Leaving traces - in the community of Bestwig and with the people

Bestwig. "At the end of a term of office, what counts is not how long someone was mayor - but how much they were. And a good term of office is not measured in years, but in the marks it leaves behind," summarised Bestwig's 1st Deputy Mayor Markus Sommer. - Ralf Péus, mayor from 2005 to 2025, has left his mark: In "his" community of Bestwig, but also with the people. Around 300 of them came to the town hall to bid farewell to Ralf Péus. The outgoing mayor received plenty of appreciation and praise - for his work, but also for him as a person.

The speeches painted a picture of a man who characterised his office above all with numerous qualities: Competent, calm, fact-orientated, persistent and balancing - "someone who is all about the cause and not a self-promoter." In 20 years, "Ralf Péus led the municipality with heart, mind and foresight. He was a mayor for everyone - open, approachable and reliable. There was no need for fixed mayoral office hours: Ralf Péus' door was always open - for people's concerns, for companies, for our associations and institutions," said Markus Sommer in his laudatory speech. He never polarised, but always sought a balance: "Patience and perseverance - two qualities that are inextricably linked with the name Ralf Péus."

Representative appointments such as shooting festivals, carnival events and numerous other occasions were never a chore: "Ralf Péus didn't attend them out of a sense of duty, but with joy and a genuine interest in people. He always sought - and found - contact with people." Markus Sommer emphasised that events such as community fire brigade days, community marksmen's festivals and community music festivals, as well as the Christmas market at the town hall and the Gastgarten, stand for togetherness in the community - "and they always had a high priority for Ralf Péus." Reliability, foresight, continuity, proximity to citizens, commitment, adaptability and professional expertise - all of this stands for Ralf Péus, Markus Sommer concluded: "Today marks the end of an era - a great chapter in Bestwig's history."

CDU veteran Martin Bracht described his long-standing political companion as "not loud, but effective". Ralf Péus was a "committed, competent and calm mayor" who "never lost sight of his goals and tasks." Prudence, the ability to mediate, reliability and a sense of humour were also qualities that characterised the long-serving mayor.

In a surprise greeting, Ralf Péus' sons Marc, Christian and Lars gave an insight into the everyday life of a mayor's family, where the phone sometimes rings on a Saturday morning at family breakfast because a citizen wants to say that the winter road clearance service is taking a long time: "And yet dad doesn't even have a driving licence to drive a car like that."

In addition to the citizens, numerous political companions also came to the town hall to bid farewell to Ralf Péus - including his predecessors Hans-Georg Meyer and Christof Sommer, the former municipal director Franz-Josef Esser, former district administrator Dr Karl Schneider and also the former mayors of the two partner municipalities Niederwiesa and Niederorschel, Dietmar Hohm and Rainer Hunold.

The greetings from - among others - District Administrator Thomas Grosche, Member of the State Parliament Matthias Kerkhoff, Paul Theo Sommer (SPD Bestwig), the mayors of Niederorschel and Niederwiesa, Mario Jaritz and Raik Schubert, Fire Brigade Chief Uwe Mikitta, Volker Nölke, Adelheid Bamfaste from the Bestwiger Heimatbund and Bettina Kreutzmann (NaturRanger) not only looked back on 20 years in office, but above all showed the great heart that Ralf Péus has for his community and its people. The Valmetal musicians, conducted by Sebastian Klauke, provided the musical backdrop to the ceremony.

Ralf Péus himself was visibly moved in his words of thanks - and he expressed "great joy, gratitude and satisfaction": "I am happy about what we have achieved, I am happy that our municipality and its villages have developed well." However, he had only made a small contribution to this - he expressly thanked the municipal administration team and the municipal council: "Local politics in Bestwig has been extremely quiet, objective and fair over the years. This cannot be taken for granted, but it is also our greatest strength." In particular, he thanked his family and his wife Dorothee. If he "gets on his family's nerves" in the coming weeks, Ralf Péus asked for their understanding: "This is my first retirement, I still need to practise."

There was a little foretaste when his one-year-old granddaughter spoke loudly in the front row during his speech: "I'm almost finished, Mila" - instead of local politics and administrative management, Ralf Péus has other priorities from now on.