Good Deed Lands ‘Pride of Croatia’ Award and Job for ‘Hero’

24 citizens were honoured last night in the capital Zagreb at the Pride of Croatia awards for acts of humanity which touched the nation in 2013, but one of the ‘heroes’ received more than just the award…

Dubravka Glavaš, from the eastern Croatian town of Vinkovci, made headlines early in 2013 after she saved a solo mother with financial debt from losing her job. When bosses at Unidal in Vinkovci decided to make Đurđica Švigač (31) redundant, Dubravka stepped in.

“Since I am still single and with no obligations and I live at home with my parents, I can be let go instead of my colleague,” Dubravka asked, “I want to give my job to my colleague, but with the guarantee that the position will only go to her,” she said to the company’s directors.

Dubravka (r) with Đurđica Švigač

Glavaš, who had not managed to find a job since her selfless act, last night was offered a job by Croatia’s largest private company Agrokor as she stepped up to collect her award. Other winners of the ‘Pride of Croatia’ award included a group from the Croatian Air Force who save over 400 lives a year and in the summer helped a women give birth on board their helicopter, and also crew from a Croatia Airlines flight which safely landed a Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 at Zurich Airport without its nose gear with 64 people on board.