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Current AffairsIntroducing the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center in La Grange
The city of La Grange in Texas, historically a major site of Czech
settlement, remains to this day a hub of Czech culture. Those who want to
stay in touch with the local Czech community or would like to trace their
roots can visit the Texas Czech Heritage and Cultural Center located in
city. Besides offering research facilities, the center also organizes
various events – most recently a gala where old Czech bands were honored
earlier this month or an exhibition of nativity art which has just opened. More
SpecialLaureates of Gratias Agit award on the significance of their Czech heritage
Every year in October the Czech Republic honours those who have contributed
significantly to promoting the country’s good name abroad. This year,
Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg bestowed the annual Gratias Agit
awards on thirteen personalities from around the world to thank them for
their work. On occasion of the country’s national holiday we bring you
the thoughts and experiences of three Czechs who live abroad, but who never
severed ties with their homeland and are proud of their Czech roots and
national heritage. More
Current AffairsForeign Ministry honours promoters of good name of Czech Republic
Since 1997, the Czech Foreign Ministry has been honouring those who promote
the good name of the Czech Republic abroad with the annual Gratias Agit
awards. Last Friday, October 14, Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg
handed out the awards to thirteen personalities from around the globe to
thank them for their outstanding work. More
One on OneProfessor Lubomír Doležel – now retired doyen of Czech Studies in Toronto
Professor Lubomír Doležel, who was born in the Moravian village of
Lesnice in 1922, is an internationally respected academic best known for
his pioneering work in literary theory and linguistics. After three years
at the University of Michigan in the second half of the 1960s, he was
invited to the University of Toronto, where he established the study of
Czech language and literature. On Friday Professor Doležel received the
Czech Foreign Ministry’s Gratias Agit prize for promoting the good name
of his native country.
More
Current AffairsForeign Ministry bestows awards on those promoting Czech Republic abroad
Every year, the Czech Foreign Ministry presents Gratias Agit awards to
those who have helped promote the good name of the Czech Republic abroad.
Recipients include individuals and institutions from all over the world;
this year, the list of laureates ranges from Marius Sczygiel, a Polish
journalist, who published a best-selling book about the Czech Republic, to
Pontifical College Nepomucenum, an educational institution for Czech clergy
in the Vatican.
More
SpecialPromotion of Czech culture overseas rewarded at Gratias Agit ceremony
A brass band opens the Gratias Agit award ceremony in Prague's Černínský
palác on Friday. The ceremony itself, and the party that follows, are in
the words of Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg the single biggest event
staged by the Czech Foreign Ministry each year. On Friday, the awards were
given to a handful of exceptional individuals from around the world, a few
of whom we'll be talking to later. But first, here's organiser Zuzana
Opletalová explaining what the awards are about:
More
Current AffairsPhilanthropist Charles Merrill says ties to Czech Republic stretch back almost seven decades
Charles Merrill is an American philanthropist who has devoted his life to
education, and one project close to his heart is a programme of
scholarships for Czech students. In fact, he has spent USD 7 million
sending over 200 young Czechs from Palacky University in Olomouc to
colleges in the US. Recently Mr Merrill, who is 86 years old, was thanked
for his great generosity by the Czech foreign minister, who presented him
with a special award. When I spoke to Charles Merrill, he explained that
his ties to this country go way back.
More
Current AffairsCzechs "effortlessly musical", says conductor Kerry Stratton
The Canadian conductor Kerry Stratton has worked with several leading Czech
orchestras and made numerous recordings of Czech classical music. He was
recently honoured for his dedication to Czech music, when he received an
award from the Czech Foreign Ministry. I spoke to Kerry Stratton at the
awards ceremony, and first asked him how a Canadian came to be work with
so many Czech orchestras.
More
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