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Dr. Bernhard Worms and Prof. Nicolas Estgen established the Foundation in Luxembourg in 2005 under the title of the "Helmut Kohl Golden Badge of Honour". The Foundation pursues totally and exclusively non-commercial objectives and as such is a non-profit-making organisation. It was founded in order to award the "Helmut Kohl Golden Badge of Honour" to nominated individuals, groups, organisations or institutions for outstanding service of particular significance to the senior citizens of Europe.
The following recipients were honoured in Luxembourg in April 2005. After Stefan Knafl, the first President of the ESCU and first recipient, Wilfried Martens and Carl Bildt received the Golden Badge of Honour. The Prime Minister of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Jean-Claude Juncker was eager to congratulate the new Foundation's first laureates himself.
The former Belgian premier and President of the European People's Party, Wilfried Martens, and the former Swedish premier, Carl Bildt, were recognised for their passionate commitment to European integration by Helmut Kohl, former German Chancellor and an Honorary Citizen of Europe himself. The former German Chancellor regarded it as a major role for Germans and for the European Senior Citizens' Union to communicate the story of their success to young people and to have a conversation with them about the Europe of the future. This would help not least in tackling the current misguided "zeitgeist" which often speaks in negative terms about European development. He emphasised that it was living in spirited optimism which had fostered European development and that this attitude needed to be passed on from generation to generation.
Dr. Bernhard Worms, President of the European Senior Citizens' Union, introduced the proceedings by pointing out that the ESCU has the highest number of members and the greatest political strength of all associations of its type in Europe. It is currently represented in 21 countries by 33 organisations with more than 400,000 members. The Foundation for the "Helmut Kohl Golden Badge of Honour" for Services to Europe aims to further improve the effectiveness of the ESCU.
Founding celebration of the foundation "Helmut Kohl - Golden Badge of Honour" 20/4/2005 in Cercle Municipal in Luxembourg (gallery)
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