Ellmau to Semriach

A helium balloon for a new friendship

Samuel with his family, farmer Richard Krinner and hotel manager Gernot Trattner.

Six-year-old Samuel's helium balloon from Ellmau in Tyrol flew all the way to Semriach in Styria. Farmer Richard Krinner found it last fall and contacted the family. Together with his friend Gernot Trattner, he invited the family to Semriach during the semester break. 

The custom of tying a message to a helium balloon and releasing it into the sky is not unknown. Many people have probably tried this themselves, but very few of them have probably received a response. Last fall was a different story for little Samuel from Ellmau in Tyrol. 

Together with his grandparents and brother, he released a balloon with a small message in October 2024, which flew around 235 kilometers to Semriach. There, a Styrian farmer found it in his meadow, but from the front.

Krinner found this letter together with the burst balloon in his meadow.

(Bild: Richard Krinner)

What happened?
Last October, the Ellmau kindergarten went on a trip to the local bank, from which each child brought home a balloon. That afternoon, Samuel's grandparents had the idea of writing a little letter, tying it to the helium balloon and letting it go up together. "Samuel was excited for days afterwards and waited for someone to finally get in touch," says Nina Partinger, Samuel's mother. 

A little further east, in Semriach in Styria, farmer Richard Krinner was mowing his meadow at the time. The following day, October 15, 2024, he drove back to his property to check the mowed area. He found the burst balloon with Samuel's message. "When I got home, I checked where Ellmau was and simply called the kindergarten," says Krinner. With the help of the kindergarten, the farmer was able to make contact with Samuel and his family and soon sent them a video in which he told the six-year-old about his find. 

Full of joy and enthusiasm, Samuel's grandfather posted this video in a Styria group on Facebook, thanked them for their feedback and got the ball rolling: Because this post eventually also reached Gernot Trattner, owner of the hotel "Der Trattner". The hotel manager from Semriach is friends with farmer Richi and wanted to give little Samuel and the finder of his letter the opportunity to get to know each other. So he promptly invited the Tyrolean family to Semriach during the semester break. 

An adventurous get-together in Semriach
The time had finally come last Wednesday: Samuel and Richi were able to get to know each other. The province of Tyrol had already been on vacation the previous week and Samuel made his way to Semriach with his family. "Getting to know each other was an adventure for everyone. We'd never met before, but it was an instant hit," says Samuel's mom. And Krinner is also delighted: "If the balloon had come down a day earlier, I would have simply processed it while mowing. But that was great." 

The Partinger family was invited by Gernot Trattner for two nights: "Gernot had nothing to do with the story and simply invited us anyway. That was an absolute highlight," says Nina Partinger. One thing is clear to her: "We had so much fun, everyone was so friendly. We will definitely stay in touch with Richi and Gernot."