The annual reports document the colourful history of the Sonneblick. Founded in the 1930s by the local pastor Paul Vogt as a Protestant social centre for the unemployed, the Sonneblick became a place of refuge for people displaced and persecuted by the Nazis during the Second World War. After the war, the Sonneblick, now a Christian recreation centre, expanded its services to include reflection weeks for war-affected and alcoholic people, as well as for families and people with disabilities. During the Hungarian uprising in the mid-1950s, the Sonneblick once again became a refugee centre. From the end of the 1990s, the Sonneblick offered affordable holidays for single parents and their children in its two guest houses, in addition to recovery stays for people with disabilities. Since 2021, the Sonneblick has been home to an asylum centre.

The Sonneblick foundation is the governing body of two guest houses in the village part Güetli of Walzenhausen. Since 1959, it has been the legal successor to an association set up by Paul Vogt in 1933. The Sonneblick foundation is a charitable organisation that serves the Protestant Church and the ecumenical movement, and remains ready to help any people in need, both at home and abroad, who are seeking refuge and require assistance. The Sonneblick foundation is currently committed to promoting the integration of asylum seekers. Since 2017, the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden has rented the two buildings and uses them as a cantonal asylum centre.

Contact:

Stiftung Sonneblick Walzenhausen
www.sonneblick-walzenhausen.ch