Essen has a new voice: Susanne Abel leads telephone pastoral care!

Essen has a new voice: Susanne Abel leads telephone pastoral care!

On May 5, 2025, Susanne Abel was ceremoniously introduced in the market church as the new head of Essen's ecumenical telephone pastoral care. The event was headed by assessor Monika Kindsgrab, while Mayor Thomas Kufen was also present. The service attracted numerous full-time and volunteers of telephone counseling, friends, companions as well as members of the board of trustees and support association, which Susanne ABEL warmly welcomed. Abel, 57 years old and originally from Plettenberg in the Märkischer Kreis, took on her new task on January 1, 2025.

The new director has extensive experience. She studied social pedagogy at the Münster University of Applied Sciences and previously worked as a youth officer and community teacher in various parishes of the Evangelical Church of Westphalia (EKVW). In addition, she trained as a predicant, clown and supervisor. From 2008 to 2019 she was active at the Institute for Exercise, Continuing and Continuing Education of the EKVW and for telephone counseling in Dortmund. Your switch to hospital pastoral care at the University Hospital Essen took place in 2018.

responsible role in telephone counseling

In her new position, Susanne Abel is responsible for the training, the use and further training of around 120 voluntary telephone champions. Essen's ecumenical telephone pastoral care, which was created in 2020 from the merger of the Catholic and Evangelical Telefonic Service, offers an important service for the region. The catchment area comprises several cities, including Gladbeck, Bottrop and Gelsenkirchen, and telephone counseling is offered around the clock on 365 days a year.

the facility records around 25,000 calls and almost 1,300 email requests annually. The volunteers do indispensable work during this time and are an important point of contact for people in mental emergencies. New volunteers are always being sought who can contact telephone counseling. Further information is available on the website Telefonselsorge-essen.de available.

support initiatives in the community

The support association of Essen's telephone counseling (FETS) plays a central role in the support of the volunteers. A benefit concert that takes place on June 15, 2024 in the Evangelical Emmaus community is organized by the vocal ensemble Victor Gerassimez in order to collect donations that benefit the further training of the 120 volunteers. Admission is free, but donations are requested at the end of the concert.

thanksgiving, including from the bank in the diocese of Essen and the Rotary Club Essen Centennial, support the funding base of the fets. Peter Toussaint, the chairman of FETS, emphasizes the importance of the financial means to support the volunteers in their valuable work and to finance further training seminars.

In addition, the telephone counseling organizes commemorative celebrations for survivors after suicide, including one on September 10, 2024 in the Siechenhaus chapel. These events offer space for grief and memory and are an integral part of pastoral work.

volunteers not only experience personal enrichment through their commitment, but also an expanded view of human destinies. The training and support not only offer security, but also promote valuable interpersonal bonds.

Essen Essenische Telefonseelsorge and their committed volunteers are an indispensable part of the community, and Susanne Abel will play a decisive role in strengthening and further development of this important service in her new position.