Niagara Falls City Hall Commemorates Serbian Statehood Day
The City of Niagara Falls marked Serbian Statehood Day with a ceremonial raising of the National Flag of Serbia at Niagara Falls City Hall. The world-famous Niagara Falls will also be lit up in the Serbian colors on February 15 at 10:00 pm in order to mark the Statehood Day of Serbia.
The initiative was organized by the St George and St Archangel Michael Church-School Congregation and by the Serbian School “Nikola Tesla”.
The ceremony was attended by Niagara Falls Mayor Jim Diodati, MP Tony Baldinelli, MPP Wayne Gates, and City Councillor Lori Lococo. The dignitaries expressed their support for the Serbian community of Niagara, and they acknowledged the significant contributions that Serbs have made to the region—dating all the way back to Nikola Tesla’s hydroelectric projects in the 1800s.
President of the St George and St Archangel Michael Church-School Congregation Dr. Bojan Ratković thanked everyone in attendance for their support, and he emphasized the importance of this event to the local Serbian community, and especially to Serbian children.
“I came [to Niagara Falls] in 1998 at 10 years old,” Ratković said, “and this was during the war years when a lot of bad things were being said about Serbs. I remember that as a kid I was bullied just for being Serbian. So something like this would have meant a lot to me back then, to have our city, our province, and our country acknowledging the value of our community.” Ratković noted that he was glad to see that Serbian children attended for the flag raising ceremony despite the cold weather, and he emphasized that he had brought his own young son and daughter to witness the event so that they would feel proud of their Serbian identity.
The National Flag of Serbia will fly in front of Niagara Falls City Hall until the end of business day on February 17. Organizers plan to continue with similar events in the coming years, and they hope that every Canadian city with a significant Serbian population will follow their lead.
