The Rubric of Active Youth — the place where, every month, we introduce the most hardworking scholarship holder of our dear Foundation: the ones that try their best to put in the time and effort every day for the greater good, in that way making a personal positive change, but also positively
impacting our society. Just like RAM (Random-Access Memory) is an indispensable part of the computer, the same
way our scholarship holders are essential to the work of the Hastor Foundation. Besides volunteer work that they do as part of their scholarship obligations, they are also devoted to volunteer work in their local communities, representing the Hastor Foundation and its mission in the best way possible. RAM is a section dedicated to those who consistently work on making a positive change in society and in themselves, and it is our pleasure to say a few words about one of them each month. This time we are writing about Andrej Gradina. Andrej Gradina, a fourth-year student at the Department of Guitar at the Music Academy of the University of East Sarajevo, RAM – Rubric of Active Youth comes from Sarajevo. He has loved music since a young age — he graduated from a music primary school and high school with the highest grade. Besides this, Andrej has also won numerous awards and received recognition in international, state and federal competitions and festivals. He’s a member of the Vocal and Instrumental Ensemble “Oskar Danon” in whose organization he performed a concert
for the 120 years anniversary of the Sarajevo Synagogue.
In a recent international competition “Guitar United” Andrej won first place and has been granted the registration fee for the “Transilvania International Guitar Festival” that will take place in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. During the past few years he has travelled and performed in Slovenia, Italy and Serbia as a member of the Mixed Choir “Camerata Slovenica”, where he also had solo guitar performances. Victor Hugo once said that “music expresses what cannot be put in words and cannot remain silent” and, because of this, individuals whose job is music have to be especially sensitive, which is exactly what Andrej is. Andrej has been a Hastor Foundation scholarship holder since the sophomore year of his studies, and he states that he had applied for the Hastor scholarship in order to foster his professional growth, but also to gain numerous life experiences which he claims that the Hastor Foundation has given him. One of the countless valuable experiences that he has gained as a member of the Hastor family is the volunteer work — something that the Hastor Foundation is recognized for in the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Andrej, whose life is filled with the most endearing tones, enjoys cooking in his free time. Because he enjoys cooking, he has been helping as a volunteer for two years in the Restaurant of Goodwill, a project of the non-governmental organization “Pomozi.ba.” He has been volunteering as a kitchen helper and says that this type of volunteer work daily brings him immense happiness.
I’m happy when I cook. What makes me even happier is the fact that we were able to provide meals
for less fortunate visitors of our restaurant. In that way we’ve proved, once again, that young people
can be helpful and that they’re invaluable change makers in their communities. By helping in the
restaurant I’ve become friends with my peers and as well as with older people who are full of life
wisdom, which has altogether enriched my volunteer experience, points out Andrej.
Besides the volunteer work in the restaurant, Andrej mentions the educational meetings, where he led a group of high schoolers as a mentor in the city of Čelić, as priceless and interesting experience. Andrej prepared many topics for his group that he presented with other mentors, and he has learned a lot during the
topic preparation and through the dialogue with the high schoolers. Among all the activities that he has participated in as a Hastor Foundation scholarship holder, Andrej especially highlights the volunteer work with children with vision impairment and blindness.
As the most valuable experience that the Hastor Foundation has given me I’d say it’s the experience with children with vision impairment and blindness. That experience is the volunteer work that completely shattered all of the preconceptions I had had about those children. After having this experience, I can freely say that my biggest motivation for being an activist in my community is helping others. I see the most beauty and inspiration in helping other people through my volunteer work, shared Andrej with us.
Andrej’s involvement as a mentor during the preparation of our scholarship holders Adna Oraščanin and Haris Hošić should also be highlighted, who brightened up the meetings held on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of the Hastor Foundation with their notes. Andrej decided to weave his love for music into his volunteering, which gave those meetings an extraordinary specialness, and about the combination of volunteering and art, Andrej says:
Volunteering is extremely important to the community and can have a positive impact on other people’s lives. At one of the meetings, I decided to play the guitar during the break, which came in handy because I was perfecting the program, but also for the children because they heard different compositions on the classical guitar. Playing guitar and other instruments can be a great way to improve children’s learning abilities, creativity and fine motor development. It can also be a great way to develop a love of music and inspire them to start playing an instrument themselves. Volunteering in this way can be extremely fun and fulfilling, and at the same time, it provides an opportunity to give a child an unforgettable experience that they will
remember for a lifetime.
Through the Hastor Foundation, this worthy scholarship holder gained numerous useful experiences that will undoubtedly mean a lot to him in his future career. He used his love for cooking to help others and to somehow show how a hobby can be turned into something that will mean and make things easier for others.
I would recommend my fellow scholarship holders to keep on working on their self-growth, the process where our scholarship helps a lot. Besides this, they should also search for any volunteer work in their community in the field their interest and search for something that will spiritually enrich them, says Andrej.omething that will mean and make things easier for others.
