To Ukrainian Librarians, Disseminators of the Wise, Kind and Eternal
Please accept my sincere greetings on your Occupational Holiday.
Through your unique role as Custodians and Administrators of the priceless National and World culture treasure, of Her Majesty Book, you have always excelled in supporting and enriching the spirituality of our people, striving to allow no losses in this field, knowing that they would be irretrievable.
During the period of great difficulty and duress in Ukraine, when the State abandoned the National culture to neglect and disinterest, when our cultural institutions were shut down, concert pavilions were taken apart and used as scrap, and our National theatres were dwindling, a light kept on shining in the library windows. It was, most probably, this very light that saved our spirits, our longing for happiness and justice, and our strong belief that we would, in Ukraine, provide a good life deserving of our faithful nation.
I believe we shall be able to do all what is needed to fill the library collections with new highly-rated volumes by the masters of National and world literature, and in our Budget allocate funds not only towards replenishing our libraries, but also towards raising librarians' wages to the correct level determined by their high standards.
I wish you creativity and success in your work, and. happiness, good health and love throughout coming years.
Olexander Moroz