Hello, we are:

Olli (43, train driver in public transport), Sarah (42, special needs teacher) and Liam (13, student), our eldest son Tom (21) is already going his own way.

Liam has a genetic defect, partial trisomy 9. This means that part of the ninth chromosome is present in the body's cells in addition to the normal set of chromosomes. In his case, this is the case as a mosaic in around 80% of the cells and manifests itself in mental disability, visual and walking impairments, and a speech disorder.

We usually get along well and do a lot together, even if Liam's stubbornness sometimes makes it a little more difficult. Especially now that he's going through puberty.

Our greatest shared passion is music, preferably rock and metal. After a long absence from concerts, we started taking Liam to concerts in 2019. (In Extremo, front row)

Firstly, because Liam loves music just as much as we do and you can indulge in it on the Toniebox: In Extremo, Feuerschwanz, Schandmaul, Versengold and Torfrock over and over again. At the moment, "Equilibrium" and "All for Metal" are very popular or he headbangs along to Blind Guardian, 5 Fingers Dead Punch, Heavysaurus etc.

On the other hand, as a family we think it's nicer to have him with us and experience an event together than to leave him with his grandmother.

We (Sarah and Olli) had postponed our lifelong dream of going to Wacken until an indefinite period of time, when Liam had left home. Basically: the first time at Wacken as a pensioner!

In spring 2022, our view of things changed drastically again. Sarah was diagnosed with breast cancer. Suddenly everything was different; she was no longer allowed to work when chemo started because of the risk of infection.

During the first phase of chemotherapy, Sarah heard an interview with Nico Rose on the radio in which he introduced his book "Hard, Heavy & Happy". This book accompanied her through part of the illness, especially during chemotherapy sessions, and gave her a lot of strength. It was through this book that we became aware of Metality and initially followed the organization passively on social media channels.

From April 2022, Sarah only received sick pay, but thanks to a few savings we were able to keep ourselves afloat quite well and we were also able to go on a few weekend trips in the summer. During this time, however, we also realized how quickly life can change and how important it is to live in the here and now.

Then we realized: !!! We want to go to Wacken!!!

Not in 10-15 years, but as soon as possible and Liam is coming with us.

Even though Sarah has now beaten cancer, we have once again noticed the obstacles life can throw at us. It didn't work out in 2023 because we first had to replenish our depleted reserves and save up the money for the tickets.

So 2024! We were lucky with the ticket sales and were even able to get Faster tickets. Liam and Olli now walk around wearing the exclusive T-shirts.

Thanks to an appeal for donations via GoFundMe in which we asked for support, we were able to rent a motorhome for Wacken 2024 thanks to the overwhelming willingness to help, which makes things a lot easier, especially with Liam. There was even a surplus, so we were able to donate 100€ to Metality.

Many thanks to everyone who helped us there!

The decision to join Metality at Wacken was made quickly, but Olli was so enthusiastic about the energy in the club that he joined at the beginning of September 2023.

Now we would like to take you with us on our journey to Wacken. We will give you brief daily updates on our experiences and impressions in the Metality Facebook community.

Maybe we'll meet some of you there, our camp is in the Wheels of Steels Area.

We are looking forward to sharing some of the time with you and showing you that obstacles in the way don't have to stop anyone.

Metallic greetings

Sarah, Olli & Liam