TRIBUTE PAID TO SPOMENKO GOSTIĆ - YOUNGEST DECORATED FALLEN SOLDIER OF REPUBLIKA SRPSKA ARMY

PETROVO, AUGUST 15 /SRNA/ – The "Spomenko's Days of Ozren" event was held in Petrovo today, highlighting the importance of preserving and passing on to younger generations the memory of Spomenko Gostić, a young hero and the youngest decorated fallen soldier of the Army of Republika Srpska.

Event organiser Mile Savić told reporters that anniversaries of Spomenko's death had been marked in previous years, while this year his birthday, August 15, is also being commemorated in order to preserve the memory of his life and legacy. He said he was pleased that a large number of horsemen and carriage drivers from Republika Srpska and Serbia had joined the event on their own initiative, expressing a desire to symbolically pay tribute to the young hero who, during the Defensive-Patriotic War on the Maglaj battlefield, transported the wounded by horse-drawn cart and delivered food to the front lines, and was himself wounded in the process. Petrovo Mayor Ozren Petković thanked Savić and the participants for gathering on Ozren on Spomenko’s birthday so that younger generations could learn about the events of the past war. As part of the event, wreaths were laid at Spomenko's memorial bust in the courtyard of the Monastery of St Nicholas, where a memorial service was held. Borko Simić, a representative of the "Vranac" Equestrian Club from Bijeljina, said he was honored to take part in today's event in memory of the brave boy. Sixteen-year-old horseman Mitar Bijelić from Modriča said he was riding today to pay tribute to Spomenko and to help ensure that younger generations preserve the memory of the young hero. Smiljka Blagojević from Gornji Rakovac, whose sister Simuna was killed together with Spomenko Gostić’s grandmother by a Muslim shell in Ulišnjak, said she had known Spomenko well and was familiar with the hardships he had endured. The participants in today's procession were blessed by Archimandrite Gavrilo, the abbot of the Monastery of St Nicholas. As part of the event, a program was held on the Kaluđerica plateau featuring the "Milovan Gajić" Cultural and Artistic Society from Petrovo. Lunch was also organized for the participants, during which plaques and certificates of appreciation were presented. Spomenko Gostić was born on August 15, 1978, in Doboj. After being left alone during the war, Spomenko joined the army, initially serving as a courier before later delivering food to soldiers. Several months before his death, he hit a mine while delivering food along the front line in a horse-drawn cart and suffered minor injuries. He later joined an artillery unit. He was killed by a shell on March 20, 1993, near his village of Jovići on Mount Ozren. Five other Serb soldiers were also killed at the time. A memorial bust of the young hero from Ozren was erected in Doboj and placed in the courtyard of the Memorial Church of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos on March 20, 2014. Members of the "Nasljeđe" Association of Children of Fallen Soldiers of Republika Srpska from Bijeljina renovated the monument at the Gornji Ulišnjak cemetery in 2017, while Doboj artist Deni Božić painted a mural depicting Gostić on Vojvode Stepe Street in Doboj. A memorial statue of Spomenko Gostić was erected on August 24, 2021, in the courtyard of the Monastery of St Nicholas in Petrovo. A 45-minute documentary film, "Spomenko on Eternal Guard", was made about Spomenko, and Mile Savić also authored the book"“Spomenko and Ozren." The "Deveta Dimenzija" Association of Comic Book Authors and Fans of Republika Srpska from Banja Luka published the comic album "Spomenko – A Story of a Childhood." Spomenko Gostić was also posthumously awarded the "Miloš Obilić" Medal for Courage by Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.