The solemn ceremony gathered in Burgas young people from five countries and ambassadors of four countries
At an extremely solemn award ceremony, filled with many emotions and excitement, on June 24, 2021, Center Alef presented the awards to the winners of the Eighth Youth Literary Competition “Whoever saves a human life saves a whole universe.” The international character of the competition and the impressive scale of the competition attracted to the International Congress Center – Burgas young people from 5 countries, ambassadors of four countries, teachers, students, members of the public. Among the special guests of the event were the mayor of Burgas Dimitar Nikolov, the regional governor Prof. Maria Neykova, HE Yoram Elron – Ambassador of the State ofIsrael to Bulgaria, HE Christoph Eichhorn – Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, HE Manuel Korcek – Ambassador of the Slovak Republic and Andrzej Mojkowski – First Counselor at the Embassy of Poland and Director of the Polish Institute in Sofia, Burgas Regional Governor Prof. Maria Neykova, Burgas Municipal Council Chairman Prof. Sevdalina Turmanova, Silva Hacheryan – Head Regional Activities Department at the Ministry of Culture, Yavor Koynakov – Senior Expert “Coordination of International Cultural Projects” at the State Cultural Institute under the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the poet and honorary citizen of Burgas Nedyalko Yordanov and others.
In the eighth edition of the competition on the topic “I will tell you about my savior” 180 young people from Bulgaria, Israel, Slovakia, Poland and Germany took part with their stories. The competition was held in two categories and the works were evaluated by two commissions – for “Foreign authors” and for “Bulgarian authors”. A total of 30 young people nominated by the jury – 10 foreign participants in the competition and 20 young literary talents from Bulgaria attended the ceremony. The winners were announced from them. The works of the authors from Bulgaria were competently evaluated by a jury composed of: Radostina Nikolova, senior expert at the Ministry of Education and Science; Georgi Bardarov, writer, specialist in ethno-religious conflicts; Rumen Leonidov – poet and publisher of the site Fakel.bg; Asen Yordanov – journalist, poet and director of the Bivol website. Alberta Alkalay – |President of CJBC “Alef” and founder of the competition.
The stories in the category “Foreign authors” were evaluated by an international jury consisting of: Pavol Rankov – writer, Slovakia; Nikolai Fenerski, writer and translator from Slovak; Vered Elron – Cultural Attaché at the Embassy of Israel in Bulgaria; Dorota Fater, director of the Polish school at the Polish Embassy in Bulgaria.
The grand prize in the category “Bulgarian authors” went to Snezhana Kostadinova, a student from Gotse Delchev. The award was presented by the Mayor of Burgas Dimitar Nikolov with the words: “This competition is important for our city, but it is also important for its participants. It is a symbol of upbringing and education. I thank the teachers who stimulate their students to create, and I also thank the Ministry of Education for deciding that the collections of student works should be a textbook. They all helped the competition grow. Now, eight years later, at the place where the saved Jews left almost 80 years ago, we are putting an end to the next edition of the competition and preparing for the next one. ”
Second place in the same category was awarded to Elitsa Georgieva from Burgas. “I am impressed by the wisdom expressed by the young participants in the competition. This makes me optimistic about the future, “said His Excellency at the award ceremony. Yoram Elron – Ambassador of the State of Israel to Bulgaria.
The third prize was awarded by the Ambassador of the Slovak Republic HE Manuel Korcek. The award was given to Velislava Shtereva from Ruse. “I thank all the young participants in the competition for responding to the ‘remember’ message. In this way, you strengthen the faith and hope that the Holocaust will not happen again, “the Slovak ambassador addressed those present.
First prize in the category “Foreign authors” won Omer Toledano from Israel. The award was presented by the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany HE Christoph Eichhorn. “Tonight we are united by our dedication based on memories. “Together we must learn the lesson of the ‘abyss’ of the 20th century and together we must face any form of discrimination against other human beings,” said Ambassador Eichhorn in his welcome address.
Andrzej Mojkowski – First Counselor at the Embassy of Poland and Director of the Polish Institute in Sofia presented the second prize in this category to Dominika Pashuthova from Slovakia, with the words: “This initiative helps us look to the future. This is especially important now, when intolerance, xenophobia and anti-symmetry are increasingly being voiced on social networks. With their works, the young participants in the competition openly oppose all this.
Piotr Stepulak from Poland received the third prize. The award was presented by Asen Yordanov, poet, director of the Bivol website and a member of the jury. He congratulated the winner and all participants in the competition: “I have been present in this competition since the first moment of its creation and I am glad that its message is already spreading around the world. Because it answers the question of the meaning of our life, of the way in which a person can overcome his selfishness and conformism in order to reach the highest value – to save a human life. “
All nominated participants received incentive prizes, diplomas, books.
The awarded stories will be published in a collection – the fourth book edition of Center Alef, collecting the works of young authors – participants in the competition.
“Through this kind of bridge between the past and the future, we want to set an example of dignified human behavior. Because this is the meaning of our competition, it is dedicated to memory and life. Tonight among us are the heirs of saved Jews and the heirs of their saviors. Their actions have inspired young people to study their history and turn it into fiction. The number of participants in the competition, which is growing every year, assures me that it makes sense in what we do. Because the future depends on these young people “, Alberta Alkalay, founder of the competition and chairman of the Alef Center, addressed the audience.
The awards are a recognition of knowledge and efforts, they motivate the pursuit of future success. However, participation in the competition is a desire for creativity, for acquiring new knowledge and gaining a civil position. That is why the winners of the Eighth Alef Literary Competition are all 180 young people who sent their stories about the darkest years of human history – the Holocaust, the fate of the persecuted and the people who helped them survive.
“The topic “I will tell you about my savior” provokes creativity in children. And this is no accident. They realize that our greatest national treasure is the incredible gesture of risking your life, future, and peace to save another human being. To say – no, I’m with these people because I’m human! The way in which the Bulgarian Jews were saved from deportation continues to be clarified, more and more data are constantly coming out. And all this today young people voluntarily gather in their minds, with their souls and write stories. This makes this competition very strong. It is difficult to awaken the writer in yourself, so we try to help, to guide young people. But they strive for knowledge and creativity, so the competition succeeds. I think that after going beyond the borders of Bulgaria, he has a very great future, “summed up the member of the jury Rumen Leonidov.
In the eighth edition of the competition, the young people said “No” to violence and “Yes” to humanity and empathy. This is evident from the video messages they sent and which were broadcast during the ceremony. The presenters Alberta Alkalay and Luiza Slavkova played dialogues – excerpts from the competition stories, which proved the undoubted literary talent and civic position of the participants. In the hall, as a greeting to all present, sounded the performances of the young soloists of the choir “Milka Stoeva” Alexandra Ivanova and Mia Kaloyanova.
The year 2021 is of special importance for the literary competition of “Alef”. The competition is international for the first time and this gives it the opportunity to become a world forum for popularizing the Bulgarian phenomenon of saving Jews during the Holocaust and for creating lasting values among young people.
“I wish all participants to continue to develop their talent as masters of words and not to forget that sometimes a good text can save many human souls,” wrote in his congratulatory address the Minister of Education and Science Prof. Nikolay Denkov.
Congratulatory addresses were also sent by the Human Rights Directorate at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Victor Melamed, director of the office of the American Jewish Committee for Bulgaria.
For the nominated participants in the competition, staying in Burgas becomes a real experience. They will stay in the seaside town for another day, when they will visit St. Anastasia Island and the Center for Contemporary Art and Library in Burgas, where they will view the exhibition “Israeli discoveries that changed the world”, will attend a conversation with the writer and jury member. Georgi Bardarov, will watch the premiere of the film “Nicky’s Family”.
The competition “Whoever saves one human life saves a whole universe” is held under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Bulgaria and with the special assistance of the Municipality of Burgas. Contributors are the Ministry of Education and Science, the Embassy of the State of Israel, the Embassy of Slovakia, the Polish Institute in Sofia, New Life Clinic, Tria City Center, Bulgarian Direct Raisen, BMF Port Bourgas, International Congress Center, Bivol Investigative Journalism website
