2025 Memory of the Nation Awards honor five courageous figures from Czechia, Slovakia, and Ukraine
The award ceremony began with ninety-two-year-old Milena Sedláčková, who risked her freedom and spent two years in prison for helping collect illegal information.
Sedláčková, accompanied by her granddaughter Lucia, shared her reflections on faith, perseverance, and the importance of remembering history.
The evening continued with the awarding of Emil Sedlačko from Slovakia and ninety-three-year-old Jaroslav Vrbenský. Sedlačko, who will turn eighty this year, could not attend in person due to health problems. He stood up to the occupying forces in August 1968, and despite undergoing brutal interrogations, he did not betray his colleagues.
Vrbenský was imprisoned for more than ten years for trying to help persecuted priests. A member of the Catholic youth who later studied theology and eventually fled to the West, he exemplified the principles of seeing, judging, and acting.
One of the evening’s highlights was the recognition of eighty-year-old Fedor Gál, a Slovak public activist and survivor of the Terezin ghetto, who played a key role in the Velvet Revolution and the fight against political oppression under former Slovak prime minister, Vladimir Mečiar.
“I take this in the presence of people who are today in the streets and on the streets and they know that freedom is not free and they did not give up and they do not give up.”
The last person to receive an award was seventy-three-year-old Ukrainian Nadija Kalinčenkovová, who helps displaced people and knits camouflage nets for the Ukrainian army.
The celebration reaffirmed a simple but profound truth: freedom and democracy are not inherited; instead, they are maintained through active participation, remembrance, and collective effort.
The celebration also acknowledged the ongoing work of Post Bellum, with directors Sandra Poluková (Slovakia) and Mikuláš Kroupa (Czechia) discussing their efforts to preserve historical memory. They shared projects in schools, regional documentary initiatives, and support for individuals affected by totalitarian regimes, as well as ongoing assistance to Ukraine.
“Our statehood, sovereignty, and national consciousness grow from the legacy of these people. We owe our freedom to them. And we are also responsible to these people for the current state of our society,” said Post Bellum director and founder of Memory of the Nation, Kroupa.
The laureates of the Memory of the Nation Prize are selected by those who record and process witness testimonies at Post Bellum. Hundreds of supporters from the Friends of Memory of the Nation Club and the Memory of the Nation Collegium may then comment on the nominations in a survey. Since 2010, Post Bellum has honored more than 70 individuals.
This year’s ceremony was once again attended by President Petr Pavel and his wife Eva. Two years ago, the president became the first head of state to attend the gala evening since the awards were established. Former president of the Slovak Republic, Zuzana Čaputová, was also in attendance. The gala was accompanied by the Memory of the Nation Orchestra and the Ježek’s Footprints Orchestra, conducted by Matěj Kroupa.
