At a ceremony in the garrison canteen of the Maria Theresa barracks, the military commander of Vienna, Brigadier Kurt Wagner, awarded this year’s “Pro Defensione” honorary prize to the parish priest of St. Stephen’s, Toni Faber. Corporal Maximilian Sperrer received the “Pro Defensione Junior” honorary award.
The Vienna Military Command’s “Pro Defensione” honorary award is presented each year to selected personalities from politics, public service, business, science, media, culture or the Austrian Armed Forces. “This award is presented in recognition of those who raise awareness of the norms and values of the democratic state and bring this awareness to society and the Austrian Armed Forces. The Junior Prize is awarded to people who have already rendered outstanding services to military national defense in Vienna at a young age,” said Brigadier Wagner in his speech. Toni Faber, a personality who has worked successfully with the Vienna Military Command and in particular with the Guard for many years, will receive the honorary award. The “Robbie Williams of the Roman Catholic Church” would have liked to become an officer in the Austrian Armed Forces. Instead, he has become a “soldier of God” and supports the Vienna Military Command in many of its activities and events. “His open commitment to the Austrian Armed Forces sets him apart,” says Guard Commander Colonel Stefan Kirchebner.
Junior prizewinner Corporal Maximilian Sperrer excelled in the security police assistance mission to guard embassies and international facilities in Vienna. “The exemplary and training-compliant behavior in the fulfillment of his mission, the correct application of what he has learned, the impeccable implementation of orders and instructions, the courage and competence shown are the reason why the former assistant soldier receives the Pro Defensione Junior 2018,” said the then commander of the Vienna Assistance Company, Lieutenant Colonel Fritz Stefan Salus. Cathedral priest Faber was delighted to receive the award and to be able to “contribute to what is praised in this world, namely to stand up for law and justice and to stand up for what we have taken responsibility for”. It is always a pleasure for him to stand up for these values together with the Guard and the Vienna Military Command, which he believes are practiced by the Austrian Armed Forces.
