Berlin, 03/14/2023

Kick-Off For ‘Butze’ Street Children’s Home In Berlin

A groundbreaking ceremony in Berlin on March 24 kicks off a project that is unique in Germany: On that day, the non-profit organization Straßenkinder e.V. in Berlin-Lichtenberg will start building its “Butze” street children’s home, which is scheduled to open its doors in spring 2025. The main sponsors of the project are Birgit and Thomas Rabe and their foundation.

On March 24, the non-profit organization Straßenkinder e.V. (Street Kids association) celebrates the official groundbreaking for its construction of a home for street children in the immediate vicinity of Berlin’s Lichtenberg S-/U-Bahn station. With its innovative concept, the “Butze” (German slang for “pad,” “place [to stay]”) is designed to help get homeless children and teens off the streets as quickly as possible. If everything goes according to plan, the street children’s home should be up and running by spring 2025. “There are at least 6,500 minors living on the streets in Germany right now,” says the association’s chairman, Eckhard Baumann. “Our ‘Butze’ is meant to give these distressed kids new prospects and show them the way to an independent life.” According to Straßenkinder e.V., there is no comparable project anywhere in Germany.

The “Butze” project is under the patronage of the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Franziska Giffey, who already accompanied the project when she was Berlin’s Minister of Family Affairs. It is 100 percent funded by donations. The main sponsors of the construction project, which has a total volume of around €19 million, are Birgit and Thomas Rabe, who are providing up to two-thirds of the total volume privately and through their Birgit and Thomas Rabe Foundation. Mr. and Mrs. Rabe have been involved with Straßenkinder e.V. since 2020. At that time, Thomas Rabe dedicated a private “Twitter Challenge” to the association, calling on athletes to bike, run, or row specific distances. He pledged a private donation for each kilometer covered, ultimately generating a total donation of €200,000 for the benefit of Straßenkinder e.V. Many Bertelsmann employees participated in the challenge at the time.

Other sponsors of the “Butze” include the Manfred Strohscheer Foundation, the Bavarian Radio’s “Sternstunden” charity campaign, the RTL – Wir helfen Kindern e.V. foundation, the Stern Hilfe für Menschen e.V. foundation, Udo Müller and the APMC Foundation, Nico Gormsen and the Hahn Air Foundation, Dagmar Vogt, the IKEA Foundation, and many other small and large donors. The project is also supported by comedian Ilka Bessin, formerly known as Cindy aus Marzahn, who personally supports the project as an ambassador, as well as by former Federal Minister Ronald Pofalla, who, among other things, has been very involved in the fundraising efforts. “Our gratitude goes to Mr. and Mrs. Rabe and all other generous sponsors, whose efforts open up new opportunities for street children and, in the best-case scenario, will pave the way to a protected, independent life for them,” emphasizes Eckhart Baumann.

The “Butze” is being built on seven levels on a 781 sqm (8,400 sqft) site at Wönnichstrasse 8. With total floor space of around 3,400 sq m (36,600 sqft), it will provide space for a wide range of day-structuring residential and counseling services to promote the process of reintegration for street children. This includes around 40 living and sleeping spaces for a variety of offers including emergency overnight stays, independent living and micro-apartments. In addition, the “Butze” will have a warming room, a canteen kitchen, several offices for social and legal counseling, workshops and educational rooms for vocational training measures, shower facilities, washrooms, a clothing store, and a base station for outreach work (“streetwork”).