The agenda of the Bolesławiec City Council session held this Wednesday included, among other things, a vote on draft resolutions concerning the awarding of the “Distinguished Citizen of Bolesławiec” title.
And just as we suspected: the vote was merely a formality. The Council adopted all the resolutions unanimously. We can now officially write about the new “Distinguished Citizens of Bolesławiec”:
- Tadeusz Jurkowski
Justification: Mr Tadeusz Jurkowski (born 10 June 1939), a Polish citizen, is a resident of Bolesławiec. A longtime teacher and member of the Association of Re-emigrants from Bosnia, Their Descendants and Friends, he has been involved in organising numerous meetings with young people on the history and circumstances that caused Polish settlers to leave for the Balkans “in search of bread” in the 19th century, as well as on the factors that influenced their return to the Bolesławiec County area after the Second World War. He is the author of the first master’s thesis written and defended in 1970, entitled “The Settlement of Poles from Yugoslavia in the Lands of Bolesławiec County in 1946–1947”. The entire thesis consists of 169 pages of typescript. This material is a valuable source of knowledge on which many authors in Poland base their articles describing the history of the settlement of Poles in the lands of Bolesławiec County. Thanks to the efforts of the Association of Re-emigrants from Bosnia, Their Descendants and Friends and the funds it obtained from the Marshal’s Office of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship and Bolesławiec City Hall, the thesis will be published in print. The book’s launch is scheduled for September 2019. - Helena Smoleńska (in the header photo)
For more than 20 years, Helena Smoleńska has served as president of the “Artistic Ceramics” Artistic Handicraft Cooperative. She headed the plant in 1992–1993 and has managed the company continuously since 1998. The products manufactured by the company she leads are highly valued for their quality and design. This is confirmed by participation in numerous displays, presentations and exhibitions organised in museums, galleries and various institutions in Poland and European countries. The products are sold throughout Poland and exported worldwide—to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, China, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Switzerland, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, the Czech Republic, Belgium, Hungary, Russia, Ukraine and Lithuania. The cooperative has participated and continues to participate in the Ambiente International Trade Fair in Frankfurt am Main, the Poznań International Fair, Deco-In in Berlin, artistic handicraft fairs in Munich, trade fairs in Leipzig, Vienna, Milan, Prague, Pécs, Malmö and Amsterdam, the “Teraz Polska” fair at the Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw, and the Interior Lifestyle fair in Tokyo. The plant also takes part in the regularly organised Folk Art Fair in Kraków, fairs and shows in Warsaw, Wrocław, Sopot, Zielona Góra and the Bolesławiec Ceramic Festival. For exceptionally effective and successful management of the company, Helena Smoleńska has received numerous awards. At the turn of 2000 and 2001, she received the prestigious title of EUROLIDER 1999—an award granted by the editorial jury of “Rynki Zagraniczne” in the “Outstanding Polish Exporter” competition. She was also honoured with the “PRYMUS 2000” and “MANAGER–COOPERATIVE MEMBER” awards, granted by the Chapter of the “Tęcza Polska” Award of the National Cooperative Council in Warsaw. In 2015, she was honoured by the Minister of Economy with the “Distinguished for the Economy of the Republic of Poland” decoration; in 2016, she received the “KERAMOS” Honorary Distinction, awarded by the Faculty of Materials Engineering and Ceramics of the AGH University of Science and Technology named after Stanisław Staszic in Kraków; and in 2017, she was awarded the Bronze Cross of Merit by the President of the Republic of Poland. In 2018, she received the Honorary Award of the Mayor of Bolesławiec for promoting the city in 2017. - Maria Niemczuk
For many years, Maria Niemczuk has been actively involved in the Bolesławiec branch of the Association of Siberians. She served as secretary from 2000 to 2004 and has been its president continuously since 2004. During her leadership, the branch carried out many initiatives commemorating the history of those deported to Siberia. Memorial markers were created: a plaque dedicated to Poles murdered in the South-Eastern Borderlands at the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Bolesławiec (2003), a monument to Siberians entitled “In Tribute to the Polish Martyrs of Siberia and Those Murdered in Katyń and the Gulags” at the municipal cemetery on Śluzowa Street (2005), and a plaque commemorating the return of Bolesławiec residents—Siberians—to their homeland, placed on the monument at Freedom Square (2013). Since 2009, on 17 September each year, the Association of Siberians has organised the March of Remembrance for Siberia. Since 2011, it has developed very intensive cooperation with Municipal Gymnasium No. 2 in Bolesławiec, named after Poles Deported to Siberia. Every year, living history lessons were held in the school’s Memorial Room, led by Maria Niemczuk and other members of the Association of Siberians. History competitions for primary and lower-secondary schools were also organised, along with special meetings with young people, for example at the beginning and end of the school year, on Education Day and Siberian Day, as well as commemorative events such as a spoken-word and music programme marking the 150th anniversary of the January Uprising (2013). Together with association members, Maria Niemczuk was involved in and supported the publication of two books: “We Had No Childhood. Memories of Bolesławiec Siberians” (Bolesławiec, 2013) and “Together We Remember More” (Bolesławiec, 2015), accompanying the 5th National Convention of Directors of Schools and Educational Institutions and Presidents of Associations commemorating those deported to Siberia, held in Bolesławiec. The Association of Siberians also took part in organising the exhibition “Where Did We Come From? Bolesławiec Settlers after the Second World War”, organised by the Museum of Ceramics (2016), preparing the conference “Bolesławiec Residents—They Did Not Come from Nowhere. Around the Settlement Landscape of Lower Silesia” (2016), and commemorating the 70th anniversary of settlement in Bolesławiec and Bolesławiec County (2016). The president of the Association of Siberians also played a major role in organising the association’s 30th anniversary and publishing “The Jubilee of Bolesławiec Borderlands Residents 1989–2019. 30 Years of the Society of Friends of Lviv and the South-Eastern Borderlands, Bolesławiec Branch, and the Association of Siberians, Bolesławiec Branch” (2019). A documentary film, “To Be”, by Przemysław Kania and Mateusz Rzepiak, documenting her past spent abroad, was dedicated to Maria Niemczuk. For her contribution to the activities of the Association of Siberians, Maria Niemczuk received the Gold Badge of Merit of the Association of Siberians (2013) and the Pro Patria Medal (2019), awarded by the Head of the Office for War Veterans and Victims of Oppression. - Barbara Smoleńska
Barbara Smoleńska has worked at a school as a vocational-subject teacher for 26 years, and served as deputy headteacher from 2002 to 2012. One of the most important projects she has carried out is the initiative to restore the memory of ancestors, entitled “Save Your Great-Grandfather’s Grave from Oblivion”. Since 2015, she has served as president of the Society of Friends of Lviv and the South-Eastern Borderlands and has actively worked to preserve the memory of the Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic. She initiated and organised numerous undertakings: volunteer trips to Ukraine to clean Polish cemeteries; trips delivering Christmas parcels to children in Zbarazh and Sieniawa; trips by Society members to the Zbarazh Days celebrations; and a delegation from Bolesławiec to the unveiling of the monument to A. Mickiewicz in Zbarazh. She also carried out many youth-exchange projects with Zbarazh and Sieniawa, as well as cultural projects, including author meetings on Borderlands themes and Borderlands concerts attended by artists from Zbarazh, Kremenets and Rivne. Very intensive cooperation with Zbarazh led to the signing of a partnership agreement between that city and Bolesławiec. For her personal efforts to preserve traditions, educational activities, promotion of Bolesławiec, work bringing together and activating Borderlands residents, and efforts to strengthen ties with compatriots in the former Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic, she has received numerous distinctions and awards. In 2014, she received the Mayor of Bolesławiec’s award for promoting the city in 2013. In 2015, she received the Medal of the Commission of National Education for special contributions to education and upbringing. In 2017, in recognition of her contributions to the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, she was awarded the Honorary Silver Badge “Distinguished for the Lower Silesian Voivodeship”. In 2018, she received the Mayor of Bolesławiec’s award for promoting the city in 2017 and an award from the Lower Silesian Superintendent of Education for outstanding achievements in teaching, educational and care work, and commitment to the development of education in Lower Silesia. That same year, for popularising and preserving the memory of people and their deeds in the struggle for Poland’s independence, she was honoured by the Association of Combatants of the Republic of Poland and Former Political Prisoners with the so-called Borderlands Cross. She has also received distinctions from institutions and associations in Lviv and Zbarazh. In 2017, she was decorated by the Chief of the Fire Service in Zbarazh for developing cooperation between Bolesławiec and Zbarazh. In 2018, she received the Gold Badge for merit to the Society of Polish Culture of the Lviv Land, and in 2019 the badge of the Mayor of Zbarazh for developing Ukrainian-Polish cooperation. - Stanisława Balawender
Stanisława Balawender, born in Rudki near Lviv, was the initiator and first president of the association established in 1989 for residents of the former Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic who settled in Bolesławiec. During the first two years, the Society led by Stanisława Balawender operated as an independent association under the name “Society of Friends of the Lviv Land”. In 1991, by decision of its board, it became part of the nationwide association “Society of Friends of Lviv and the South-Eastern Borderlands”. To enable Bolesławiec residents born in the Borderlands to visit the places where they had once lived, see their ancestors’ burial sites and contact the Poles who remained there, she organised 13 trips to the Borderlands. These trips also provided an opportunity to financially support the rebuilding of Catholic churches and offer extensive assistance: vestments, candles, various church equipment, Polish-language books, clothing, food and other supplies were delivered. Stanisława Balawender also organised trips to Russia, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Western European countries. They integrated the Bolesławiec Borderlands community. In 1990, on Stanisława Balawender’s initiative, a memorial plaque dedicated to the Defenders of Lviv was unveiled and consecrated at the Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Nicholas (Minor Basilica). Society members and sponsors undertook the work and financed the plaque. Until 2000, ceremonies marking the anniversary of the defence of Lviv and the so-called “Lviv Mass” were held at the plaque. After Mass, collections were organised for the reconstruction of the Lviv Eaglets Cemetery in Lviv, while evening meetings of Society members and supporters were held. For her efforts to bring together and activate Borderlands residents and to strengthen ties with compatriots in the former Borderlands of the Second Polish Republic, Stanisława Balawender received the Gold Badge of the Society of Friends of Lviv and the South-Eastern Borderlands in 1998, and the Society’s 25th Anniversary Badge in 2013. - Adam Fornal
Adam Fornal has been an active member of the Polish Red Cross for many years. From 2009 to 2013, he was president of the Polish Red Cross District Board in Bolesławiec and, since 1979, has also been an honorary blood donor. He currently serves as vice-president of the Main Board of the Polish Red Cross and has been an honorary member of the German Red Cross since 2019. During his long career, he initiated cooperation with the Blood Bank in the Netherlands, organised assistance for blood donors during the 1997 flood, founded and became the first president of the Honorary Blood Donors Club at PKS Bolesławiec, and organised convoys carrying humanitarian aid to Ukraine. As an active promoter of honorary blood donation, he took part in meetings with young people. Thanks to his commitment and promotion of honorary blood donation, the amount of blood donated in Bolesławiec County increased. He is one of the volunteers who helped fund a banner for the Honorary Blood Donors Club. From 2007 to 2013, he served as president of the Society of Friends of Lviv and the South-Eastern Borderlands in Bolesławiec. Thanks to his initiative, after years without premises for meetings, the Society obtained a headquarters at 9 Sądowa Street, shared with the Association of Combatants of the Republic of Poland and Former Political Prisoners of Bolesławiec Land. He promoted education about the Borderlands by organising exhibitions, lectures and pilgrimages to the Borderlands. The “Cemetery of the Defenders of Lviv” exhibition is still used today, and the pilgrimages to the Borderlands continue. Adam Fornal received numerous distinctions for his charitable and humanitarian activities. In 2010, he received the Mayor of Bolesławiec’s award for promotion in 2009. In 2011, he was named “Volunteer of the Year of Bolesławiec County”. For many years of active work to develop the Polish Red Cross honorary blood donation movement, he received the 60th Anniversary of Honorary Blood Donation Medal, the Primus In Agendo Honorary Badge (first in action), awarded by the Minister of Family, Labour and Social Policy, the “For Merit to Healthcare” Badge, awarded by the Minister of Health, and the “Honorary Blood Donor—Distinguished for the Health of the Nation” Badge. For special merit in humanitarian activities, he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta. His work to save health was also recognised by the governments of Germany and Ukraine. Saxony’s Ministry of the Interior and Administration honoured Adam Fornal with the “For Assistance during the Flood” decoration, while the Ukrainian government awarded him the Order for Saving Lives. Adam Fornal is the first Pole to receive such a decoration from the Ukrainian government. - Bogdan Fiałkowski
Retired Staff Sergeant Bogdan Fiałkowski was the former commander of the 62nd Special Company from Bolesławiec and is currently vice-president of the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando. A professional soldier, he holds instructor qualifications in skiing and parachute jumping. For his long military service, he received service medals: the Silver Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Homeland and the Silver Medal for Merit to National Defence. He initiated the establishment of the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando. He conceived and organised nationwide competitions such as the National Sports and Defence Championships for Uniformed Classes, the National Sports and Defence Championships for the National Reserve Forces, Technical and Defence Manoeuvres with Extended Humanitarian Law, as well as international competitions—the Central Rally of Uniformed Classes in Żagań. He also organises competitions promoting a healthy lifestyle: the “For the Cursed 1963” Run and Shooting Tournament, the Commando Cross for the “Brown Bear” statuette, and a Shooting Tournament marking National Independence Day. The Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando has partnership agreements with 21 schools offering uniformed classes and actively cooperates with military units and institutions. It organises special picnics and festivals: a sports and defence picnic for Children’s Day, the “Army in Our City” military festival for Polish Armed Forces Day, and an artillery picnic held as part of the celebrations of Rocket and Artillery Forces Day. For people with disabilities, it organises an annual St Nicholas’ festival with military games and activities, combined with the distribution of food parcels. The association participates in the “Safe Lower Silesian” programme. For several years, it has been among the leading associations whose work is recognised by the Ministry of National Defence with a special commendation, “For outstanding commitment to strengthening the defence of the Republic of Poland”. For his civilian activities to date, Bogdan Fiałkowski has received numerous distinctions and medals from the highest state and ministerial authorities: the Gold Cross of Merit, the Cross for Merit to the Association of War Invalids of the Republic of Poland, the Medal for Merit to the Association of Combatants of the Republic of Poland and Former Political Prisoners, the Honorary Badge of Custodian of the Tradition, Glory and Fame of the Polish Armed Forces, and the Distinguished Soldier of the Republic of Poland Badge. He was also recognised by local authorities, receiving the title of Volunteer of the Year of Bolesławiec County in the Adult Volunteer category, the Award and Statuette for Promoting Bolesławiec, and the Silver Honorary Badge Distinguished for the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. - Andrzej Żdan
Lt Col Andrzej Żdan was the former commander of the 62nd Special Company from Bolesławiec and is currently president of the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando. A professional soldier, he holds instructor qualifications in skiing and parachute jumping. For his long military service, he received service medals: the Gold Medal of the Armed Forces in the Service of the Homeland and the Gold Medal for Merit to National Defence. He initiated the establishment of the Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando. He conceived and organised nationwide competitions such as the National Sports and Defence Championships for Uniformed Classes, the National Sports and Defence Championships for the National Reserve Forces, Technical and Defence Manoeuvres with Extended Humanitarian Law, as well as international competitions—the Central Rally of Uniformed Classes in Żagań. He also organises competitions promoting a healthy lifestyle: the “For the Cursed 1963” Run and Shooting Tournament, the Commando Cross for the “Brown Bear” statuette, and a Shooting Tournament marking National Independence Day. The Association of Former Soldiers of the 62nd Special Company Commando has partnership agreements with 21 schools offering uniformed classes and actively cooperates with military units and institutions. It organises special picnics and festivals: a sports and defence picnic for Children’s Day, the “Army in Our City” military festival for Polish Armed Forces Day, and an artillery picnic held as part of the celebrations of Rocket and Artillery Forces Day. For people with disabilities, it organises an annual St Nicholas’ festival with military games and activities, combined with the distribution of food parcels. The association participates in the “Safe Lower Silesian” programme. For several years, it has been among the leading associations whose work is recognised by the Ministry of National Defence with a special commendation, “For outstanding commitment to strengthening the defence of the Republic of Poland”. For his civilian activities to date, Andrzej Żdan has received distinctions and medals from the highest state and ministerial authorities: the Gold Cross of Merit and the Distinguished Soldier of the Republic of Poland Badge.
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