IN MEMORIAM
ANA RUKAVINA ERCEG
26.11.2006. – 26.11.2025.
On this day, when the heart beats hard and the eyes fill with tears, we remember Ana Rukavina – a girl whose smile, courage and love for life never disappeared. Her story is not just a memory, but a burning hope that still warms and heals countless hearts throughout Croatia and the world. Ana has not left us, she lives on in every breath of those she saved, in every look that shone again thanks to her selfless will and vision.
19 years ago, we lost a star that illuminated the darkest moments, but her light has not faded – it multiplies in every new life, in every tear of relief and in every smile of the people she inspired. Through the Croatian Registry of Voluntary Hematopoietic Stem Cell Donors, Ana has woven her heart into 205 lives, giving them the opportunity they thought they had lost.
Just imagine how much strength it took for that one woman to start a storm that changed lives. Imagine the tears of joy of mothers, fathers, and children who are breathing today thanks to Ana. Imagine the pain she took on for herself, so that others could breathe freely today.
Our dear Ana, your fearless love and your dedication show us what true greatness of the soul looks like. Your journey makes us think, change, and give life without fear. Your untimely departure is just a boundary you crossed so that your heart could beat in each of us, especially in the 205 patients who received a new life.
With every breath, with every look of gratitude, we promise you that your dream will live forever. May our dedication and our love be your eternal light, your legacy that we will protect and cherish. Thank you for teaching us how to love – deeply, uncompromisingly, for all time.
This day is not just a memory of your untimely departure and loss, but a celebration of the life we have received thanks to Ana. The tears we shed today are not tears of sadness, but flowers that sprout at the final resting place of her timelessness.
Ana, you are eternal. We love you.