Visit from the north of Europe

Juha Hämäläinen has been a friend of the city of Hof for decades.

Auf dem Foto sind fünf Personen zu sehen, die vor einem modernen Gebäude stehen. — Foto (Stadt Hof): (von links) ehemalige Stadträtin Elfriede Krebs, Sonja Ranki, Vorsitzende DFG Hof, Marjo und Juha Hämäläinen, Oberbürgermeisterin Eva Döhla

Auf dem Bild sind fünf Personen zu sehen, die an einer Kaffeetafel sitzen. — Foto (Stadt Hof): Empfang im Amtszimmer der Oberbürgermeisterin

Former Hof city councillor Elfriede Krebs had another visit from the Finnish twin town of Joensuu: Juha Hämäläinen and his wife Marjo made a stopover in the city on the Saale after their trip to Italy to maintain long-standing friendships.

A special item on the agenda during their stay was a visit to Mayor Eva Döhla. Together with Sonja Ranki, Chairwoman of the German-Finnish Society Hof, and Elfriede Krebs, the Finnish guests were warmly welcomed in the mayor's office.

"A moment of living town twinning," says Eva Döhla. The then Lord Mayor and current former Mayor Dr. Hans Heun signed the certificate of twinning between Hof and Joensuu in 1970. Hämäläinen has been actively involved in maintaining the partnership since 1980. During his visit to Hof in 1996, he was awarded the Medal of Honor of the City of Hof.