Horst Horin (1940–2025)

Helmut Kogler writes in honour of the late Horst Horin (30.10.1940–15.03.2025).

We knew it and we had a premonition of it, we all hoped and did not want it to be true, although the odds were against him. Nevertheless, it has happened: After long sufferings he has left us forever.

For decades, Horst was an assertive personality in Austrian philately: veteran on the board of the Association as treasurer, a period in which I had the honour of cooperating with him, FIP juror for traditional philately and philatelic history, exhibitor himself with numerous gold and large gold medals for his exhibits, as well as commissioner for countless international exhibitions. After the passing of Gerhard Duska, Horst became WIPA president, and with Reinhard Neumayer’s demise and the new foundation of “phila” – Toscana, Horst was one of the leading organisers in Gmunden, together with Gottfried Blank. And by the bye, he was a supporting member of numerous clubs.

His last commitments were commissioner at the world exhibition in Lugano in May 2022, where I was his “student”, and juror at the world exhibition in Essen in May 2023. And finally, Horst undertook his last philatelic journey to the Hafnia in Copenhagen in October 2024, where his exhibit was awarded a gold medal.

Dear Horst, we will always remember the happy moments we spent with you, and you will live on in our thoughts. Rest in peace!