Message of the President

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 In February 2023 the "Organisation of the Swiss Abroad" organised a webinar where questions in regards to the Swiss Old Age Pension (AHV) could be asked. We were later sent the email below, with the link to the recorded webinar. If you are interested to listen to this discussion and would like to find out more about Swiss Pension matters, you can do that via the link. You have the choice to listen to the talk in French or in German.           

Regula Scheidegger 

 Last week our postponed AGM took finally place. At this meeting we had
to put up with a major change, a change of committee members.
After 27 years as the treasurer of SCCS Uschy Suter has finally decided
to step down from the position and the committee. I think this is an
almost unheard-of length of time for a volunteer person to be the
treasurer. All these years Uschy did her “job” with the utmost dedication.
The accounts were meticulously kept up to date, she always dealt
confidently with our members, bank employees, and auditors, and on top
of it all, she was like the heart and soul of the committee, with her humour
and nearly always smiling face. For now, we thanked Uschy with a
bouquet of flowers and we made her promise that she will give us the
pleasure of her company at as many of our functions as possible for
her.

I then presented another bouquet to Ursula Mooser. Like Uschy, Ursula
has been on the committee for a big number of years, 15, to be precise.
Many of you know Ursula as the organiser of concert outings to the
Opera House and to the Concourse in Chatswood. Ursula always selected
superb matinée concerts, and after the wonderful music, she led us to a
nearby restaurant for a delicious meal. On top of that Ursula has been
involved for a long time with many matters concerning our rental
property in Berowra. She too has decided that it is time to step back from
the committee. I am sure, like Uschy, Ursula will not desert us, but we
will see her again at different events.

We are lucky that we received nominations at the AGM for two new
committee members. They are Sonja Schweizer and Miriam Oetiker, who
were both unanimously elected. Congratulations, Sonja and Miriam, and
thank you for your willingness to become so involved with SCCS.
The dates for our activities in 2023 have not yet been set. Please look up
this website again in a few weeks. At the moment, we are looking
forward to our Christmas Luncheon in Tempe on Thursday the 8th of
December. If you are on our address list, you have surely received the
invitation by now.

Whether I will see you on the 8th or not, I wish you a very pleasant end of
2022. I hope you are able to celebrate Christmas with family or friends.
Let’s be glad, that we can look forward to another not so corona impacted
year.

Regula Scheidegger 

Dear Compatriots,

60  years ago, on 5 September 1961, Ambassador Friedrich Gygax presented  his credentials to Governor-General William Sidney. This was the  historic moment when Switzerland and Australia  took up diplomatic relations, formalizing a partnership that, of  course, dates back much further.

This  month, we will therefore reminisce on beautiful stories of our thriving  partnership. Sophie la Trobe who brought Swiss wine-makers to  Melbourne, the Antarctic pioneer Xavier Mertz,  the hidden Swissness in the Sydney Opera House, a joint Nobel Prize in  medicine, a fantastic Aboriginal Arts collection in Switzerland, and  many more!

In  addition, our Honorary Consuls have identified Swiss compatriots  throughout the country who contribute each day to Australia’s society  and to this partnership which we are celebrating. 

Do not miss the inspiring stories that we will be posting each day on our Facebook page.  And be the first to follow the brand new Twitter account of the Swiss Embassy: @SwissEmbassyAUS 

On  behalf of Ambassador Pedro Zwahlen and the entire Team Switzerland in  Australia, thank you all for having contributed to this partnership over  the past six decades and for continuing  to do so.

Team Switzerland in Australia

Are you a Swiss citizen living abroad or want to receive daily updates of what’s going on in Switzerland?  The ‘SWI plus’ app is the SWI @swissinfo service for the Swiss abroad and provides the most useful information and interesting stories from the Swiss media world on a daily basis.

From August 9, 2021, Swissinfo will launch its daily “Briefing for the Swiss Abroad” on the app in English and content will then be available in four languages (German, French, Italian and English).

For more information and to download the app, please visit: https://bit.ly/3yftHSL