Awards

At a gala event in Berlin on March 31, 2011, Germany’s biggest women’s magazine honored five strong female personalities who fight with competence and passion for social projects they have set up.

In front of 500 invited guests, each of the award winners was introduced by a prominent godmother. Harriet’s godmother was Sabine Christiansen; the laudatory speech was given by Dana Schweiger, wife of Til Schweiger.
Each of the power women received 10,000 € for their project with the award of the GOLDEN PICTURE OF THE WOMAN.

As a surprise for Harriet, Veronica suddenly came on stage to present her with the GOLDEN PICTURE OF WOMAN. Veronica has been one of Harriet’s protégés in Accra for six years and had been secretly flown to Berlin.

The two greeted each other overjoyed and lay in each other’s arms for minutes. Veronica was accompanied by Mama Dora, who has been caring for the home children since their early days as Mama, and was able to greet Harriet at the end of the event.

However, these were not the only surprises the organizers had come up with. During a pre-reception, Bernard, Harriet’s son who is studying in Ukraine and with whom she had spoken on the phone just the day before, suddenly stood beside her. After a brief pause of disbelief, she embraced him with an exclamation of the greatest happiness. Again and again, the two embraced in exuberant joy at the unexpected reunion.

As the highlight of the evening, Ursula von der Leyen, Federal Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, announced that Harriet had won the additional Reader’s Prize, worth €30,000, from among the five prize winners.

In her speech, the Minister emphasized the importance of the prize: „Nothing has such a contagious effect as the good example. „The Golden Image of Woman lifts into the limelight what otherwise flourishes rather quietly in obscurity. I think that’s good.“

Under the long lasting applause of the audience, the Minister together with Marco Gottschalk, Manager Marketing Jacobs Krönung as donor of the prize money and Kai Pflaume as presenter, presented a huge check in the amount of 30000.- €.

Afterwards it did not hold also many spectators any longer on the seats. They pushed forward to congratulate Harriet. The two members of the board, Rainer Schüürmann and Hans Heitmeyer, as well as Marita Falk-Solheid, who had been instrumental in preparing the surprises, were among the first to join in.

Afterwards, the party went to an adjoining room where, in the presence of numerous prominent guests, the party went on until late into the night.

The next morning, Mr. Sarpong, a diplomat at the Ghanaian Embassy and His Excellency the Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana in Germany came especially to the Hotel Großer Kurfürst to congratulate Harriet and have breakfast together with the surprise guests and African Angel members before leaving in a minibus towards Düsseldorf.

Thanks to all supporters
Harriet and we of the African Angel team feel a deep need to thank from the bottom of our hearts all those who made this sensational success possible. Many of our members, donors and supporters have voted for Harriet over and over again for months. They have promoted Harriet on every conceivable occasion, distributed information material and done educational work.

In this way, they have not only contributed to Harriet winning this award as the KING OF HEARTS, but have also contributed to Harriet and her project becoming more and more known.

For this again a huge THANK YOU!!!