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A piece of normality
Arche Herzensbrücken
Sustainability in all its facets is a matter of course for us as the first tourism region with an environmental label. That is why we are proud to support Arche Herzensbrücken as a symbol of social sustainability.
HORST SZELI
began his professional career as a secondary school teacher for sports and English. However, he soon felt drawn to coaching and training in life and social counseling. He gained economic experience as a croupier and manager in the Casino Seefeld. In 2012, he followed his calling and founded Arche Herzensbrücken to provide families with severely ill children a break in their own hotel together with his wife Doris. This project became a full-time job and life mission, which has since been awarded the Bank Austria Social Prize (2019 and 2021) and the Krone Humanitarian Award (2023).
INES PARATSCHER
As a child, I always wanted to become a nurse to accompany seriously ill people. Private events led her to fight for a mobile palliative care service in the Kitzbühel and St. Johann area in 2007. In 2017, she took over its management. In 2011, she met Horst Szeli and enthusiastically joined his idea of the Arche Herzensbrücken. In Seefeld, she holds the position of head of nursing and professional coordination.
CAROLA MITTEREGGER
In 2016, she spontaneously stepped in as a volunteer at equine therapy and was immediately touched. The air traffic controller and mother of three healthy children wants to give back as much of her own happiness as possible. At Arche Herzensbrücken, she succeeds as the coordinator of the volunteers and the third pillar of the operational team. Thanks to her training in palliative care and hospitality management, she often helps out flexibly as needed.
A matter of the heart
Horst Szeli always knew deep down that he wanted to make life a little easier for families with severely ill children. A situation involving friends gave him the final push in 2012. Together with his wife Doris, he opened their family-owned hotel for families with severely ill children. His goal: to offer the whole family a break that doesn't feel like a cure or rehabilitation and focuses on the needs of the parents and healthy siblings.
He found a caring partner in Ines Paratscher, a nurse and palliative care specialist by deep conviction. This ensures that the sick children receive optimal care while parents and siblings can breathe a little easier. "Each family is assigned a qualified nurse for the sick child and a volunteer for the sibling," Szeli explains. Additionally, there are therapy offerings, excursions, and plenty of space for rest and exchange.
350 families have been supported so far during the summer and semester holidays. From a team of five at the beginning, it has grown into a support team of over 100 people – 70 of whom are working on a purely voluntary basis. 2025 marks a turning point: The house has been exclusively available for four families with severely ill children per week since this summer. Other guests will no longer be accommodated.
All costs for renovations and accommodation, which amount to about € 5,000.00 per family per week, are financed through donations. The TVB and the Plateau Pioneers aim to ensure regular support through a socially sustainable cooperation in the future.
Further information about Arche Herzensbrücken and donation options can be found here
Legally speaking, Arche Herzenbrücken is an institution of the support association for children’s and youth hospice work (trademark association). For easier understanding, it will always be referred to simply as Arche Herzenbrücken here.