Why does the district of Munich have such an extraordinary layout and its administrative headquarters outside of its own area, namely in the Au, in the middle of the city of Munich? How did the moss landscape between Oberschleißheim and Ismaning come about and what was its significance? Who built the castles and manors that adorn the district and where do the place and field names come from? The district home administrators at the district office know how to answer these and many more questions. Last year – quietly and secretly due to the corona pandemic – Christine Heinz from Ismaning took over the office of home nurse for the district of Munich. She wants to make the history of the so different places even better tangible and thus also inspire younger people for the topic.
SZ: Last year you took over the office of district home nurse from your predecessor Alfred Tausenpfund. What are your main tasks?
Christine Heinz: On the one hand, I am the contact person for the local home nurses and the people who take care of local history in the communities. We try to meet regularly, next time in Ismaning at the beginning of October. But I am also there for every citizen who wants to find out something about their homeland. And if I can’t answer the questions myself, I try to find the right contact person.
What attracted you to this honorary position?
I have been part of the community of local homeworkers for 20 years, so far as an employee and local homeworker for the Ismaning community. So I know the topics and how helpful it is to network there. Nevertheless, I always had a few thoughts in the back of my mind about what could be changed. When I was asked if I would like to take on the office of district home nurse, I thought: If I have the chance to work there myself, I should do that too.
Where do you want to tackle specifically?
We have to get a bit more digital and modern. The average age of those who are interested in home care and write the local chronicles is relatively high. When I first joined the group of home nurses 20 years ago, I was the exception in two respects: I was one of the very few women and I was the only one under 50. A lot has happened since then, especially among the archivists, because More and more community archives are no longer being run on a voluntary basis by retired administrative employees, but rather their own staff is being employed for them. This automatically tapers this circle. So something is happening, and I find it exciting to be involved in this for one or two terms in office.
Christine Heinz.
(Photo: Claus Schunk)
How can home care look digital?
There should be a lot going on on the Landratsamt’s homepage, for example we want to make a small film about the home nurses and expand the portals for events and the like. The new cultural advisor in the district, Rainer Klier, has also initiated a lot. We are also currently in the process of digitally recording the district library. The publications on the local history of the individual municipalities are to be collected there. The big idea is to rejuvenate everything a little without taking anything away from the veteran home keepers. That has to be a good middle ground.
You mentioned the additional full-time employees. Can one also see a change in awareness that research into local history is gaining more importance in the municipalities?
Yes, something must have happened there. Every congregation is legally obliged to keep an archive, but how and to what extent it does this is up to everyone. For some congregations, the archive just means that she stacks the files in a corner and then they lie there. In Ismaning, on the other hand, I saw how valuable a well-managed archive is for a community. Because there are always inquiries, from the administration, from politics or from citizens. Today many people are interested in their own family history again, because there is a change in awareness.
Christine Heinz, 65, was born in Schleswig-Holstein on the outskirts of Hamburg, studied in Berlin and has lived with her husband in Ismaning for 30 years. Heinz will continue to hold her previous position as director of the castle museum and local historian in Ismaning until autumn 2022, when the folklore graduate will retire and will devote herself entirely to her new voluntary position as a district home carer. She has directed the castle museum since 1998. Heinz will work in the district office together with archivist Falk Bachter, cultural advisor Rainer Klier, monument curator Rolf Katzendobler and folk music curator Hubert Zellner from Sauerlach. gna
Where does this trend come from?
I have a degree in folklore, at the time when we were studying we learned: the more global the world becomes, the stronger the need to understand one’s own small environment. This theory is just proving itself. And that includes family history or local history.
What makes the district so exciting in terms of local history?
Usually, districts have a district town that is as centrally located as possible. Even then, the district of Munich falls out: It has no district town, it is historically located in Munich – the Au was once a place of its own. In terms of its administrative structure, it is extraordinary, geographically extraordinary, and with its 29 municipalities it is incredibly diverse in itself. Gripping this is also a challenge – for example, it is very difficult for the district to create a common identity. Also, because so much is oriented towards Munich, think of the license plate or the area code.
As a district home carer, you will in future also have to deal with the municipalities when planning the building.
Yes, I am a representative of public concerns and local maintenance interests in land use and land-use planning. That means I make sure that ground monuments, for example, are not impaired. I will also point out that the cultural landscape will be preserved. We have a beautiful cultural landscape here, which is partly responsible for the fact that the district is so worth living in. I know that the municipalities’ planning sovereignty is a valuable asset. But to say a warning every now and then: “You want to build here because the view of the Alps is so beautiful, but if we build too much, this view of the Alps no longer exists”, that is also part of my job.