On the occasion of Great Kobzar's birthday, a gala concert Creative Forces of Ukraine was held in the Ukrainian Center, which gathered Ukrainian talents from all corners of Lithuania. The unique event brought together not only different Lithuanian cities, but also creative representatives of various fields of art such as harp, accordion, folk and author's Ukrainian songs, and modern and folk dances, and this is far from the entire list of talent that was presented at the concert. All participants of the gala concert received valuable gifts from patrons and partners of the Ukrainian Center for the vivid representation of Ukrainian culture.
During the event, the winner of the "Zapekli" teenage prose and poetry competition was also awarded. More than 60 Ukrainians submitted their works to the Ukrainian Center competition, which was announced more than a month ago.
The winner of the competition was Bohdan Yakovenko from Lviv, a 9th-grade student at the Lyceum of Kruty Heroes, whose story symbolizes the resilience, courage, and determination of the entire Ukrainian people to fight for their country and freedom. Bohdan Yakovenko's father lived in Lithuania, but when the war started, he returned to defend Ukraine and died on the battlefield. His son Bohdan decided to follow in his father's footsteps and continue the struggle and is currently studying at a military-specialized lyceum.
During the event, the winner was personally congratulated by the First Lady of Lithuania, Diana Nausiedene. According to Mrs. Diana Nausėdienė: ‘This is one of the many stories that we know, that the whole world knows, that show that Ukrainians are real heroes. People will do everything to stop the brutal aggressor who threatens Ukraine and the entire democratic world. Bohdan Yakovenko cannot be with us today, so please give him the award along with congratulations and best wishes from the entire Lithuanian people. Tell him that we are and will be with Ukraine as long as it takes - until Victory.’
During the event, the First Lady of Lithuania announced the continuation of the Books without Borders project in Lithuania, which is implemented by the Ukrainian Book Institute under the patronage of the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska. As part of the project, more than 1,000 books arrived in Lithuania for the second time, so after the event, all children received a Ukrainian book as a gift.
The event was attended by the Ambassador of Ukraine to Lithuania Petro Beshta with his wife Anna Beshta. The performances of the contestants of the gala concert were evaluated by a jury, which included not only professional cultural figures from Ukraine but also famous Lithuanian guests such as Lithuania's representative at Eurovision Monika Linkytė, singer Vidas Bareikis, producer Lauras Lučiūnas.
We sincerely thank the head of the Ukrainian Center Ambassador Algirdas Kumža, the center's employees and volunteers, jury members and contestants, as well as patrons and partners, for creating this fantastic event! We are especially grateful to the priest Algirdas Toliatas and the Lithuanian Ambassador to Ukraine Valdemaras Sarapinas for their support of the First Lady of Ukraine's project Books without Borders.