It could be heard all over Hrotovice. When I can’t sleep, it comes back to me
Download image
Eva Heliová, née Studená, was born on June 21, 1938 in Bohemia in the Vyškov region. She grew up in Hrotovice until 1945. Her mother Karla worked as a teacher and her father Lubomír lectured at the Faculty of Law in Brno. Jaroslav Studený the uncle from the father´s side served in the ranks of the British Royal Air Force (RAF) during the war. Her father Lubomír, who collaborated with the resistance group Urbanek-Papula, also joined the fight against Nazism. In April 1943, the father was arrested by members of the Gestapo and imprisoned until the end of the war – in Brno, in the Svatobořice internment camp and in Jihlava. He returned home on May 3, 1945. Five days later, on May 8, her father became a victim of the so-called Hrotovice tragedy, when, due to poor communication, Red Army bombers dropped three bombs on the civilian residents of Hrotovice, who were gathering in the square to welcome the liberators. After the tragic event, Eva and her mother moved to Ivančice. Eva dedicated her professional life to teaching children in kindergartens in Brno. She also worked as the director of the kindergarten in Ivančice for fifteen years. In 2022, Eva Heliová lived in Ivančice and took part in commemorative events every year on the occasion of the anniversary of the Hrotovice tragedy.
