“Fifteen years have passed and all the memories are so fresh, I am trying to accept the departure, but there is a wound in my heart that will not heal until we meet again. It’s hard to talk about it, it can only be understood by someone who has experienced it. The foundation for me is Ana, and I give myself 100% to that. Over the years, our activities have changed and new goals have been set over time, but my concern, my thoughts, and my responsibility are always the same, to help people when it’s hardest, as Ana wished while lying in a sterile unit in hospital “, said on the occasion of the sad anniversary of Ana’s premature departure, Mrs. Marija Rukavina, Ana’s mother and the director of the Ana Rukavina Foundation.”
Ana left us too early that Sunday morning 15 years ago, but her love of life still lives on through 144 people who have been given the opportunity to live thanks to her vision of expanding the Croatian Bone Marrow Donor Registry and the Public Umbilical Cord Blood Bank carrying her name. She lives through the hope of the patients who are going through a difficult period of struggle today. She also lives through each of the seven doctors who, thanks to your donations, have been given the opportunity for professional development in the best clinics in the world and Europe to provide patients with the highest quality treatment, but also a beautiful and comforting word that sometimes heals more effectively than anything else. She lives even through the necessary medical devices donated to hospitals by the Ana Rukavina Foundation, which enable faster and better diagnostics and even treatment. And she lives through all of you who have trusted us for the last 15 years and helped with volunteering, donations, and selfless support.
And 15 years after her premature departure, Ana still lives through her optimistic words and the endless love she had for life and people.
Dear Ana, thank you, you are always in our hearts and minds.