One of the items on the agenda of the Bolesławiec City Council’s November session is to be a vote on a draft resolution on granting the title of Honorary Citizen of the City of Bolesławiec to Janina Urszula Piestrak-Babijczuk. (In this case, the vote itself appears to be merely a formality.)
As we read in the justification for the draft resolution:
Under the Act on Municipal Self-Government, the City Council has the right to grant honorary citizenship of the city.
Janina Urszula Piestrak-Babijczuk—a physician, surgeon and local government official—has been associated with Bolesławiec for more than 50 years, having begun working at the County Hospital there in 1968. Janina Piestrak-Babijczuk was born on April 28, 1944, in Oleszyce. She studied at the Faculty of Medicine of the Medical Academy in Lublin. She holds a first-degree specialization in general surgery. She helped establish a medical clinic at the Vacuum Equipment Plant in Bolesławiec, where she worked for approximately 15 years. For approximately 10 years, she served as Director of the Sanitary and Epidemiological Station in Bolesławiec.
Beginning with the first free elections in 1990, she was involved in local government affairs for 25 years. She worked in both municipal and county structures. She was a councillor during the first, second, fifth and sixth terms of the Bolesławiec City Council. During the fifth term of the Bolesławiec City Council, she served as Chairwoman of the City Council, while during the sixth term she was Deputy Chairwoman. She was also a councillor during the first and second terms of the Bolesławiec County Council, where she served as Chairwoman during the first term and Deputy Chairwoman during the second term.
Social work has always been close to the Doctor’s heart. She became involved in many charitable initiatives. She actively supported all efforts to protect children’s rights. She took particular care of children with disabilities. For this work, in 1997 she received the “Friend of the Child” badge from the Society of Friends of Children. She was also actively involved in supporting older people, especially those with disabilities. Janina Piestrak-Babijczuk cooperated with Occupational Therapy Workshops, the Day Care Centre and the Polish Red Cross. With the latter, she was particularly active in promoting honorary blood donation and combating homelessness. For these initiatives, she received many letters and distinctions, including a Letter of Congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the Polish Red Cross in Lower Silesia, the title of Friend of Seniors and the title of Friend of People with Disabilities. The Doctor also supported the activities of veterans’ organizations. Recognition of her outstanding service to war invalids came in the form of the Honorary Badge of the Association of War Invalids of the Republic of Poland, which she received in 2005. In 2011, at the request of the Lower Silesian Voivode, she was awarded the Gold Cross of Merit for achievements in local government work, and in 2015 the Bolesławiec City Council awarded Janina Piestrak-Babijczuk the title “Meritorious for the City of Bolesławiec”.
Doctor Janina Piestrak-Babijczuk was nominated for the Volunteer of the Year title many times. In 2018, she received a distinction for many years of volunteering as a doctor helping children, young people and adults. In turn, in 2019 she received a special distinction—the title “Volunteer with a Great Heart”, awarded for the first time in the history of the competition in recognition of her selfless work for sick children, assistance to elderly people and volunteer work at a surgical clinic.
In July 2018, Janina Piestrak-Babijczuk celebrated the 50th anniversary of her professional career and volunteer work. Despite being retired, she remains active and has not given up her professional activities. To this day, she volunteers at the Surgical Clinic of the ZOZ in Bolesławiec.
What do you think?