On May 14, 2024, a literary and poetic evening of the prominent Serbian poet and academician Matija Beckovic was held in Nova Varos. The "Petar Mandic" Endowment once again provided organizational and financial support for an important event, continuing its activities in the field of education and culture.

Academician Matija Beckovic in Nova Varos

As in the previous period, this domain of our activities is limited to a part of the local community from which the founder, manager and members of the Endowment's Board of Directors come, which we are happy to highlight as our contribution to repaying the debt to the Nova Varos community that raised and shaped us.

In cooperation with the "Jovan Tomic" Library and the "Jovan Tomic" Cultural Center, the literary evening was held in an almost full hall of the Nova Varos Cultural Center.

The response was great in the digital age and culture of virtuality, as Academician Beckovic himself emphasized in his introductory speech. Our wish and goal, however, is for future events of a similar nature to be attended in far greater numbers.

In front of the "Petar Mandic" Endowment, the event was attended by Jelenko Jadzic and Nikola Puric.

After the opening speech by Milana Jelic, the director of the library, the president of the Foundation's Board of Directors, Nikola Puric, welcomed the attendees and highlighted everything that our charitable institution does, wishing to introduce our noble mission to those who have the opportunity to hear about it for the first time.

In addition to the residents of Nova Varos, the audience from the surrounding towns - Priboj, Prijepolje and Sjenica - was also noticeable.

Petko Gujanicic, a retired professor of Serbian language and literature from Nova Varos, in his opening speech, pointed out the symbolism of the Foundation's name, recalling the first director of the House of Culture, our Petar Mandic, the doyen of the cultural scene of Nova Varos in the second half of the last century and the place of the event. Professor Gujanicic pointed out: "Here, Petar Mandic, even after his death, helps us in what he did best throughout his life."

After reviewing Matija Beckovic's biography, his upbringing and the role of a mother and sister, his childhood without a father, and the fact that in Nova Varos, Matija is among his own people, the professor left the floor to our wonderful poet and one of the wisest living heads of Serbian society.

The "Petar Mandic" Endowment expresses special gratitude to Archpriest Dalibor Kupusovic, the parish priest of Vrbas. Archpriest Dalibor was at the parish service in Nova Varos from 2006 to 2009 and is particularly deserving of his help in organizing the visit of Academician Matija Beckovic to Nova Varos.

At the same time, we express our great gratitude to our Nova Varos resident Mirko Kovacevic, a professional photographer who recorded the entire event with his camera, edited it, and gave the video material to the Endowment.

The entire poetic expression of this evening can be viewed at this link.