Schweizer Berghilfe
Schweizer Berghilfe, the Swiss mountain aid organization, has been supporting the people of the Swiss mountains since 1943. It supports projects that create jobs and added value in the mountain region. This helps counteract migration away from the area and keep the mountain regions alive in the future. We are happy to support Berghilfe with our contribution.
As part of our traditional Christmas party at the Lüssihof, we auction off all the Christmas presents we receive from custodian banks, fund companies, partners, and clients. Our employees generously offer wine, Basler Läckerli biscuits, panettone, Prosecco, woollen blankets, umbrellas, calendars, honey, and much more. The auction in December 2024 raised more than CHF 10’000. The managing directors Maurice Pedergnana, Timo Dainese, Liliana Lukic, Cyrill von Burg, and Dominic Görg then doubled this amount to CHF 20’000, which went in equal parts to Swiss Mountain Aid and the Christmas mailbox.
Part of our donation will be used to renovate an alpine hut belonging to a young family in the canton of Uri. The mountain farming family with two small children runs a three-level Alpine farm typical of the canton of Uri. Running a farm in this way is expensive. The trained carpenter and farmer runs the business with his wife, a trained polygrapher. They receive support from the husband’s parents, who help out on the farm and with childcare. In the winter months, they both work in their trained professions. The mountain farmers keep dairy cattle and are able to sell the milk to a well-known cheese dairy. Their alpine hut at mid-altitude is in a dilapidated state, so it now needs to be renovated. The family turned to Swiss Mountain Aid, as they had exhausted their financing options, including external financing, despite their considerable efforts.
The second part of our donation will go to a mountain farmer who will receive a milking machine and a new motorized mower to relieve the burden on himself and his family following a serious forestry accident. The trained farmer and forest manager suffers more and more frequently from chronic pain and osteoarthritis. His wife and three children step in to continue running the farm, helping with calf fattening and contract cattle rearing in the canton of Schwyz. When milking the dairy cows to fatten the calves, they have to carry the filled milking buckets weighing up to 15 kilograms. Mowing with the old motorized mower is also strenuous on steep terrain. The family would therefore like to purchase a milking machine and a new motorized mower to make the work easier for everyone.
For more information, visit: berghilfe.ch