12/12/2005 - Helga von Hoffmann in Memoriam

AFS Germany, AFS International and its worldwide community, mourn the loss of Helga von Hoffmann, one of the founders and key personalities of our organization. Ms.von Hoffmann passed away on December 5, 2005.

Her enormous dedication and contributions to AFS spanned more than four decades and had a tremendous impact on the development of AFS programs both in Germany and around the world. Helga was a trailblazer; she was a member of one of the first international exchange group of high school students who came to the United States from Germany. Her AFS year in 1950-51 in Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Maryland, left an indelible impression that was to last a lifetime. In a keynote speech to the 1971 World Congress Helga described her vivid recollections of her AFS experience:

When I read “Walk together, talk together, All ye people of the earth, Then and only then Shall ye have Peace” for the first time in 1950, this seemed to be a revelation for a 17 year-old girl in postwar Germany. During the year the impossible became possible and at the end of my stay the bus trip proved it. I had never met French students before, or Danish, English, Italian, Belgian, or Dutch, or Jewish students who personally suffered from what my countrymen had done to them. We spoke the same language, not only the English language, but mainly the language that had been taught to us by generous host families, the language of love and patience, understanding and laughter.

Upon her return to Germany, Helga became involved with subsequent groups of AFS exchange students and host families. Her efforts were instrumental in building strong cultural bridges that spanned not only geographical boundaries but also spiritual ones, helping to heal the wounds of war. In 1952, Helga’s professional relationship with AFS began when Stephen Galatti, the founder and first president of AFS International, hired her as the first AFS employee outside of New York.

An ardent believer in the mission of AFS to build a more just and peaceful world, she devoted her time, passion and energy to set up the AFS office in Germany. Her efforts were invaluable in shaping what today is one of the largest AFS Partners and contributed to the blossoming of a worldwide network of staff supported volunteer organizations. Countless young people from Germany have benefited from an intercultural learning experience thanks to her care and support of our organization.

She stepped down as head of the AFS Germany office in 1960 to devote herself to her family, but rejoined the organization in 1967 and continued her work with AFS until her retirement in 1992 as head of the Sending Department and International Travel Coordinator.

Helga’s family has been involved with AFS for many years. Her daughter Eveline went on the program in 1970-71 and lived in New York State. Her second daughter Helga Alexa (Lexi) was an AFSer to Portland, OR. Her grandson Nikolas went on AFS to Mexico for the 2003-04.

The AFS worldwide community is forever indebted to Helga. Her legacy will live on as young people and families follow in her footsteps and embark on a similar journey of transformation, reaching out to other cultures, experiencing the world from a new perspective and gaining what Helga called “a new awareness, a new deeper thoughtfulness and compassion for each and everyone, making the world a better place for all.”