Royal Distinction for Mr. Bemelmans and Mr. Mickartz

Mr. A.H.J.M. (Herm) Mickartz (70 years old) and Mr. G.H.B. (Geert) Bemelmans (63 years old) received on October 23 from the hands of Mrs. Petra Dassen-Housen, mayor of Kerkrade, a Royal Decoration because of their many years of active involvement in the Brotherhood St. Sebastianus Kerkrade 1617. They were appointed Member in the Order of Orange-Nassau.

Merits of Mr. Mickartz

Mr. Mickartz has been a member of the Brotherhood St. Sebastianus Kerkrade 1617 since January 25, 1988 to the present. This year he celebrates his 25th anniversary.

Since 2008, he has been treasurer of the Fraternity and very involved in all activities as a board member. He also played a major role in the 400th anniversary celebrations. As King of the Fraternity, he served as president in 2007 and 2018. As a board member, he plays an important role in the relationship management of the fraternity.

As a volunteer at St. Lambert Church since 2018, Mr. Mickartz has carried Health for the distribution of the parish bulletin and takes care of the maintenance of the church.

Merits of Mr. Bemelmans

Since January 24, 1999, Mr. Bemelmans has been a member of the Fraternity
St. Sebastianus Kerkrade 1617. He has filled the role of secretary for over 17 years. Mr. Bemelmans is the pivot of the brotherhood around which everything revolves. His enormous commitment to the brotherhood ensures that this Kerkrade brotherhood functions and is future-proof.

In 2008, the fraternity's royal silver was lost (stolen from a vault at a local bank). This event received a lot of attention. The search for this royal silver and the entire crisis management involved was led by him. The way he carried out this task led to the recovery of the king's silver.

In 2017, he organized a trip to Rome as part of the 400th anniversary celebration. An unforgettable moment was the Pope's personal greeting to our fraternity in St. Peter's Square in Rome.

In addition to his work for the fraternity, he is socially active in several places, with the carnival association KVV (Bijsjtand kommissiejoeen), harmony St Cecilia Eygelshoven and Rabadatsj Kirchroa.