Highest Awards of the Alpine Association of Slovenia Presented

The highest awards of the Alpine Association of Slovenia for 2020 have been presented.



The Alpine Association of Slovenia (AAS) every year expresses its respect to recipients with its highest awards for their long-term tireless and dedicated voluntary work in mountaineering. At a slightly different and more modest ceremony, it awarded solemn certificates to 8 deserving individuals, AAS commemorative plaques to 16 mountaineers on their life milestones, six awards from the AAS leadership for special achievements, and in this way thanked volunteers for their contribution to the development of mountaineering.







The award ceremony of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, co-organized by the Mountaineering Association Medvode, was supposed to take place last year in Medvode. However, due to measures to contain the coronavirus epidemic, we postponed the solemn event to this year, adapted the ceremony, and held it in a smaller format at the AAS headquarters.







The recipients of the awards were addressed online by the keynote speaker Marija Štremfelj, who praised the recipients for growing from anonymity through their long-term work and becoming an important piece in the AAS mosaic. "All recipients of the highest AAS awards are like candles whose flame burned the highest in 2020. You burned within yourselves and enriched your lives. Importantly, the professional public has recognized the greatness of achievements in the glow of these flames and the right direction for the entire mosaic of climbing activities in the future."







The year 2020 will remain in history as very different. Mountaineering was no exception in this unique time; it had to adapt to the circumstances, but we look forward optimistically. "In the AAS, we are aware of the work done by today's award recipients and thank you for it. Without your numerous voluntary hours, an organization like the Alpine Association of Slovenia could not function, and mountaineering is so strongly widespread among Slovenes also because of you," thanked AAS President Jože Rovan in his speech.







Anton Jesenko thanked the AAS on behalf of all award recipients. "Mountaineering was the way of our life when we were still full of vitality, and it remains so even now, as much as we can still manage. Our affection for mountaineering was rewarded on every conquered summit, with every smile and joy of those we safely brought back from the tour as guides, when we climbed a wall, or with simple inner satisfaction when, as members of bodies in our home association or federation, we successfully completed an important task. Mountaineering united us in good, educated us in nobility, respect for nature, and strengthened those primal, authentic human relationships in us. We painfully felt what mountaineering means to us when the coronavirus closed off mountaineering experiences, gatherings, and huts. We see the awarded recognitions as an expression of the AAS's respect for our voluntary work."







The recipients of the SOLEMN CERTIFICATES OF THE AAS, the highest awards of the Alpine Association of Slovenia, for 2020 are:







ANTON JESENKO (PD Brežice) for long-term, versatile, and tireless work in PD Brežice, in MDO Zasavja, and in the Alpine Association of Slovenia,

MIRO PLEŠEC (PD Medvode) for long-term dedicated work in PD Medvode, especially in guiding and nature conservation,

MARJAN OLENIK (PD Sežana) for dedicated work in PD Sežana, in alpinism, and for successfully passing on knowledge and mountaineering skills to younger generations,

ANICA HORVAT (PD Maribor Matica) for extensive work in PD Maribor Matica, extensive publishing work, and long-term work with youth,

IZIDOR SODJA (PD Pošte in Telekoma Celje) for long-term versatile work in PD Pošte in Telekoma Celje; with his work, he left a significant mark locally and in the wider environment,

KAREL ŽIBRET (PD Šmartno ob Paki) for long-term work in PD Šmartno ob Paki in various fields of mountaineering and for the association's recognition in the wider environment,

STANKO PODMENINŠEK (PD Ljubno ob Savinji) for long-term versatile work in PD Ljubno ob Savinji, especially in the construction and maintenance of the hut on Travnik, and for the association's recognition locally and beyond,

IVAN JANKO MIRNIK posthumously (PD Pošte in Telekoma Ljubljana) for long-term dedicated work in alpinism, mountaineering management, work in the Alpine Association of Slovenia, and in the Veterans Alpinists Committee.

AAS COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUES, which the Alpine Association of Slovenia awards to its most deserving members on life milestones for their long-term loyal and exceptionally successful work, were received by:







For 80 years



JANEZ BOHINC (PD Rašica) for the work of a long-term mountaineering guide. He was the head of the association's office and its member, head of various commissions and committees, but above all, a markacist with a capital M.



IRENA ZALAR (PD Rašica) for work in mountaineering guiding; she was the head of the guiding section for many years, vice-president, and president of the association for 10 years; she invested a lot of energy and free time in the renovation and legalization of the Mountaineering Home on Rašica.



PETER GLOBOČNIK (PD Iskra Kranj) for long-term activity in the association, which was first a section that he led for several years, later becoming an independent association. Peter has 40 years of mountaineering guiding.



MIROSLAV SUŠEC (PD Mislinja) for 20 years as the association's standard bearer and more than 30 years of work on mountaineering trails. The association maintains 66 kilometers of trails, and trail renovation and repair were Miro's concern.



JOŽEF SEMPRIMOŽNIK (PD Vransko) for extensive markacism work and long-term leadership of the marking section. He is an indispensable volunteer in maintaining the mountaineering home on Čreta.



For 75 years



ANGELA HAJZER (PD Ravne na Koroškem) for long-term work in the association, especially in collecting membership fees, registering members, and managing the association's cash desk.



ALOJZIJ PRISTAVNIK (PD Ravne na Koroškem) Alojzij is a retired photographer and historian, but a mountaineer at heart; he has been a mountaineering guide for 40 years, and all his trips were interwoven with stories full of love for natural and cultural heritage.



For 70 years



MILAN MLAKAR (PD Kočevje) for work in guiding, mountaineering management, and association leadership, as he was vice-president for many years and is now president. Milan's work has greatly shaped mountaineering in Kočevje and the wider Dolenjska.



STANISLAV PINTAR (PD Škofja Loka) For many years, he was the manager of the Blegoš Hut, head of the Blegoš Roots, and one of the organizers of the traditional Pasja ravan-Dražgoše hike; otherwise, a man who has co-created the history of the Mountaineering Association Škofja Loka for over 30 years.



MARJAN MALLY (PD Poljčane) for more than 40 years of work in mountaineering guiding, markacism, and as a photographer who captured many mountaineering events in his lens. Marjan was a correspondent for Panorama for 30 years and informed readers with articles on mountaineering topics in over a thousand contributions.



EDITA BEČAN (PD Lovrenc na Pohorju) for long-term mentoring work with numerous young mountaineers. In addition to teaching mathematics, with their mentor they explored nature, the mountain world, and its laws on trips and in mountaineering schools.



JOŽE MAROVT (PD Dobrovlje Braslovče) for work in guiding. He is always ready to help the primary school with mountaineering trips and passing on skills to younger generations. Jože is a multiple participant in mountaineering orienteering competitions, a long-term markacist, and president of the mountaineering association.



JOŽE KAMENŠEK (PD Slovenske Konjice) for long-term presidency of the association, work in mountaineering and touring cycling guiding. Jože is responsible for erecting the tower on the highest point of Konjiška gora – Stolpnik – with a lot of voluntary work.



HUSEJN DJUHERIĆ (PD Velenje) On one of the Slovenian peaks, he got the name Miha Jalovški, and many know him only as Miha. Otherwise, he is a long-term mountaineering guide, very dedicated to his work, a member of the Guiding Commission at the Alpine Association of Slovenia.



FRANC MAROVT (PD Ljubno ob Savinji) Franc is a great lover of mountains who did not take on important functions in the association but was always ready to help. He was indispensable in building the Travnik hut and the lookout tower on Turnovka.



For 65 years



JANI BELE (PD Rašica) for extensive work in guiding, alpinism, mountain rescue, and all the work done in the Slovenian alpinism school in Nepal. The award recipient is the author of two mountaineering handbooks; his mission is to inform and guide people towards safe hiking.







Awards from the leadership of the Alpine Association of Slovenia for special achievements in 2020, awarded by the AAS Presidency, were received by:







ALOJZ PIRNAT ml. (PD Domžale) - gold honorary badge for long-term successful leadership of high-altitude very demanding trail renovation campaigns and for all contributions to training new markacists.



ALBIN SIMONIČ (PD Celje – Matica) - gold honorary badge for exceptional contribution to the development of sport climbing, both competitive and recreational, to the extent we know it today.



JANEZ KAVAR (PD Križe) - gold honorary badge for comprehensive contribution to the development of Slovenian mountaineering, mountain rescue, constructive cooperation with SV, and achievements in publishing activities enriching Slovenian mountaineering history.



PUBLIC COMPANY CENTRAL WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT DOMŽALE - KAMNIK LTD. commendation for professional assistance in such an important field as managing challenges for nature protection.



MANCA VOLK BAHUN commendation for doctoral thesis titled Mechanisms of Snow Avalanche Occurrence in the Slovenian Alps.



RENATA MAVRI commendation for doctoral thesis titled Evaluation and Planning of Sustainable Forms of Recreation in Protected Areas of Slovenia.







We sincerely thank all award recipients for their dedicated work in the mountaineering organization and congratulate them from the heart!