have a physical disability or have had a traumatic experience by endeavouring to bring a ray of light into their daily lives. This year, Kuraray has helped this organisation make three children’s wishes come true.

At their summer party, KEG’s employees donated EUR 1,075 to make a dream come true for five year-old Max, who suffers Angelman syndrome, a rare genetic disorder, which has severely restricted his development. Max is not yet able to walk and also suffers from asthma and epilepsy. Donations from KEG’s employees have enabled MainLichtblick to offer him dog therapy. Max really comes alive during his weekly visits to the therapy dog, Lilo.

Since KEG’s management doubled the amount donated by employees, the organisation was able to make a dream come true for another child as well: eight year-old Saskia is also receiving six months of dog therapy. Saskia has problems concentrating and therefore attends a school for children with learning difficulties, where she is taught using a special short-interval programme. She loves being around dogs and contact with them does her a lot of good.

In addition, Kuraray's Christmas donation will make a dream come true for Nina. Nina is also eight and has an incurable, life-shortening metabolic disorder that destroys all bodily functions over time. This bright and lively young girl is looked after by a hospice service. She loves being in water, so a trip to Turkey for swimming therapy with dolphins would a real treat and would alleviate her suffering a little. Kuraray is delighted to donate EUR 3,900 to make this wish come true for Nina.

Employees packed 100 gift boxes for disadvantaged children
Another charity appeal has become something of a tradition at Kuraray: in the pre-Christmas period staff in Hattersheim, Frankfurt and Troisdorf busily pack parcels for the Christmas in a Shoebox appeal organised by the Christian charity Geschenke der Hoffnung. “We provide empty boxes for staff to fill and take the gift boxes to the collection points,” explains Moritz Ehlert, who coordinates the appeal at Kuraray. “This year, 100 lovingly packed gift boxes will be distributed to disadvantaged boys and girls in Eastern Europe.” The gift boxes are filled with toys, clothes and sweets.  In addition, Kuraray donates around EUR 4,000 in money and goods to supplement the gifts donated by its employees. In this way, it provides active support for disadvantaged children, development aid projects and humanitarian relief after disasters.

Because laughter speeds recovery: supporting the work of the Clown Doctors
The Clown Doctors in Wiesbaden have been visiting hospitals and care homes for 25 years to cheer up patients. Kuraray is donating EUR 3,500 to this charitable organisation, which currently has 30 clown doctors who visit patients in twelve children's hospitals, eight old-people’s homes and a children's hospice in the Rhine-Main region and the Rhineland-Palatinate.
Dressed up as clowns, the remedies used by these “doctors” to treat the patients are humour, improvised fun and music. Visits by the clown doctors trigger self-healing mechanisms, especially in children, and take their minds off the fact they are in hospital.

Through their social commitment, Kuraray and its employees put into practice the values that were important to the company's founder Magosaburo Ohara, who funded the construction of hospitals and an orphanage, was a patron of the arts and founded the Ohara Museum of Art in Japan. Today, the Kuraray Group is involved in many social projects around the world.

About Kuraray
Established in 1991, Kuraray Europe GmbH is based in Hattersheim, near Frankfurt am Main, Germany. In 2017 the company generated annual sales of over EUR 680 million. It has 680 employees in Germany at its sites in Hattersheim, Frankfurt and Troisdorf. Kuraray is a global speciality chemicals company and one of the largest suppliers of industrial polymers and synthetic microfibres for many sectors of industry. Examples are KURARAY POVAL™, Mowital^®, Trosifol^® and CLEARFIL™. Kuraray Europe also has around 180 employees at six other European sites. They are also working on the development and application of innovative high-performance materials for a wide range of sectors, including the automotive, paper, glass and packaging industries, as well as for architects and dentists.
 
employees worldwide and sales of over EUR 4 billion.

Press contacts:

Dr. Bettina Plaumann
Head of KEG Communications & Marketing
Kuraray Europe GmbH
Philipp-Reis-Straße 4
65795 Hattersheim am Main
Tel.: +49 69 305 85797
Email: Bettina.Plaumann(at)kuraray.com
Internet: www.kuraray.eu

Christopher Kampfmann
Wortwahl – Agentur für Unternehmens- und Onlinekommunikation
Bahnhofstraße 123
63263 Neu-Isenburg
Tel.: +49 6102 36678-22
Email: kampfmann(at)wortwahl.de
Internet: www.wortwahl.de

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Captions/source of photos: MainLichtblick, Kuraray, Clown Doktoren

[Photo 1] Five year-old Max suffers from Angelman syndrome. He thoroughly enjoys his weekly visits to therapy dog Lilo. Through donations to MainLichtblick e.V., Kuraray and its employees make Max's wish come true. They also bring a ray of light into the lives of two eight year-old girls, Saskia and Nina.

[Photo 2] Bringing joy to disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe: every year Kuraray employees take part in the Christmas in a Shoebox appeal initiated by the Christian charity Geschenke der Hoffnung. The helpers included Karen Vino (right) and Ralf Stahl (left) at Kuraray's site in Troisdorf.

[Photo 3] Kuraray provides empty boxes for the Christmas in a Shoebox appeal and employees fill them with toys, clothing and sweets. “This year, our colleagues in Hattersheim, Troisdorf and Frankfurt packed 100 gift boxes,” says Moritz Ehlert, who coordinates the appeal for Hattersheim-based speciality chemicals producer Kuraray.

[Photo 4] Uwe Ochs loading the gift boxes packed by colleagues in Frankfurt for delivery to the charity Geschenke der Hoffnung, which distributes them to disadvantaged children in Eastern Europe. Kuraray tops up the donations made by its employees by donating money and goods worth around EUR 4,000.

[Photo 5] Laughter speeds recovery: volunteers dressed as clown doctors bring the gift of laughter to children and senior citizens in hospitals and old people's homes. Pictured here are Constantin Offel, alias Dr. Johannis Kraut (left), and Ruth Albertin, alias Dr. Krümmel. Kuraray is donating EUR 3,500 to support the work of this charity.