On Saturday morning, May 2, the barracks of the Bolesławiec brigade echoed with the hubbub of the oldest soldiers and invited guests.
Seeking to mark the 30th anniversary of the unit’s existence, the ceremony was attended by representatives of the city and municipal authorities, superiors from the Ministry of National Defence and the Silesian Military District, representatives of the clergy, police, veterans’ organisations, workplaces, and the administrations of schools and children’s homes together with young people. Among the guests welcomed by the brigade commander, Col. Tadeusz ZUCHOWSKI, were Brig. Gen. Prof. Czesław DĘGA—the first commander; Col. Zygmunt DEMIDOWSKI; Dr Edmund MALIŃSKI; and Jan KISILI-CZYK—parliamentarians from Bolesławiec; Józef KRÓL—President of Bolesławiec; Kazimierz GAWRON—Municipal Head; Dean Władysław RĄCZKA and Father Wojciech MROSZCZAK—representatives of the clergy; as well as Lt. Col. (ret.) Włodzimierz KOWALSKI and Tadeusz GNIADO—presidents of veterans’ organisations.
Speaking from the ceremonial grandstand, the unit commander and the guests highlighted the brigade’s efforts to maintain combat readiness and its contribution to the region and the city. They expressed thanks for the assistance provided and the fruitful cooperation. Some speeches referred to events from the past, while others addressed the present. For example, President KRÓL spoke about the role played by the military 201 years earlier during the adoption of the Constitution, while Senator MA-LIŃSKI expressed the conviction that the army, as an institution facing the changes currently taking place in our country, is the most important pillar of the state. Brig. Gen. Prof. Czesław DĘGA spoke on behalf of the former commanders. This first charismatic commander, a man of extraordinary personality, was able to unite the collective during the first two years, and the atmosphere of work and service he created became the seed of many later training and educational successes of the brigade. Today, he modestly says that the power behind his personal successes and joys was created by his subordinates—great soldiers and patriots, wholly devoted to the armed forces and Poland.
To commemorate the tradition of exemplary military service to the Motherland and to cultivate the moral and combat ethos of the rocket soldier, the 18th Artillery Brigade commemorative badge was established on June 20, 1991. To this day, by resolution of the Officers’ Assembly, more than 300 former and current members of the collective who served in recognition of outstanding merits in carrying out training and educational tasks and contributing to the brigade’s achievements have been granted the right to wear it. During the 30th-anniversary ceremony, certificates and badges were also presented to President Józef Król and Municipal Head Kazimierz Gawron on behalf of the city and municipality of Bolesławiec.