Europa Nostra honours Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović on her 20th anniversary as Secretary General
“We cannot imagine Europa Nostra without you, dear Sneška. You are the heart and the soul of our organisation. You have a unique talent for mobilising people and you have effectively used it for the benefit of Europe’s cultural heritage,” stated our Executive President Hermann Parzinger, during a virtual gathering of the Board and the Staff of Europa Nostra organised to mark the 20th anniversary of Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović as Secretary General of the organisation. The virtual gathering took place on 14 October 2020, precisely 20 years after her appointment to the position at a memorable Council Meeting held in Paphos, Cyprus.
On this special occasion, our Treasurer Huub Doek, on behalf of the Board of Europa Nostra, presented Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović with a symbolic gift: a 300-year-old map of Europe without borders, united through culture and heritage, as it was in time of Charlemagne.
What an unforgettable celebration of my 20th Anniversary as SG of @europanostra: special thanks to our Board for this 300 y. old print of Europe as it was in time of #Charlemagne, to my Staff for these 20 gorgeous roses & to so many dear colleagues & friends for your warm wishes! pic.twitter.com/bpXpb9qovs
— Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović (@SneskaEN) October 15, 2020
In a message of congratulations, Hermann Parzinger, Executive President of Europa Nostra (Germany), on behalf of the Board, wrote: “How can you honour someone who – for 20 years – has been working tirelessly as Secretary General for a cause as important as Europe’s cultural heritage? How can you explain to outsiders the depth of commitment needed to keep enthusiastically and passionately fighting to protect and promote our heritage, often against all odds? How can you imagine the strength of character necessary to, again and again, explain to bureaucrats and politicians alike how to make better decisions, how cultural heritage can make a better, more beautiful, and welcoming Europe? How can you capture in words the dedication of someone who will get back up again and again when most people would give up. No matter what we come up with, it will never do full justice. As European citizens, as members of the Board, as colleagues and friends, we can only be grateful, say thank you, and look forward to the next 20 years!”
Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović wholeheartedly thanked Europa Nostra’s Board, Staff, members and friends for “the unforgettable celebration” of her 20th anniversary as Secretary General of the organisation. “It has been a great honour and a great joy to work with all of you for this phenomenal organisation with such an extremely important mission. Thank you for giving me the privilege to be the Secretary General of Europa Nostra. I am immensely proud of this fantastic and harmonious team – my Dream Team – that we have built over the years”.
During the virtual gathering with the Board and the Staff of Europa Nostra, Sneška Quaedvlieg-Mihailović vividly evoked her first years of work at Europa Nostra as well as her appointment as Secretary General.
Leading figures, members and friends of Europa Nostra from across Europe as well as representatives from European institutions and international organisations paid tribute to our Secretary General for being the most ardent advocate of culture heritage as a driver of a more united, inclusive and sustainable Europe.
Messages of congratulations were sent by Antonio Marchini Càmia, former Secretary General of Europa Nostra (Italy/Belgium) (on the photo above on the right), Androulla Vassiliou, Vice-President of Europa Nostra and former European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth (Cyprus), Alexander Fürst zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn, Vice-President of Europa Nostra (Germany), Catherine Magnant, Head of Cultural Heritage Policy at the Directorate General Education and Culture of the European Commission, Irina Bokova, former Director General of UNESCO (Bulgaria), Nina Obuljen Koržinek, Minister of Culture (Croatia), Prof. Dr. Jacek Purchla, Head of the International Cultural Centre based in Krakow (Poland), and Jorge Chaminé, President of the European Music Centre in Bougival (France/Spain), among others.
Happy anniversary, dear Sneška! All these years, you have been relentless in defending European heritage as a force of peace, of inclusion and human dignity, as a foundation of a strong Europe “United in Diversity” https://t.co/bKod5jxWwV
— Irina Bokova (@IrinaBokova) October 14, 2020
