1.

Secret Donor Keeps German Town of Braunschweig Guessing

Is there a new Robin Hood in Germany? That’s certainly the talk of the    town of
Braunschweig. Someone there has been giving packets filled with    €500 notes
to local good causes – but doing it mysteriously. Sometimes    it’s a blank white
envelope left behind the hymn books in a church.    Sometimes it’s pushed under a
doormat on a lighted porch. Sometimes it’s    just left anonymously at the reception of
the local newspaper. Nobody    ever sees who the mystery donor is.

The only thing that all the    people of the town know is that he or she (or perhaps
even they) are    very generous, having left €190,000 (£158,480) so far.
The mystery donor    may have given even more – they leave the bundles of money
(20 x €500    notes each time) where they are not certain of being found. Last
week,    for example, a nurse at the hospice in Braunschweig happened to spot an   
envelope under the doormat outside the front door. But there was no    guarantee that
she, or someone less scrupulous, would have found it. The    easier and safer way
would have been to just push the envelope through    the hospice’s letter box on the
street.

Who the generous    benefactor might be is the talk of the town and theories abound.
The    donations are often accompanied by a cutting from the local newspaper,
Braunschweiger Zeitung.    In one case, the clipping referred to a boy who had been
paralysed in a    swimming accident, with his name underlined in the article. So the   
donor reads the Braunschweiger Zeitung. Beyond that, who knows?    The favourite
theory is that it’s an old person who either doesn’t have    a family or has fallen out
with them.

Another theory is that    it’s a modern-day Robin Hood, redistributing from the rich to
the poor.    That is the view of Michael Knobel, manager of the Am Hohen Tore
hospice    in Braunschweig. Whoever it is, he would like to thank the donor: ‘It’s   
strange for us not to know who he or she is because we would like to    invite them in
to have a cup of coffee.’ Anke Burckhardt, a nurse at the hospice, said the money
would be well used, providing training for staff on how best to care for those who
know they are dying. She, like everyone else in Braunschweig, has a theory: ‘It may
be someone who won a lot of money in the lottery and is just trying to do something
good.’

Hans-Juergen Kopkow, the pastor of St Markus’ church, just happened to find an

envelope tucked behind books on a shelf in the porch. He told the BBC, ‘I think it is a
rich man or woman and he has nobody to leave this money to. In this congregation,
we know what to do with the money – we can give it to people in great need. This
person will create great joy for people.’ Some ungenerous citizens have wondered if
the donor might be a little crazy. The one common factor seems to be the
Braunschweiger Zeitung, cuttings from which accompany most of the donations. Its
editor, Henning Noske, said they had decided not to put reporters on the case to
uncover the donor’s identity, even though the mystery person seems to relish the risk
of being found out.

Adapted from Stephen Evans, BBC News, Braunschweig

2. Decide whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE. Explain why
using your own words or finding evidence in the text. No marks are given for
only true or false.

1. The so-called ’Robin Hood’ leaves the money in very obvious places.
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2. It is known there is only one person.

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3. The only thing which is known is that the donor reads the local newspaper.
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4. There are two points of view about why the donor does it.
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5. Some people find it frustrating not to be able to thank the donor.

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6. One of the theories is that the donor is a person who has not got a family.
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7. Some people think that the donor is mad.

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8. The newspaper is investigating the case to discover the donor’s identity.

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3. Complete the sentences using information from the text.

1. Everybody in Braunschweig ...

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2. The reasons why the donor is leaving money ...

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3. According to the manager of the hospice, ...

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4. In these types of situations ...

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5. Finding money in a strange place ...

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6. Most local people react ...

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7. Some citizens tend to ...

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8. Although there are different theories ...

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4. Choose the correct answer. Only one option is correct.

1. There are different theories about ...

   a) where the money comes from.

b) who the donor is.
c) whether the donor is from the town where all the donations
have been found.

2. The one common aspect of the donations is ...

   a) that they’re always coins.

b) the newspaper articles that come with most of the donations.
c) the anonymity.

3. According to Michael Knobel, ...

   a) it is odd not to be able to say thank you to the donor.

b) offering the donor a cup of coffee would be a good idea.
c) the donor must have won a lot of money in the lottery.

5. Choose the correct answer. Only one option is correct.

1. The envelopes have been found ...

   a) in very obvious places.

b) in places where they might not be found.
 c) behind books.
d) in charity institutions.

2. The money is always ...

   a) in packets of 500 euros.

b) in 50 euro notes.
c) in 500 euro notes.
d) in bundles of 190,000 euros.

3. If the donor wants to make sure the money has the correct use, ...

   a) it has to be left behind books.

b) it needs to be left in more obvious places.
c) it has to be hidden.
d) it has to be a bigger amount.

4. The donations always come ...

   a) in different kinds of envelopes.

b) with a clipping from the local newspaper.
c) in an anonymous way.
d) through other people.

5. Some people think ...

   a) the donor’s mental condition is not completely good.

b) the donor is from Braunschweig.
c) the donor has a child who suffered from an accident.
d) the donor is not from Braunschweig.

6. According to Michael Knobel, ...

   a) the donor must have won a lot of money in the lottery.

b) offering the donor a cup of coffee would be a good idea.
 c) the donor was poor and now is rich.
d) it is odd not to be able to say thank you to the donor.

7. There are different theories about ...

   a) where the money comes from.

b) who the donor is.
c) whether the donor is from the town where all the donations
have been found.
d) why the donor is not telling who he or she is.

8. The one common aspect of the donations is ...

   a) that they’re always coins.

b) the newspaper articles that come with them.
c) the place where the money is left.
d) the anonymity.

6. Complete the paragraph with one or more suitable words, using information
from the text.

1. My personal opinion is that the donor does this type of thing

_____________________________________ of the    excitement he gets from being
anonymous. I say ’he’ because I’m _____________________________________ it’s
a    man. But, _____________________________________ the editor of the local
newspaper said, this is like a    fairy tale, a real life fairy tale. I just wish I could do the
same    thing and help people _____________________________________ need. I
_____________________________________ go to hospitals and other institutions   
to help them with anything they needed.

2. The NGO Clowns Without Borders has a main purpose:

_____________________________________ offer laughter to    those
_____________________________________ are suffering, and
_____________________________________ children, who live
_____________________________________ areas of crisis    including refugee
camps, conflict zones and territories _____________________________________
situations of    emergency.

7. Rewrite the following sentences. The meaning should be the same as that of
the sentence above.

1. The pastor said, ’I think he is a rich man who has nobody to leave the money to.’
The pastor thought ________________________________________ .
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2. I prefer to go to Africa to help people.

I’d rather ________________________________________ .
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3. I cannot play an instrument. It’s a pity!

I wish ________________________________________ .
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4. She gave all her money to that institution because she grew up there.
The reason why ________________________________________ .
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5. Poor people need help. They live in very depressed areas.

Poor people, who ________________________________________ .
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6. Yesterday the weather was awful. We were going to have a picnic but we had to
cancel it.
If the weather ________________________________________ .
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7. I cannot go to the cinema with my boyfriend. We never agree on the type of film we
want to see.
Going to the cinema ________________________________________ .
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8. Having money can sometimes cause problems.

Problems ________________________________________ .
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8. Do the following:

1. Write the following sentence using reported speech.

’I wish I had helped more people when I could.’
He regretted ________________________________________ .
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2. Write the following sentence using the active voice.

Problems can be caused by spending money on silly things.
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3. Finish the sentence so that it means the same as the sentence before it.
Even if we didn’t have the time, we decided to stay a bit longer.
In spite of ________________________________________ .
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4. Write the following sentence using the passive voice.

My friends gave me as a birthday present a relaxing massage.
A relaxing massage ________________________________________ .
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5. Write a question for the words in bold.

The donor must have spent a fortune.
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6. Complete the conditional sentence.

If I had known ________________________________________ .
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7. Write these sentences into one.

The man was very good looking. His nose was very long.
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8. Write the following sentence using the direct speech.

The doctor said it had been an amazing experience.
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9. Do the following:

1. ‘Being good and helping other people when they need it always has a reward.’
Discuss your opinion in 100-120 words.

2. ‘I don’t trust charities. Most of them take people’s money for their own benefit.’
Discuss your opinion in 100-120 words.

3. Write a composition in 100-120 words describing what you would do if you were
the Head of the school and a donor had left money in an envelope.