21st birthday of the “Znad Wilii” Radio Station

The “Znad Wilii” Radio started life on July 1, 1992, at 2 pm. We have been on the air, broadcasting for our listeners through thick and thin, for 21 years now.

Every day we keep you up to date with the latest news from Vilnius, the Vilnius Region, Lithuania, Poland, and the world. We play the best music – from the tried-and-tested top songs to the latest music premieres. We are with you at your home and on your way to work, on weekdays and holidays alike. We are proud that we have an average weekly audience of more than 80,000 listeners. We are also glad that, throughout the years, we have won your trust and that the “Znad Wilii” Radio (literally, the “Radio From the Neris River”) has become an indispensable part of life for many of our listeners.

A year ago, when we celebrating the 20^th anniversary of the “Znad Wilii” Radio, we received a lot of tokens of liking, kindness, and positive energy, which have boosted our confidence and motivation to work for the subsequent years.

Entering another year of our activity, we can proudly state that we have always been at the epicentre of events and have done our best to ensure full and reliable information broadcast. Statistically, during the last year, we have broadcast almost 500 hours of news bulletins and have played no less than 4,092 songs!

Closer to people

Trying to maintain objectivity, we combine both the Polish and Lithuanian circles. We promote Poland, but first of all – Vilnius and the Vilnius Region.

In autumn last year we broadcast a series of radio shows called “Tu mieszkam” (“I live here”). We reached a lot of remote parts of our “little fatherland” and presented the achievements of local communities. Our journalists were surprised to see how wonderful, active, and creative are the people living in Dziekaniszki, Mościszki, Buivydžiai, Maišiagala, Pabarė, and Šalčininkai…

Shared successes

Among the guests of the “Political Salon,” there have been both Lithuanian and Polish politicians representing various political parties; among others, the representatives of the Polish community of Lithuania in the Sejmas, the government, and self-governments. We made a contribution to the electoral campaign to the Sejmas of the LithuanianRepublic by throwing a light on its course. We are glad about the shared electoral success of the Polish community in Lithuania.

We attach great importance to the economic growth of Lithuania and the Vilnius Region, which is certainly facilitated by the intensification of relations with Poland. Therefore, we join in to promote Polish companies entering the Lithuanian market.

In September 2012 the international old car and motorcycle rally known as “Orlen Lietuva Classic Rally” took place – for the first time in its history – in Lithuania. The event was aimed to contribute to the growth of the level of road culture in our country, to present our technological heritage, and to integrate all old car lovers. In November 2012 we took part in the Polish Brand Gala, an event organised by the Department of Promotion, Trade, and Investment of the Polish Embassy in Vilnius. Both events were supported by the “Znad Wilii” Radio.

In July 2013 we were the major media sponsor of the “Mleczne Śniadanie” (“Milk Breakfast”) event in Vilnius, organised by the Polish Chamber of Milk in cooperation with the Department of Promotion, Trade, and Investment.

What is more, we did not miss many other cultural and entertainment events important for our region. We were patrons of the 12^th Polish Cinema Week, the Days of Polish Culture, the 2^nd International Choral Music Festival “O Złotą Wstęgę Solczy” (“For the Golden Ribbon of the Šalčia River”), the 18^th “Pieśń znad Solczy” (“Song from the Šalčia River”) Festival, Idy Teatralne 2013 (“The Ides of Theatre 2013”), and the “Girl of the Courier of Vilnius” competition.

Social welfare efforts

We are proud of the social welfare efforts in which the “Znad Wilii” Radio participated. We are glad that there was much response to every appeal for the help for the needy.

Within the framework of the holiday charitable effort, more than LTL 34,000 (Lithuanian litas) were collected and donated for the wards of the Šalčininkai Daily Centre for People with Mental Disabilities.

In consequence of the “Serce dla serca” (“A heart for a heart”) campaign, within just a couple of weeks, the inhabitants of the Vilnius Region gathered more than LTL 100,000 for the heart transplantation for the twelve-year-old Czesia Czernuszewicz, a girl from the Nowy Dwór village.

Thanks to the “Znad Wilii” radio station, the Polish Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity played in Lithuania, for the first time in the country’s history. The volunteers collected more than LTL 5,000.

A light of memory

On All Saints’ Day, the oldest graveyard in Vilnius was filled with the light of more than 5,800 candles, gathered during the “Light for the RasosCemetery” campaign. The candles shone on the graves of famous Vilnius people – who either made a significant contribution in culture and science or earned names as heroes who died with honour, fighting for the independence – as well as on many forgotten, dilapidating graves. Not only did the “Znad Wilii” Radio keep encouraging Vilnius people to donate candles, but it also donated LTL 3,000 for the purchase of 2,700 candles.

In concern for the future of children and youth

The “Znad Wilii” Radio plays for everybody, regardless of their age. However, the youngest audience is the most important for us and we target our programmes on it. The projects: “Biblioteka w plecaku” (“A Library in the Backpack”) and “Szkoła radiożerców” (“The School of Radio Buffs”) were launched and intended for children and the youth. Encouraged by our success in the projects, in the very near future, we are going to launch an on-line radio station for the youth. It will be run by young workers, all radio enthusiasts.

New media

Thanks to the Internet, since 2007, people from all the continents have been listening to our radio broadcasts. On May 2, 2013, a new information website www.zw.lt: “Dzielimy się informacjami!” (“We Share Information!”) was launched. We have been creating it together with our listeners. We encourage all listeners in active cooperation and information sharing on our website through the “Radar Wileński” (“The Vilnius Radar”) section.

Our successes

Without false modesty, we can boast that our work has been repeatedly appreciated.

On May 3, 2013, the Polish ambassador Janusz Skolimowski bestowed high-level state decorations of the Republic of Poland on 12 workers of our radio station. In recognition of outstanding contribution to the developing of Polish-Lithuanian relations and mutual cooperation, the chairman of the “Znad Wilii” Radio, Czesław Okińczyk, was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, while Aleksandra Akińczo and Renata Widtman – the Knight’s Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland. Barbara Sosno and Mirosław Juchniewicz were awarded the Gold Cross of Merit, whereas Renata Butkiewicz, Krystyna Juckiewicz-Tołłoczko, Ilona Jurewicz, Krystyna Kamińska, Bożena Lenkiewicz, Julita Kraińska, and Kamil Zalewski – the Silver Cross of Merit.

This year the “Znad Willi” Radio won the special award of the 50^th Polish Song Festival in Opole for its overall activity and the propagation of the Polish song in Lithuania.

In 2012 Barbara Sosno, the author of the programme “Szkoły polskie na Litwie” (“Polish schools in Lithuania”) received the Maciej Płażyński Award, granted on the initiative of Press Club Poland, Jakub Płażyński, the mayors of Tricity (Gdańsk, Sopot, and Gdynia), the Marshal of the Pomerania Province, and the Pomeranian Foundation.

“Amber Microphone” for our Friends

We are glad when our work is seen and appreciated, but we also appreciate the work of others. In order to thank its Partners and faithful Friends, the “Znad Wilii” Radio, in celebration of the 20^th anniversary of its activity, established the “Bursztynowy Mikrofon” (“Amber Microphone”) Award. The award went to Paweł Olechnowicz, the chairman of the Lotos Group; Janusz Skolimowski, the former Polish ambassador in Lithuania; Lietuva Marius Jundulas, the PZU Group’s director general; and Arūnas Gelūnas, the former Minister of Culture and currently the Lithuanian ambassador at UNESCO.

Our Sponsors and Partners

We are grateful to our Sponsors and Partners for the possibility to successfully do our work and realise our ideas with a flourish. We have cooperated with the companies such as the Lotos Group, the PZU Group, and Orlen Lithuania for many years. We would also like to thank the Ministry of Culture in Lithuania, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Republic of Poland, the Polish Embassy in Vilnius, the Department of Promotion, Trade, and Investment of the Polish Embassy in Vilnius, and the Foundations: “Wspólnota Polska” (“The Polish Community”) and “Pomoc Polakom na Wschodzie” (“The Foundation Aid to Poles in the East”). What is more, we can realise interesting projects in cooperation with the Polish Radio, the Vilnius City Municipality, the VilniusRegionMunicipality, the ŠalčininkaiDistrictMunicipality, the TrakaiDistrictMunicipality, the Polish Film Institute, and many others, every one of which is held in high esteem by our radio station.

We want to thank our listeners for their being with us for 21 years now. We hope that they will continue to listen to our radio broadcasts, and that we will have many more new listeners in the years to come. We give a solemn promise that we will keep you up to date with current and reliable news, and entertain you with the best music!

Source: http://zw.lt/wilno-wilenszczyzna/21-urodziny-radia-znad-wilii/

Tłumaczenie by Elwira Łykus w ramach praktyk w Europejskiej Fundacji Praw Człowieka, www.efhr.eu. Translated by Elwira Łykus within the framework of a traineeship programme of the European Foundation of Human Rights, www.efhr.eu.