The following super video slide show with music was posted by "Vucica79" on "You Tube".
Enjoy!
*****
URL:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWtEUfVGbmU
*****
If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
*****
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
The Legacy of the Kragujevac Massacre October 1941
Kragujevac Memorial Park
Following the successful organized uprising, the first of its kind in occupied Europe, by the Serbian resistance forces under the command of Serbia’s General Draza Mihailovich that not only threatened Germany’s southern flank in Europe and her occupation of Serbia after Yugoslavia fell to Hitler in April of 1941, but critically delayed Hitler’s planned attack on the Soviet Union that summer, the Germans retaliated. But it wasn’t in the usual way, man to man, soldier to soldier. The method of Nazi retaliation initiated against the Serbs was unprecedented, and the target was the civilian population. Hitler’s aim was to suppress the Serbian insurgency against the Nazis and to do so by the most brutal means. He intended to literally terrorize the Serbs into submission by going after their most vulnerable citizens, and he decreed his intention via the new “law” in Serbia that took effect in the late summer of 1941.
Although there are so many documented atrocities that were committed against civilians during the course of World War Two throughout Europe, there are still those atrocities that stand out as singular examples of man’s capacity for inhumanity against man. The Kragujevac Massacre of October 1941 is one of those singular examples, and it would have a profound effect on the way that General Mihailovich and his Chetnik forces would conduct their military operations against the enemy German forces ever afterward.
On September 6, 1941, after a series of successful Chetnik attacks against German forces in western Serbia, Adolph Hitler issued the unprecedented reprisal decree that for every German killed, 100 Serbian hostages would be executed. For every German wounded, 50 Serbs would be shot. This decree was posted throughout Belgrade, Serbia on September 13, 1941.
General Boehme, the German Commanding General of the occupation forces in Serbia from September 16 to December 2 of 1941, issued three orders to supplement Hitler’s decree. These orders were dated September 25, October 14, and November 10th of 1941. “Order to the German Army in Serbia” was the first of Boehme’s orders, and it was unequivocal in its lack of mercy:
“As a result of the Serbian rebellion, hundreds of German soldiers have been killed. Our losses will be enormous unless we crush the rebellion without mercy.
Your task always is to be in total control of every village in this country in which German blood was shed also in 1914.
The heavy hand of our retribution must be felt by the entire population of Serbia. Those who show them pity, thereby deny pity to their own. Any such person will be court-martialed, whoever he may be.”
[Danau Zeitung, German newspaper]
October of that same year, 1941, would prove just how “unequivocal” the lack of German mercy against their chosen victims would turn out to be. At the end of September, continued Serbian successes against the advancing Wehrmacht forces in a Chetnik anti-Axis action that took place between Gornji Milanovac and Kragujevac in Serbia resulted in 10 Germans killed and 26 Germans wounded. The German forces that were deployed at that time in the Serbian city of Kragujevac were under the command of Major Paul Koenig. In response to the German casualties, Koenig ordered a “comprehensive reprisal” to be carried out against the Serbian civilians living in Kragujevac, even though no attacks had been made in that city against the Wehrmacht!
The reprisals began on October 19th as Germany military forces burned several villages and several hundred Serbian civilians were executed in the Groznice area. But, that did not satisfy the Nazis. On October 20th, 2,300 men and young boys were rounded up, all between the ages of 16 and 60. In this group were included civil servants from city offices that the Germans raided, who were not engaged in any military actions. But the crowning atrocity was the inclusion of 300 innocent children from the high school and 18 teachers who were ripped from their classrooms. On October 21, 1941, those lives were mercilessly ended. All in all, the estimated number of civilians who were executed in Kragujevac and the surrounding areas in those couple of days in October of 1941 is 2,800.
German troops lead their Serbian victims to the execution site.
The Serbian victims of the Kragujevac Massacre
are assembled by the Germans at the execution site.
The reprisal quota was indeed fulfilled and more so. When an inquiry was made as to why civilians in Kragujevac had been chosen for execution when there had been no German casualties in that city, the answer was simply that “not enough hostages to fulfill the quota had been found elsewhere”.
In memory of the innocent Serbian children who were executed that October 21st day in 1941 in Kragujevac, poet Desanka Maksimovic wrote the following tribute:
The Bloody Fairytale
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of schoolchildren
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
They were all born
in the same year,
their school days passed the same,
taken together to the same festivities,
vaccinated against the same diseases,
and all died on the same day.
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of schoolchildren
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
And fifty-five minutes
before the moment of death
the company of small ones
sat at its desk
and the same difficult assignments
they solved: how far can a
traveler go if he is on foot…
and so on.
Their thoughts were full
of the same numbers
and throughout their notebooks in school bags
lay an infinite number
of senseless A’s and F’s.
A pile of the same dreams
and the same secrets,
patriotic and romantic,
they clenched in the depths of their pockets.
And it seemed to everyone
that they would run
for a long time beneath the blue arch
until all the assignments in the world
were completed.
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of small ones
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
Whole rows of boys
took each other by the hand
and from their last class
went peacefully to slaughter
as if death was nothing.
Whole lines of friends
ascended at the same moment
to their eternal residence.
- Desanka Maksimovic
*****
It is almost indescribable how deeply this tragedy impacted on the people of Serbia. The impact on General Mihailovich was particularly profound. Though he had participated in several wars, beginning with the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, followed by World War One and now World War Two, he now realized that to continue to attack German occupational forces indiscriminately would mean national suicide for his beloved Serbian people, as the October tragedy proved. Mihailovic, who as a participant in the First World War had witnessed his beloved Serbian nation losing one third of its population and her army suffering enormous casualties, with 450,000 active soldiers at the beginning of the war declining to 60,000 by the time of the Salonica Front breakthrough of September 1918, would adjust his resistance policy to consider the benefit and effectiveness of each action against the German enemy in proportion to the human cost in Serbian civilian lives. General Draza Mihailovich genuinely cared about human cost and would conduct himself for the rest of the war accordingly.
In memory of the innocent Serbian children who were executed that October 21st day in 1941 in Kragujevac, poet Desanka Maksimovic wrote the following tribute:
The Bloody Fairytale
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of schoolchildren
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
They were all born
in the same year,
their school days passed the same,
taken together to the same festivities,
vaccinated against the same diseases,
and all died on the same day.
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of schoolchildren
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
And fifty-five minutes
before the moment of death
the company of small ones
sat at its desk
and the same difficult assignments
they solved: how far can a
traveler go if he is on foot…
and so on.
Their thoughts were full
of the same numbers
and throughout their notebooks in school bags
lay an infinite number
of senseless A’s and F’s.
A pile of the same dreams
and the same secrets,
patriotic and romantic,
they clenched in the depths of their pockets.
And it seemed to everyone
that they would run
for a long time beneath the blue arch
until all the assignments in the world
were completed.
It was in a land of peasants
in the mountainous Balkans,
that a company of small ones
died a martyr’s death
in one day.
Whole rows of boys
took each other by the hand
and from their last class
went peacefully to slaughter
as if death was nothing.
Whole lines of friends
ascended at the same moment
to their eternal residence.
- Desanka Maksimovic
*****
It is almost indescribable how deeply this tragedy impacted on the people of Serbia. The impact on General Mihailovich was particularly profound. Though he had participated in several wars, beginning with the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, followed by World War One and now World War Two, he now realized that to continue to attack German occupational forces indiscriminately would mean national suicide for his beloved Serbian people, as the October tragedy proved. Mihailovic, who as a participant in the First World War had witnessed his beloved Serbian nation losing one third of its population and her army suffering enormous casualties, with 450,000 active soldiers at the beginning of the war declining to 60,000 by the time of the Salonica Front breakthrough of September 1918, would adjust his resistance policy to consider the benefit and effectiveness of each action against the German enemy in proportion to the human cost in Serbian civilian lives. General Draza Mihailovich genuinely cared about human cost and would conduct himself for the rest of the war accordingly.
Such wartime decisions are testament to just how completely dedicated to his nation and the welfare of her people General Mihailovich was and remained. Those to whom the tragedy of October 1941 in Kragujevac never meant anything, later attacked Mihailovic for “not killing enough Germans”. The people that rendered these charges against General Mihailovich would later prove to be of inferior character, while Mihailovich would emerge as a man of true character, not only as a military commander, but as a truly good human being in the badness that is war. Even as he was being charged falsely by the Allies for “not being active enough against the enemy,” he would save hundreds of Allied lives from sure death at the hands of the enemy when he could have walked away and left them to the wolves.
Though the legacy of Kragujevac remains as a tragic reminder of the inhumane nature of war, so, too, the legacy of General Mihailovich and his thoughtful response to such a tragedy transcends such brutality and reminds us that even in war there is humanity.
Aleksandra Rebic
October 2009
*****
If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
*****
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Serbian President Boris Tadic visits America and meets Halyard Mission hero Arthur Jibilian
An Open Letter to Boris Tadic, President of the Republic of Serbia:
October 18, 2009
Dear President Tadic,
My name is Aleksandra, and I'm an American. I was born and raised in America and live in the United States. I am of Serbian descent, the daughter of parents who came to this country after World War Two and made America their permanent home.
I wish I could have attended the reception given in your honor in Cleveland, Ohio on September 20th, 2009. Several friends did attend, and everyone was so pleased to have had the opportunity to spend time with you.
I'm writing this note to you, President Tadic, because I feel that two things deserve special recognition and attention and shouldn't be taken for granted either by Serbs in the homeland or us here in America. These two things relate to relations between the United States and Serbia under your administration and the progress that has been made in giving General Draza Mihailovich his due credit for all that he did for his beloved homeland as a true Serbian patriot during WWII and what he unselfishly and honorably did for the Allies in 1944.
Simply put, relations between the United States and Serbia, especially as time goes by, have continued to improve after a very difficult period of time during which relations between the two countries, who first became Allies over a century ago, were severely strained. I'm very heartened by your unceasing efforts to reestablish goodwill between Serbia and America and I wish you genuine success in your quest to foster that goodwill. Thank you for your efforts, President Tadic, and for your optimistic and positive attitude. It is refreshing.
On the second point, I can honestly say that I don't know where you stand on the issue of General Mihailovich but, from what I can discern, you have been
receptive to recognizing his essential role in WWII. The progress that has been made in Serbia to finally bring to public light all that General Mihailovich contributed to his Serbian homeland and to give him the credit that has been long overdue is absolutely amazing. I know all too well the extent to which he has deliberately, for far too long, been kept a persona non grata in his own homeland for which he sacrificed everything, including his life. Now in Serbia, slowly but surely, especially in the last couple of years, his status as a true Serbian hero is being resurrected. The fact that this has happened in Serbia during the course of your administration, President Tadic, also reflects positive progress being made for which you deserve a heartfelt 'Thank you'.
Much still needs to be done. My hope is that the culmination of all this continuing progress will be a renewed Allied bond between America and Serbia and a gravesite for General Mihailovich where people from all over the world can come pay their respects in the manner that he deserves.
I wish you Godspeed, President Tadic, and look forward to visiting Serbia once again in the coming years.
Sincerely,
Aleksandra Rebic
U.S.A.
October 18, 2009
ravnagora@hotmail.com
*******
SERB PRESIDENT VISITS CLEVELAND
By Sandi Radoja
Editor
American Srbobran
October 7, 2009 Edition
On Sunday, September 20, President Boris Tadic of the Republic of Serbia received a rousing welcome from Diaspora Serbs at an invitation-only reception of approximately 300 people at the Marriot Cleveland Downtown at Key Center in Ohio's largest city. The visit was at the invitation of Serb National Federation [SNF] member Alex Machaskee, retired president and publisher of The Plain Dealer and current Honorary Consul of Serbia to the State of Ohio.
"I am personally very pleased that President Tadic accepted my suggestion to visit Cleveland when I met with him in Belgrade early last May," said Machaskee.
Dignitaries in the President's delegation included Vladimir Petrovic, Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia to the United States of America; Desko Nikitovic, Consul General and Nebojsa Acimovic, Consul, of the Consulate General in Chicago; Capt. Ljubomir Nikolic, Defense, Military, Naval and Air Attache of the Serbian Embassy in Washington, D.C.; Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic; and Vukman Krivokuca, Assistant Minister of the Diaspora.
At the reception in his honor, Tadic met U.S. Senator George Voinovich and U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich, both of Ohio, and other officials and business leaders. Representing the Serb National Federation were President Peter Borkovich and American Srbobran editor Sandi Radoja.
In addressing the crowd, Tadic said he hoped to strengthen the ties between Serbia and Ohio. "Because of the large Serbian Diaspora in Ohio, the bond between our two governments spans the diplomatic spectrum including economic, governmental and military ties."
Officials of the Ohio National Guard were also on hand. Under Tadic's leadership, Serbia has enjoyed a National Guard State Partnership program for training with the Ohio National Guard for the past three years, according to Major General Gregory Wayt, Adjutant General.
Following the general reception, several guests were invited to a private dinner where Senator George Voinovich also addressed guests. Tadic again spoke about business opportunity in Serbia and what the cooperative agreement with the Ohio National Guard has meant at home.
During both the reception and dinner on Sunday, Tadic talked about the integration of Serbia into the European Union. He said it was important, in meetings with U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden earlier this year, that Biden offered open support of Serbia's EU integration on behalf of the Washington administration - and that support is not conditioned on Serbian recognition of Kosovo independence or on NATO membership. "Relations between Serbia and Washington will play a big role in our further European path," Tadic said.
He also noted that the European Commission approved $100 million in aid for Serbia, to help the country achieve priority needs necessary for EU integration. The extraordinary support was granted to eliminate the consequences of the economic and social crisis in Serbia.
In an equally serious but exceptionally warm manner, Tadic spoke of the importance of Diaspora Serbs to "come home. It is your Serbia, too, not just our Serbia. It is your country. Come and spend time there."
On Monday [Sept. 21], Tadic addressed business leaders at a luncheon at the fashionable Union Club. Later, he toured the Serbian Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park where he saw busts of Nikola Tesla, King Peter I, Petar Petrovic Njegos and Mihailo Pupin. During the visit, a ceremony took place to unveil that garden's newest addition, a bronze and granite iconic relief of St. Sava.
Cleveland's Mayor Frank Jackson joined Tadic on the walk through the garden. The Plain Dealer reported that Jackson has visited several foreign countries in an "attempt to spur growth."
Also on Monday, Tadic met with Ohio's Governor Ted Strickland to discuss economic cooperation. "Ohio plans on investing in alternative sources of energy in Serbia. From my point of view, this is very important for Serbia, which is a pillar for the energy sector in Southeast Europe, and that cooperation and investment could be very significant for Ohio too," Tadic said.
He extended an invitation to Governor Strickland to come to Serbia and suggested he encourage businesses to invest there. "Many Serbs live in Ohio and that should be a bridge for cooperation between Serbia and the U.S."
Sandi Radoja
Editor American Srbobran
October 7, 2009
*****
THE RECEPTION FOR SERBIAN PRESIDENT BORIS TADIC
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 20, 2009
CLEVELAND MARRIOT DOWNTOWN at KEY CENTER, OHIO
*****
THE FOLLOWING STORY CAN BE FOUND ON THE OHIO NATIONAL GUARD WEBSITE AT:
http://www.ong.ohio.gov/story_20090922a.html
Serbian president visits Ohio
Story and photos by Spc. Sam Beavers
196th MPAD
CLEVELAND, Ohio—The president of the Republic of Serbia arrived in downtown Cleveland Sept. 20 to further develop the nation’s ongoing relationship with Ohio that began in 2006 with the National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program.
“The partnership with the Ohio National Guard is an important part of our partnership with the United States,” President Boris Tadic said.
Tadic and Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic are heading the Serbian delegation at the 64th session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York this week, but also scheduled this stop in Ohio to meet with Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, leaders from Ohio’s business community and the National Guard.
In three years of partnership there have been more than 80 exchanges between Serbia and Ohio and Maj. Gen. Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general, said he had no plans of slowing down.
“Cooperation has never been better,” Wayt said. “It is very important that we continue missions with Serbian Soldiers.”
Ohio National Guard Soldiers and Airmen enjoy interacting with not only Serbian Soldiers, but also Serbian citizens, and welcome more opportunities to conduct training missions together said Maj. Gen. Matthew L. Kambic, assistant adjutant general for Army.
“The state partnership program not only fosters familiarization and the sharing of best practices that benefit both military
organizations,” said Maj. Gen. Harry “A.J.” Feucht, Ohio’s assistant adjutant general for Air. “It also establishes a foundation upon which broader cooperation between the partners can be built.”
“Meetings like those that occurred here today between the president and the governor and the business community, exploring new avenues of cooperation in education and business, are evidence of the broadening of Ohio’s relationship with Serbia,” Wayt said. “This partnership is the crown jewel, which means that it is setting the example for all state partnerships.”
Spc. Sam Beavers
*****
Aleksandra's Note: To learn more about the Ohio National Guard's State Partnership Program and view video footage, please visit the ONG website at
http://ong.ohio.gov/spp_serbia_index.html
THANKS TO ALL WHO MADE PRESIDENT TADIC'S VISIT TO OHIO A SUCCESSFUL ONE.
*****
If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
*****
October 18, 2009
Dear President Tadic,
My name is Aleksandra, and I'm an American. I was born and raised in America and live in the United States. I am of Serbian descent, the daughter of parents who came to this country after World War Two and made America their permanent home.
I wish I could have attended the reception given in your honor in Cleveland, Ohio on September 20th, 2009. Several friends did attend, and everyone was so pleased to have had the opportunity to spend time with you.
I'm writing this note to you, President Tadic, because I feel that two things deserve special recognition and attention and shouldn't be taken for granted either by Serbs in the homeland or us here in America. These two things relate to relations between the United States and Serbia under your administration and the progress that has been made in giving General Draza Mihailovich his due credit for all that he did for his beloved homeland as a true Serbian patriot during WWII and what he unselfishly and honorably did for the Allies in 1944.
Simply put, relations between the United States and Serbia, especially as time goes by, have continued to improve after a very difficult period of time during which relations between the two countries, who first became Allies over a century ago, were severely strained. I'm very heartened by your unceasing efforts to reestablish goodwill between Serbia and America and I wish you genuine success in your quest to foster that goodwill. Thank you for your efforts, President Tadic, and for your optimistic and positive attitude. It is refreshing.
On the second point, I can honestly say that I don't know where you stand on the issue of General Mihailovich but, from what I can discern, you have been
receptive to recognizing his essential role in WWII. The progress that has been made in Serbia to finally bring to public light all that General Mihailovich contributed to his Serbian homeland and to give him the credit that has been long overdue is absolutely amazing. I know all too well the extent to which he has deliberately, for far too long, been kept a persona non grata in his own homeland for which he sacrificed everything, including his life. Now in Serbia, slowly but surely, especially in the last couple of years, his status as a true Serbian hero is being resurrected. The fact that this has happened in Serbia during the course of your administration, President Tadic, also reflects positive progress being made for which you deserve a heartfelt 'Thank you'.
Much still needs to be done. My hope is that the culmination of all this continuing progress will be a renewed Allied bond between America and Serbia and a gravesite for General Mihailovich where people from all over the world can come pay their respects in the manner that he deserves.
I wish you Godspeed, President Tadic, and look forward to visiting Serbia once again in the coming years.
Sincerely,
Aleksandra Rebic
U.S.A.
October 18, 2009
ravnagora@hotmail.com
*******
SERB PRESIDENT VISITS CLEVELAND
By Sandi Radoja
Editor
American Srbobran
October 7, 2009 Edition
On Sunday, September 20, President Boris Tadic of the Republic of Serbia received a rousing welcome from Diaspora Serbs at an invitation-only reception of approximately 300 people at the Marriot Cleveland Downtown at Key Center in Ohio's largest city. The visit was at the invitation of Serb National Federation [SNF] member Alex Machaskee, retired president and publisher of The Plain Dealer and current Honorary Consul of Serbia to the State of Ohio.
"I am personally very pleased that President Tadic accepted my suggestion to visit Cleveland when I met with him in Belgrade early last May," said Machaskee.
Dignitaries in the President's delegation included Vladimir Petrovic, Ambassador of the Republic of Serbia to the United States of America; Desko Nikitovic, Consul General and Nebojsa Acimovic, Consul, of the Consulate General in Chicago; Capt. Ljubomir Nikolic, Defense, Military, Naval and Air Attache of the Serbian Embassy in Washington, D.C.; Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic; and Vukman Krivokuca, Assistant Minister of the Diaspora.
At the reception in his honor, Tadic met U.S. Senator George Voinovich and U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich, both of Ohio, and other officials and business leaders. Representing the Serb National Federation were President Peter Borkovich and American Srbobran editor Sandi Radoja.
In addressing the crowd, Tadic said he hoped to strengthen the ties between Serbia and Ohio. "Because of the large Serbian Diaspora in Ohio, the bond between our two governments spans the diplomatic spectrum including economic, governmental and military ties."
Officials of the Ohio National Guard were also on hand. Under Tadic's leadership, Serbia has enjoyed a National Guard State Partnership program for training with the Ohio National Guard for the past three years, according to Major General Gregory Wayt, Adjutant General.
Following the general reception, several guests were invited to a private dinner where Senator George Voinovich also addressed guests. Tadic again spoke about business opportunity in Serbia and what the cooperative agreement with the Ohio National Guard has meant at home.
During both the reception and dinner on Sunday, Tadic talked about the integration of Serbia into the European Union. He said it was important, in meetings with U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden earlier this year, that Biden offered open support of Serbia's EU integration on behalf of the Washington administration - and that support is not conditioned on Serbian recognition of Kosovo independence or on NATO membership. "Relations between Serbia and Washington will play a big role in our further European path," Tadic said.
He also noted that the European Commission approved $100 million in aid for Serbia, to help the country achieve priority needs necessary for EU integration. The extraordinary support was granted to eliminate the consequences of the economic and social crisis in Serbia.
In an equally serious but exceptionally warm manner, Tadic spoke of the importance of Diaspora Serbs to "come home. It is your Serbia, too, not just our Serbia. It is your country. Come and spend time there."
On Monday [Sept. 21], Tadic addressed business leaders at a luncheon at the fashionable Union Club. Later, he toured the Serbian Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park where he saw busts of Nikola Tesla, King Peter I, Petar Petrovic Njegos and Mihailo Pupin. During the visit, a ceremony took place to unveil that garden's newest addition, a bronze and granite iconic relief of St. Sava.
Cleveland's Mayor Frank Jackson joined Tadic on the walk through the garden. The Plain Dealer reported that Jackson has visited several foreign countries in an "attempt to spur growth."
Also on Monday, Tadic met with Ohio's Governor Ted Strickland to discuss economic cooperation. "Ohio plans on investing in alternative sources of energy in Serbia. From my point of view, this is very important for Serbia, which is a pillar for the energy sector in Southeast Europe, and that cooperation and investment could be very significant for Ohio too," Tadic said.
He extended an invitation to Governor Strickland to come to Serbia and suggested he encourage businesses to invest there. "Many Serbs live in Ohio and that should be a bridge for cooperation between Serbia and the U.S."
Sandi Radoja
Editor American Srbobran
October 7, 2009
*****
THE RECEPTION FOR SERBIAN PRESIDENT BORIS TADIC
SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 20, 2009
CLEVELAND MARRIOT DOWNTOWN at KEY CENTER, OHIO
Invitation sent to Halyard Mission veteran Arthur "Jibby" Jibilian
to attend the Cleveland reception for Serbian President Boris Tadic
being hosted by Mr. Alex Machaskee of
Alex Machaskee & Associates, LLC.
Alex Machaskee, Host and Organizer of President Tadic's visit to
Cleveland, Ohio September 20-21, 2009, his wife Carol Machaskee, and
Serbian President Boris Tadic Cleveland Marriot Downtown,
Sunday Sept. 20, 2009.
Photo courtesy of A. Machaskee.
President Tadic meets Halyard Mission Radioman Arthur Jibilian, 86,
and accepts a special personal gift from the Jibilian family.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Arthur Jibilian, shortly after the Tadic reception, learned
that he is in full remission. Jibilian, who is 86 years old,
was diagnosed with terminal leukemia in the spring of 2008
and given only a couple of months to live.
Over a year later, "Jibby" is still going strong and has
attended numerous events over the course of the last year honoring
the Halyard Mission Rescue Operation which successfully evacuated
and saved the lives of over 500 American airmen from
Nazi occupied territory in WWII Yugoslavia.
The operation was brilliantly executed by the
American Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and the forces of
General Draza Mihailovich of Serbia.
This was Jibilian's first time meeting the President of Serbia.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Arthur Jibilian meets Senator George Voinovich of Ohio,
one of the dignitaries present at the festivities.
Senator Voinovich has been a great supporter of giving
General Mihailovich and the Halyard Mission
their rightful place in history.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Arthur Jibilian signs a personal copy of Gregory Freeman's
"The Forgotten 500", which tells the storyof the Halyard Mission
Rescue Operation of 1944, in which Jibilian, as the O.S.S. Radioman
who was flown into Serbia, played an essential and significant
role. Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Arthur Jibilian and V. Rev. Fr. Vasilije Sokolovich.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
V. Rev. Fr. Zivojin Jakovljevic
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Above and below: Leon Lysaght, Milana "Mim" Bizic, and
Arthur Jibilian.
Photos courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
To read more about Leon Lysaght, please visit Mim Bizic's
"Serbian History 101" website at:
Senator and Mrs. George Voinovich of Ohio with Serbian President Boris Tadic, far right.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
President Boris Tadic with Major General Gregory Wayt,
Adjutant General Ohio.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Serbian President Boris Tadic at the Cleveland reception dinner,
September 20, 2009.
Photo courtesy of Debi Jibilian.
Aleksandra's Note: Mr. Alex Machaskee deserves special thanks for making the events of September 20-21, 2009 in Ohio happen. It is heartening to see such goodwill being fostered between the leadership of Serbia and various American political, military and economic leaders. I hope that such events will continue into the future as Serbia and the U.S. work together as the Allies they should always be.
THE FOLLOWING STORY CAN BE FOUND ON THE OHIO NATIONAL GUARD WEBSITE AT:
http://www.ong.ohio.gov/story_20090922a.html
Serbian president visits Ohio
Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland (from left) meets with Maj. Gen. Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general
and Serbian President Boris Tadic Sept. 21 at the Union Club in Cleveland. Tadic visited Ohio to
further develop the nation’s ongoing relationship with the Ohio National Guard that began in 2006
with the State Partnership Program.
and Serbian President Boris Tadic Sept. 21 at the Union Club in Cleveland. Tadic visited Ohio to
further develop the nation’s ongoing relationship with the Ohio National Guard that began in 2006
with the State Partnership Program.
Serbian President Boris Tadic (left) embraces Maj. Gen.
Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general
Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general
following a Sept. 21 meeting at the Union Club in Cleveland.
Serbian President Boris Tadic (left), speaks with
Maj. Gen. Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general,
during a Sept. 20 dinner at the
Marriot Hotel in downtown Cleveland.
Maj. Gen. Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general,
during a Sept. 20 dinner at the
Marriot Hotel in downtown Cleveland.
Story and photos by Spc. Sam Beavers
196th MPAD
CLEVELAND, Ohio—The president of the Republic of Serbia arrived in downtown Cleveland Sept. 20 to further develop the nation’s ongoing relationship with Ohio that began in 2006 with the National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program.
“The partnership with the Ohio National Guard is an important part of our partnership with the United States,” President Boris Tadic said.
Tadic and Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic are heading the Serbian delegation at the 64th session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York this week, but also scheduled this stop in Ohio to meet with Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, leaders from Ohio’s business community and the National Guard.
In three years of partnership there have been more than 80 exchanges between Serbia and Ohio and Maj. Gen. Gregory L. Wayt, Ohio adjutant general, said he had no plans of slowing down.
“Cooperation has never been better,” Wayt said. “It is very important that we continue missions with Serbian Soldiers.”
Ohio National Guard Soldiers and Airmen enjoy interacting with not only Serbian Soldiers, but also Serbian citizens, and welcome more opportunities to conduct training missions together said Maj. Gen. Matthew L. Kambic, assistant adjutant general for Army.
“The state partnership program not only fosters familiarization and the sharing of best practices that benefit both military
organizations,” said Maj. Gen. Harry “A.J.” Feucht, Ohio’s assistant adjutant general for Air. “It also establishes a foundation upon which broader cooperation between the partners can be built.”
“Meetings like those that occurred here today between the president and the governor and the business community, exploring new avenues of cooperation in education and business, are evidence of the broadening of Ohio’s relationship with Serbia,” Wayt said. “This partnership is the crown jewel, which means that it is setting the example for all state partnerships.”
Spc. Sam Beavers
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Aleksandra's Note: To learn more about the Ohio National Guard's State Partnership Program and view video footage, please visit the ONG website at
http://ong.ohio.gov/spp_serbia_index.html
THANKS TO ALL WHO MADE PRESIDENT TADIC'S VISIT TO OHIO A SUCCESSFUL ONE.
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If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
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Friday, October 16, 2009
Senator George Voinovich congratulates winners of "The Forgotten 500" Contest 2009!
Ohio Senator George V. Voinovich has sent out congratulatory letters to the winners of "The Forgotten 500 Book Report Contest 2009" and Vasilije "Vaso" Katanic has graciously shared his letter on "Vaso's Blog".
I wanted to extend a special "Thank You" to Senator Voinovich for taking the time to contact the youngsters who entered this special contest initiated by Michael Papich of California to bring well deserved attention to the "Halyard Mission Rescue Operation" of 1944. This grand rescue of over 500 Americans and additional Allied airmen took place on Nazi occupied Serbian lands during WWII, and was successfully carried out in a joint effort between the American O.S.S. and the Serbian forces of General Draza Mihailovich. Not a single airman was lost and all were returned safely to their homes and families.
Thank you, Senator Voinovich, for recognizing the value of engaging our young people in learning about important and significant events that have left a lasting legacy in both Serbian and American history. Such initiatives as "The Forgotten 500 Contest" not only educate, they contribute to the fostering of goodwill between Serbs and Americans, two peoples that have been, and should always be, the most natural of Allies.
Sincerely,
Aleksandra Rebic
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If you would like to contact me, Aleksandra, please feel free to write to me at ravnagora@hotmail.com.
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Friday, October 09, 2009
Halyard Mission Hero Arthur "Jibby" Jibilian to be honored by the University of Toledo October 2009
Forgotten WWII vets to get their due at UT
Homecoming event to fete alumni heroes
The Toledo Blade
By MEGHAN GILBERT-CUNNINGHAM
BLADE STAFF WRITER
OCTOBER 9, 2009
Arthur Jibilian, ever young, at 86 in 2009
Photo: The Toledo Blade
Art Jibilian has been an American hero since 1944, but until recently he's lived his life in northwest Ohio without any recognition.
The University of Toledo alumnus is now getting the kudos he deserves and is drawing attention to a misrepresented part of World War II history.
Mr. Jibilian, 86, born and raised in Toledo and now living in Fremont, was nominated by Rep. Bob Latta in July for the nation's highest military award - the Medal of Honor - for his part in rescuing more than 500 downed Allied airmen in Nazi-occupied Yugoslavia.
This weekend, he will be honored locally as a featured guest at UT's homecoming festivities, "Homecoming of Heroes."
"This has been one hectic year for me. So much has happened. I've been on a ride, so to speak," Mr. Jibilian said. "This has been just a roller coaster, and then to come to the homecoming of heroes, that was just another loop in the roller coaster."
Along with Mr. Jibilian, UT is recognizing Harold Brown of Columbus, who flew with the famous Tuskegee Airmen as the first black U.S. military pilots and crew to fly combat missions.
The Tuskegee Airmen provided the air cover needed for Mr. Jibilian, a radio operator during the war, and others to rescue what turned out to be 513 airmen in "Operation Halyard."
The successful rescue mission was kept quiet because of political affiliations in World War II and a civil war in Yugoslavia.
Gen. Draza Mihailovich, the leader of the Chetnik guerillas in wartime Yogoslavia, and his men helped the downed American fliers until they could be rescued.
"I always emphasize that the Americans have no concept what this cost the Serbian people," he said then. "The land had been raped by the Germans and ravaged by the civil war. They didn't have two nickels to rub together and to feed all these Americans, many of them wounded, was a terrible hardship on them."
General Mihailovich later was captured by the Partisans, accused of collaboration with the Nazis, and executed.
Mr. Jibilian has tried for the 60 years since to change history to accurately portray General Mihailovich as the man who helped so many Americans who fought against the Nazis.
Now his voice is being heard, in large part because the 2007 publication of Gregory Freeman's book, The Forgotten 500, was a big step in correcting the historical record.
"I don't have to push it anymore, it's got its own momentum going," Mr. Jibilian said. "We're on the road now for justice to be done, and if it's possible to change history by clearing his name, I think we will."
Mr. Jibilian had attended UT for a year before joining the military. When his service was over, he returned and went back to school where he met his wife, Jo, and earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1951.
Students pick the homecoming theme each year to honor alumni like Mr. Jibilian, and the hero honors were really embraced by the UT community, said Dan Saevig, associate vice president of alumni relations and executive director of the UT Alumni Association.
"I want them to walk away from this evening feeling proud to be associated with the University of Toledo," he said. "And most importantly, I want the folks in attendance to be proud of what they accomplished, as most Americans should be."
There will be 513 flags outside the Student Union during the homecoming gala this evening to represent those rescued by Mr. Jibilian.
He and Mr. Brown also will lead the annual homecoming parade that starts at 2 p.m. tomorrow.
While Mr. Brown, 85, arrived overseas a month too late to participate in Operation Halyard, he served during the war and stayed in the military for 23 years.
He said it's fantastic that the university is honoring them as veterans.
"I think it's all well-deserved because these guys are putting their life on the line," he said. "And anything anyone can do to recognize it and say thank you is a wonderful thing."
Contact Meghan Gilbert-Cunningham
at: mcunningham@theblade.com
or 419-724-6134.
http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091009/NEWS04/910090373
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If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
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Tuesday, October 06, 2009
"Why the Serbs are Great." - A Tribute Booklet now available!
3 of the 25 Reasons the Serbs are Great:
1. Serbs are great because they are true survivors. Throughout the many centuries of their existence as a people, they have been faced with virtually every obstacle and adversity known to mankind and have always emerged resilient and unbeaten with forgiveness in their hearts.
7. Serbs are blessed with great good humor, genuine warmth, generous hearts, and the talent to tell a good story or joke with a memorable punch line no matter when, where, or what the circumstances. Serbs are never boring. Once you know them, it’s impossible not to like them.
23. Serbs rank among the bravest people on the planet. Perhaps due to necessity, perhaps to geography, which, in their case, has always been a pivotal factor, perhaps due to the essence of their Christian nature, the Serbs are a people of whom it can be said unequivocally ‘They are fearless.’ The courage of the Serbs is legendary and rightfully so. Though Serbian bravery is the stuff of legend and always has been, it is no myth. The Serbs are the ‘Davids’ to the world’s ‘Goliaths’.
Part of the "Reconsidering what we take for Granted Series" by Aleksandra Rebic, Why the Serbs are Great is a 25 page booklet filled with 25 simple truths and reminders about why a heroic and unique people like the Serbs should never be taken for granted and why they should be appreciated. So much more than a greeting card for not much more! This 5 1/2 by 8 inch coil-bound booklet is printed on excellent quality paper with rich color photographs included along with the text. In Why the Serbs are Great there are a couple of blank pages included for you to write your own notes or message to a friend or loved one who understands what makes the Serbs special and worthy of appreciation, or an acquaintance or stranger who hasn't yet discovered the treasures to be found in Serbian culture. This booklet also serves as a tribute to the Christian heritage of the Orthodox Serbs, highlighting what makes the contributions of the Serbs to world history and the legacy of those contributions so worthy of our respect.
For 1 to 25 copies, the price is $5.99 each plus shipping and handling.
For 26-50 copies, the price is $5.75 each plus shipping and handling.
For 51-75 copies, the price is $5.50 each plus shipping and handling.
For 76-100 copies or more, the price is $5.25 each plus shipping and handling.
All of the prices include the tax. The shipping and handling cost for one copy of the booklet is 2.25. If more than one booklet is requested, then the shipping and handling cost would be calculated based on the total weight of the number of copies requested and would be added as appropriate to the purchase total. The "Buy it Now" button below is designed for the purchase of one copy at 5.99. If you would like to order more copies, please let me know and I will create a payment button specific to your order.
If you are interested in obtaining more copies of Why the Serbs are Great please contact me at whatwetakeforgranted@yahoo.com
Sincerely,
Aleksandra Rebic
Thanks for visiting!
If you would like to get in touch with me, please feel free to contact me, Aleksandra, at ravnagora@hotmail.com
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Monday, October 05, 2009
General Draza Mihailovich WWII
General Draza Mihailovich WWII
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If you would like to get in touch with me, Aleksandra, please feel free to contact me at ravnagora@hotmail.com
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