Ondara City Council has made public the verdict of the jury of the "III Premis d'Honor Vila d'Ondara", which in its third edition, corresponding to the year 2024, will award a group of local farmers at a collective level, and at an individual level, Víctor Moreno Pérez from Ondara.
The jury, made up of Sergi Mallol, Rosa Seser, the Councillor for Culture Àngels Grimalt, the Councillor for Linguistic Normalisation Jordi Dominguis, the Mayor José Ramiro, and the Ondara Culture technician Ximi Vives (as secretary without a vote), evaluated the four candidates presented, reviewing the merits and services provided. After this deliberation, it was agreed to award the prizes to those mentioned above. The jury stressed that "the merits of all the candidates have made the choice of the winners very difficult."
This year, the collective prize goes to a group of farmers who share a love for the land. The winners are María Cervera Forqués, José Gil Zaragoza, Juan Ginestar Doménech, José Mut Poquet, Enrique Roig Pérez, Vicent Sastre Martí and Baptista Sendra Castellano. The nomination highlights that “without land there is no civilization, there is nothing at all” and stresses that, although today practically no one works the land full time, “the profession of farming is dying.” However, it points out that “there is still a handful of brave people who, with their courage, set an example and warn about what is to come: when we stop working the land, who will produce the food?” This group is described as “a bunch of elderly people who have a common denominator, a love for the land,” and their loyalty to this work has been the reason for the nomination for the Vila d'Ondara collective prize. The Department of Culture invites any citizen who feels represented or knows someone who belongs to this group of farmers to contact the Department of Culture to be assessed and added to the candidacy.
In the individual category, the award will go to Víctor Moreno Pérez, Doctor in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences, winner of the National Prize for Sports Medicine research and professor at the Miguel Hernández University of Elche. Moreno is the author of more than 80 scientific articles on medicine and physical performance in sports such as football, cycling and tennis, and has collaborated with prominent athletes both nationally and internationally.
The "III Premis d'Honor Vila d'Ondara" will be awarded next Wednesday, October 9, Valencian Community Day, at the institutional event to be held by the Ondara City Council at 12:00 p.m. During this event, the traditional offering of a laurel wreath will be made in the Cloister of the Town Hall and the Grup de Danses Ocell will perform, accompanied by the Colla de Dolçaines i Tabals d'Ondara.
Previously, from 11:00 a.m., there will be a parade through the town, starting from Plaça 9 d'Octubre, with the Colla de Dolçaines i Tabals d'Ondara, together with the Grup de Danses Ocell. In addition, on Friday 4 October, at 20:00 p.m., the ceremony to present the XNUMXth Vila d'Ondara Prize for Composition for dolçaina and piano will be held at the Casa de Cultura, with the performance of the works presented by Josep Alemany and David González.
Finally, it is worth highlighting that the winning drawing of the 9 d'Octubre 2023 Drawing Competition of the CEIP Sanchis Guarner, the work of student Carla De Dios Aranda, illustrates this year's commemorative poster for the Ondara City Council.
