Croatia’s Special Olympics delegation of thirty one, including 23 athletes and 8 coaches will be headed to the worldwide Special Olympics 2015 in Los Angeles from July 25th to August 2nd. Croatia will be represented by a volleyball team, soccer team and by two swimmers. As you can imagine, the overall cost for airline travel and flights is very expensive. Please consider making a donation via credit card or by sending a tax deductible check to the Special Olympics in Washington, DC – all donations will be 100% earmarked for Team Croatia. Thank you in advance for any consideration or donations!
Croatian artisans in Kreševo preserve unique tradition of ornamenting eggs
Located just west of Sarajevo, the predominantly Croatian town of Kreševo is home to a centuries old tradition of “shoeing” eggs. This tradition is only practiced by only a handful of skilled artisans, and Kreševo is said to be the only town in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where this tradition survives. The egg has always been a symbol of new life, and the horseshoe a symbol of happiness. In almost every yard in Kreševo has tree on which are hung shod eggs of different colors.
Mirogoj Cemetery in Croatia's capital Zagreb through the lens of Nikola Piasevoli
Mirogoj is one of the most beautiful city cemeteries in Europe. It has been designed by Austrian architect Herman Bollé, starting from 1879 to 1929 when it was completed. Many famous Croatians are burried there. Furthermore, with its pleasant atmosphere and numerous high quality works of art, it is a nice place for rest and meditation. All the photos have been taken by Mr. Nikola Piasevoli from Zagreb. With this presentation we wish all the readers of the CROWN and their families a happy Easter.
Robert Benmosche's family appoints Libertas Foundation to administer donations in his memory
Libertas Foundation is accepting donations honoring Robert Benmosche’s amazing life. The Benmosche family would like to use funds raised to help the Dubrovnik hospital – Children’s Unit and other humanitarian causes in Dubrovnik and Croatia that he cared about dearly. All donations are tax deductible.
Direct flights from Toronto to Croatia start June 22, 2015! New York, Chicago USA? When?
Proponents of non-stop airline flights between North American cities and Croatia received a major boost this month when America’s Ambassador to the central European nation said the U.S. is working out the details to once again make direct travel a reality. “I am happy to see that arrivals by American citizens to the Dubrovnik County are growing,” said US Ambassador Kenneth Merton. “I hope this year there will be even more visitors. It is good to see progress here at Dubrovnik Airport. For Croatia, it is important to plan for growth.”
How to travel the world with almost no money
Tomislav Perko, 29 (left), is a travel writer from Croatia. After a career of a stockbroker, broke because of the financial crisis, he hits the road and turns it into his home. He uses alternative ways of traveling – hitchhiking, couchsurfing, working/volunteering, and manages to wander around the world with just a little bit of money in his pocket, meeting the most amazing people on the way. Five years later, he publishes a book “1000 Days of Spring” and goes around giving lectures about what it means to live on the road.
Croatian American Radio Club of Chicago Celebrates 80th Anniversary
Like many great things Croatian, it all starts from a social gathering. Think legendary soccer team Hajduk Split. The soccer team was started after a group of students in Prague went to a pub after a soccer game. It was during this ‘social gathering’ the great club was created in 1911. 24 years later in 1935, another ‘social gathering’ took place, this time in Chicago in the home of Ivan Majdak. It was agreed a radio station was needed for the Croatian-Americans in Chicago, as a means to hear news of the homeland, news of the community, and preserve the language and traditions, a way to keep the cultural identity alive.
Danny Schechter 1942 – 2015 journalist, documentary filmmaker, social justice activist and media critic
By definition Danny was a journalist, documentary filmmaker, social justice activist and media critic, but that would be a reduction and simplification of what Danny real was and is. The man who understood the world affairs; talks one minute to the president of a country and the next minute talks to a group of elementary school kids. Only highly intelligent and highly compassionate people can do that. Danny did and could work for major networks as a highly paid producer. By being and staying as an independent journalist, Danny chose truth vs comfort. Only rare birds put such value on truth.
World Premiere of Nenad Bach's new video "Daughter's Eyes"
Announcing the world premiere of Nenad Bach’s new video “Daughter’s Eyes” which is the 4th Music Video out of Bach – Orlic audio video laboratory. The video was filmed at the Bella Donna Chapel in Adriatica, McKinney, Texas on April 14, 2014. It premieres today on the first day of Spring, March 20, 2015.
Filip Zadro attends Clinton Global Initiative University 2015
More than 1,000 students from all over the world gathered last week at the University of Miami to address the world’s most pressing challenges” – says the Clinton Global Initiative University website. Among those students from all over the world was a Croatian, Filip Zadro, senior student of the Audio Arts and Acoustics Department at Columbia College Chicago. He was recently accepted to the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGI U) to present his project that repurposes used shipping containers as mobile infrastructure units, which can then be used in developing countries to provide clean water and energy to communities without steady access to those basic resources.
Robert Herjavec of "Shark Tank" on Season 20 of "Dancing With the Stars"
If you are not familiar with Robert Herjavec (left) he is recognized as the “nice” Shark on ABC’s Emmy Award- winning hit show Shark Tank. Born in Croatia, Robert and his family fled communism in the former Yugoslavia with just one suitcase and $20 to their name. As Founder & CEO of Herjavec Group, Robert has grown his cybersecurity business over 12 years from $400K in sales and 3 employees to $140 million in sales and 250 employees worldwide. Robert is a proud Dad, a bestselling author, a marathon runner, a Ferrari racecar driver and is thrilled to be able to soon say “a dancer!”
Robert Benmosche 1944-2015 CEO of AIG found paradise in Croatia
Robert Benmosche: I was in Dubrovnik in Croatia back in 1997 and found it was a beautiful place. I said to myself, “Bob, what do you want to do when you retire?” I had read an article that said Zinfandel may have come from Croatia. And so I said that is an interesting idea. In 2006, I was able to get two pieces of land. One in Dingac where my vineyard manager’s property is, and another in Viganj, about 12 acres, right on the sea. I chose it because it had these yellow flowers called broom. They say where the flowers grow is great for growing grapes.
Goran Višnjić Joins World Stars in Fight to Protect Elephants
Famous Croatian actor Goran Višnjić has joined a host of stars as ambassadors for one of the largest animal welfare and conservation charities in the world – The International Fund for Animal Welfare – in its aim to protect the world’s elephants. Višnjić, who rose to fame in his role as Dr. Luka Kovač in the American television series ER, has warned the world about the threat to elephants in a video which also features a number of stars.
Frank Westerman's book about the Lipik Lipizzaners translated into Croatian
Frank Westerman’s book about Lipizzaner horses, with emphasis on their destiny in the 20th century, especially during the Serbian aggression on Croatia in 1990-1995, originally published in Dutch, has been translated into 15 languages and has 40 editions until 2015. As stressed by Frank Westerman in his book, the CROWN (Croatian World Network) and Nenad Bach had an important role in launching the international media campaign aiming to return from Serbia the stolen Croatian Lipizzaners from back to their homeland. Mr. Westerman visited on many occasion the town of Lipik, in which numerous noble Lipizzan horses have been mercilessly assassinated during the aggression.
President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović visits New York City
Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic (left) was at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday March 6, 2015 for an event marking International Women’s Day and the 20th anniversary since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and she also meet with representatives of the Croatian community in New York. She also attended the “No Ceilings: Full Participation Project”, a Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton event, and met with former President Bill Clinton and former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
The 2015 “UPBEAT” International Summer Music School to be held in Milna on the Island of Brac
The 12th annual composition course this summer as part of the “UPBEAT” International Summer Music School in the town of Milna on the beautiful Adriatic island of Brac in Croatia. The composition course consists of: a series of daily group meetings with Professor Joel Hoffman (left), cultural and outdoor group activities in Milna and nearby on the island of Brac, and final concert of works by course participants. The course will focus on works written for the Milna Ensemble, which consists of the composer-performers who are members of the course. The dates of the course are 25 July through 5 August, 2015. the deadline for receipt of all materials is Friday, 13 March, 2015.
Tena Stivicic Wins Blackburn Drama Prize
Tena Stivicic (left) was awarded the 37th annual Susan Smith Blackburn Prize for her play “3 Winters,” a dark, era-hopping drama about a Croatian family in post-World War II Zagreb. At a ceremony at Playwrights Horizons,The Blackburn, the oldest and largest prize awarded to female playwrights, is given annually to an English-language theater work of outstanding quality.
Dražen Katić an independent candidate for the 11th Croatian electoral district
Dražen Katić (left) is an independent candidate running for the 11th Croatian electoral district which represents Croatians living outside of Croatia. His professional experience covers multiple fields and currently he is working with sustainable development. He serves as a volunteer in multiple organizations. He is a published author and writes for several Croatian websites. He is also a veteran of the Homeland War. Read his campaign platform and determine if your goals are reflected in it.
Nikola Tesla distinguished Croatian-American inventor and his high-school education in Croatia
Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) attended the high-school (High Real School) in Rakovac, Croatia, in the period of 1870-73, where the subjects were taught in German language. One of the compulsorly subjects that young Tesla had, was Croatian language (Kroatische Sprache), which was his mother tongue. Martin Sekulić, high school professor of Mathematics and Physics, was probably the most important among Tesla’s professors during his entire education, since he enthused him for electricity, magnetism and polar light. Sekulić was an active researcher and a member of the Academy of Sciences in Croatia’s capital Zagreb, in the Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences.
Croatian director Tiha K. Gudac receives CEI Award 2015 at Trieste Film Festival
Tiha K. Gudac (left), born in Zagreb in 1982, was awarded for the documentary film Goli (Naked Island) which, as underlined by the jury, “denounces how a nation’s past can haunt its present”. The CEI Award (3.000 EUR) was presented by Alternate Secretary General, Amb. Margit Waestfelt, on the occasion of the awarding ceremony in Trieste on 22 January. Goli is an investigation built upon the ruins of the past, a mosaic made of clues, family photos and intimate testimonies of a tight-knit group of people who were brought together by the same place, a political prison in former Yugoslavia, also known as an “Island of broken souls” – and consequences this place has left on three generations.