The "very second" year
On October 2, 2021, the MHH Alumni e.V. celebrated its second golden exam anniversary. In an almost informal atmosphere, Chairman of the Board Professor Siegfried Piepenbrock and MHH President Professor Michael Manns welcomed ten alumni in Lecture Hall F at Hannover Medical School.
In 1966, there were already 49 students studying Human medicine at the MHH. Ten of them had now returned to their alma mater after 50 years to celebrate their golden jubilee together. Professor Piepenbrock had something to say about each and every one of them and the jubilarians also had anecdotes to share, so that the official welcome quickly turned into a lively conversation in a relaxed atmosphere. Many of those present had not actually seen each other since the end of their studies and so there was great curiosity as to how the others had fared since then.
Dr. Wolfram Zacharias' speech at the latest made it clear that the second year also had much of the pioneering spirit and sense of adventure of the first. Zacharias recounted how he and some of his student friends missed the start of the semester in 1967 because the vacation trip in the converted bus took longer than planned: The Six-Day War had broken out and prevented them from returning early. Only the courageous intervention of a fellow student, who registered her for the new semester while she was away, prevented her premature de-registration. However, this near-debacle did not prevent Dr. Zacharias from seeking the best way out in the further course of his life. Together with his Swedish wife, also a physician, he repeatedly decided to spend longer periods abroad, e.g. in Tanzania and Papua New Guinea.
In his subsequent welcoming address, MHH President Manns reported on the challenges of the pandemic, which had dominated the last year and a half, and the upcoming structural changes that will shape the next decade at Hannover Medical School. However, he was visibly delighted at the moment when he was presented with the anniversary certificates. In addition to the certificates, the golden MHH pin of the alumni association and a copy of the MHH chronicle "Konsequent modern" by Professor Reinhard Pabst were also presented.
After the actual ceremony, there was plenty of opportunity to reminisce about their studies over a glass of sparkling wine and a small snack. One thing kept coming out of the conversations: Even if many things at the still young university were not perfect and still improvised at the time, those present looked back on their time in Hanover with a great deal of gratitude and nostalgia. And that, of course, makes us particularly happy.
Our heartfelt congratulations on your golden graduation!
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