the grosse-heilmann kids – lake bistineau state park – haughton, la

Meet the Grosse-Heilmann kids!

To our southern ears, that name sounds a little funny, huh? Well, these three cute little munchkins belong to one of our favorite German colleagues.

I’ll never forget the first time I met their dad. We were in a training class together, and as we went around introducing ourselves, I innocently questioned why his last name was hyphenated. In his very dry, German sarcasm, he answered, “Because it just is.” ….aaaaanndddd I felt like an idiot. For the last two years, I’ve pondered this same question, and it wasn’t until last month at a luncheon that he finally answered my question. Turns out, the hyphenation is quite common in Europe. Often two families would join or split causing the hyphenation. Turns out, I had a legitimate question, and he didn’t understand why I wouldn’t know this already. Ha! Culture and communication, folks… they’re funny things.

The Grosse-Heilmann family’s time in Shreveport has come to an end. Niko’s two year contract is up, and their family of five made their way back to Germany this past weekend. We are so sad to see them go. Not only was Niko a great co-worker and a brilliant man, but I had the great privilege of getting to know his wife, Daniella. We even ran a 5K together once! In the pouring rain!

A couple weeks ago, I met up with the family to capture a little fun at Lake Bistineau State Park. The park is gorgeous and just so happens to be one of the family’s favorite spots. The kids enjoy collecting moss around the park and playing on the jungle gym, so we let them do just that. We ran, played games, and overall sweat. A LOT. It’s hot in Louisiana, folks.

We will certainly miss this sweet family, but that just means another trip back to Germany to hang out with more friends, right?! 😀