In the Spirit of Respect and Gratitude 

Sebestyén-Spielmann Mihály Becomes Honorary Citizen of Târgu Mureș
 

As per tradition, during the Târgu Mureș Days, honorary citizenship titles were ceremoniously presented on Sunday afternoon in the Mirror Hall of the Palace of Culture to ten illustrious personalities of the city who have created lasting works throughout their careers and contributed to the development of Târgu Mureș, making the city's name known and recognized both domestically and internationally through their outstanding achievements."At the city days, we also celebrate and honor the values that define Târgu Mureș this year," emphasized Soós Zoltán, Mayor of Târgu Mureș, in his greeting. As he said, it is a pride and honor for him as a city leader to express his gratitude to those exceptional personalities who have significantly contributed to the city's development and made Târgu Mureș known in the fields of theater, music, medicine, religious life, literature, sports, science, and poetry.This year, at the 27th Târgu Mureș Days, the distinction was awarded to ten personalities: athlete Bölöni László, violinist Jakab Attila, chief urologist Dr. Virgil Oșan, actor Ion Rițiu, historian Sebestyén-Spielmann Mihály, chemistry professor Dr. Tőkés Béla, as well as posthumously to director Gavril Cadariu, former director of Ariel Theater, poet Kovács András Ferenc, former editor-in-chief of Látó magazine, Greek Catholic priest Iosif Pop, and Greek Catholic Cardinal Alexandru Todea."We pay tribute to their work and creativity for the Târgu Mureș community, we thank them for their commitment and tireless efforts," said the mayor.Actress Kilyén Ilka and actor Liviu Pancu first read the laudation for Sebestyén-Spielmann Mihály in Romanian and Hungarian, respectively. The historian was an editor-reporter for the Hungarian-language broadcast of Romanian Television in the early seventies, and later became a librarian, bibliographer, chief librarian, and then department head at the Teleki-Bolyai Library (Teleki Library).In addition to his main occupation, he taught cultural history at the Szentgyörgyi István Institute of Dramatic Arts (predecessor of today's University of Arts) in the acting, theatrology, and directing departments. He also taught library science and book history at the Hungarian Language and Literature Department of Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca, as well as medical and pharmaceutical history to Hungarian students at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Târgu Mureș, and later taught civilization history in the communication department at Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania. As a historian, he primarily dealt with cultural and book history, the history of Transylvanian Jewry, and the local history of our city."In the city from where my parents were deported in 1944 along with my grandparents, but they returned in '45, they thought it was worth living here. This is what I learned from them, that it's worth living here and it's worth doing something for the community," said Sebestyén-Spielmann Mihály after receiving the recognition.

Photos: Nagy Tibor
https://www.e-nepujsag.ro/.../a-tisztelet-es-hala-jegyeben