[We lost a poet, but gained a great Emissary in heaven] [2009-01-19] Poet Grigore Vieru was a symbol of the national renaissance and his death is an irrecoverable loss, the president of the Writers Union of Moldova Mihai Cimpoi has told Info-Prim Neo. “During his whole life, Grigore Vieru talked with the children and adults about our destiny, national identity, scientific and historical truth, creating a bridge between the Romanian culture in Bessarabia and that in the Country. Grigore Vieru was and will be an exceptional and incomparable personality, a being in a poem, a truth, the Romanian language, the justice,” the academician said. Poet Iulian Filip said that Grigore Vieru, who worked with practically all the children, in all the homes, informed also the adults so that they discover the works that were of their age. “We did not have such a precedent of dedication and full involvement and I think that this is an irrecoverable loss,” the poet said. Composer Eugen Doga, who was Grigore Vieru’s friend, said that he was a ‘star’ about which “not many nice things were said.” A star died out. Unfortunately, this star was not seen by many, but its absence is now observed because it emitted light, warmth and spirit (...). He was an extraordinary man. No man of such a size, value and importance for our people existed in this country. Indisputably, it is a loss for the entire nation (...) Few nice things have been said about him and this is our sin,” the composer said. “He was the most renowned Romanian poet,” writer Nicolae Dabija said about Grigore Vieru. “I convinced myself of this while I accompanied him to communities inhabited by Romanians in Hungary, Serbia, Northern Bucovina, Southern Bessarabia. He was a model for us, a standard bearer that died like a standard bearer. But the standard was immediately taken over by those generations that studied by the textbooks written by Vieru and grew up by his poems and songs,” Dabija said. The writer describes Grigore Vieru as “a modest nature that tried to pass by in the tips of the toes so as not to disturb and so that we could not observe that we are his contemporaries. “His presence at those Great National Assemblies at the start of the 80s encouraged the masses. His contributions to the Romanian language, the return to the Latin scrip and the fight for the national identity are enormous,” Dabija said. “We lost a poet, but gained a great Emissary in heaven,” said writer Aurelian Silvestru. “The divinity is with us because the poet remained with us. He remained built inside the verses and words, in the sorrow of the Romanians from everywhere, which he bore on his feeble shoulders,” Aurelian Silvestru said. Grigore Vieru passed away on January 18 after injured in a car accident two days earlier. According to the Ministry of Health, the poet died as a result of a cardiac arrest on Sunday night, at 01.20. He suffered from cardiovascular, renal-hepatic and respiratory insufficiency. The bard will be buried at the Central Cemetery located on Armeneasca Street. January 20 was announced a Day of National Mourning.  [Hundreds of Christians prayed and bid firewall to Vieru at St. Teodora Church] [2009-01-19] Hundreds of Christians came to the Saint Teodora of Sihla Church in Chisinau on Monday to pray and say goodbye to Grigore Vieru. The body of the poet was brought to the church at about 15.30, one hour later than planned. The people queued near the church, Info-Prim Neo reports. Ian Raiburg and Grigore Vieru had been friends for approximately 30 years. Most of Ian Raiburg’s songs are based on the verses of the poet: “Ce seara minunta” (“What a Wonderful Evening”), “Cumparati flori” (“Buy Flowers”), “Asta seara” (“This Night”), “Clar de luna” (“Clear Moonlight”) etc. “I saw him on January 15. We drank a cup of tea and talked. He wanted that we wrote several texts together. After that he went to Cahul. I think I was the last person in Chisinau to whom he said goodbye. I’m very proud that I had been Grigore Vieru’s friend for a long period of time,” Ian Raiburg said. “The entire Romanian nation is grieved. A month ago we discussed about the performances that we intended to give. A folk music concert. Now the thoughts remained in the past. I cannot believe that this man has departed this life. God rest him,” said master Nicolae Botgros, the conductor of “Lautarii” orchestra. “Grigore Vieru was the apostle of work and the grave and the death cannot do what the book and the word can,” said Aurelia Covalschi, a Chisinau teacher. “I grew up with his poems and his simple but wise verses guided us our whole life. We are sad that he passed away so soon. He will yet remain alive through his works,” the teacher said. “He was a luminary offered by God to our people. He loved the country, the people, the language and the truth. He burned like a candle for our future. He should remain in our hearts and we should fulfill his dream. God rest his soul!” said Ana Balcu, an admirer of the poet. “Grigore Vieru was a great personality of our national culture. It is regrettable that the people praise him after his death. I think that a street and a high school will bear his name. It is too late, but the municipal authorities should have conferred the title of citizen of honor of Chisinau on him,” municipal councilor Oleg Cernei said. The body of the poet will remain at the Saint Teodora of Sihla Church until Tuesday, 09.00. The church will be open all night.  [Vieru's body to be brought to St. Teodora Church] [2009-01-19] The body of poet Grigore Vieru will be transported to the Church of St. Teodora of Sihla in Chisinau at around 2:00 PM today and will remain there until Tuesday morning 09:00 AM. Afterwards the coffin will be moved to the hall of the National Opera and Ballet Theater, where writers, culture stakeholders, politicians and readers of all ages will be able to bid farewell to the poet. President Vladimir Voronin is expected to appear at the National Opera and Ballet Theater by 10:00 AM. At this point, the agenda of the head of state doesn't include his participation in the funeral ceremony, said Natalia Visanu, presidential protocol officer. From the National Opera Theater, the cortege will proceed to the Central Cemetery on Armeneasca Street, with a stop at the monument to Moldovan ruler Stephen the Great. Renowned Moldovan poet Grigore Vieru died in the early-morning hours of Saturday, four weeks before his 74th birthday, after spending nearly two days in a coma inducted by multiple injuries suffered in a car accident. [People of culture grieve Grigore Vieru’s death] [2009-01-19] Writers, artists, readers of all ages that love the works of poet Grigore Vieru bewail the premature death of the bard, who was a real symbol of the national Bessarabian Renaissance, of the fright for the Romanian language and national Romanian identity, a joint statement signed by over 70 Moldovan persons of culture says. According to the statement, the public and literary work of the poet contributed significantly to the acknowledgment of the unity of the Romanian culture through participation in the most important cultural events on both banks of the Prut. The signatories say that Grigore Vieru was a people’s teacher who created the spirit of the good and the beauty for the whole generation of children and adolescents. Through the agency of his works, the poet significantly contributed to the renewal of the mentality and position on the historic destiny of our people and its place in the contemporary civilization, the statement, says, quoted by Info-Prim Neo. Writers consider Grigore Vieru’s demise an irrecoverable loss for the whole Romanian literature and culture. “His works inspired by such sacred values as mother, love, the Romanian language, the historic truth and the Romanian people remain eternal.” The place of the great poet that died on the day of Saint Gregory the Great is in “the sacred pantheon of the Romanian people,” the signatories say. Among the signatories are Mihai Cimpoi, Arcadie Suceveanu, Spiridon Vangheli, Petru Soltan, Andrei Strambeanu, Nicolae Dabija, Ion Hadarca, Valeriu Matei, Igor Cretu, Anatol Codru, Anatol Gujel, Leonida Lari, Teo Chiriac, Nicolae Rusu, Marcela Benea and others. The funeral will take place on January 20, which was announced a day of national mourning. Grigore Vieru’s body will be placed in the hall of the National Opera House on Tuesday, after 9.00. Until then, he will lie in the Saint Teodora of Sihla Church.  [Grigore Vieru’s burial day declared National Mourning Day] [2009-01-18] In sign of great sorrow at the tragic death of the prominent poet Grigore Vieru, classical writer of the national contemporary literature, President Vladimir Voronin decreed the day of January 20, 2009, when Grigore Vieru is to be buried, as National Mourning Day. A communiqué from the presidential press service says that a State Commission for the Organization of the Funeral was set up under the same decree. According to the decree, state flags will be flown at half mast in all the settlements of the country on January 20. A moment of silence in memory of poet Grigore Vieru will be held at 10.00. The national public broadcaster “Teleradio-Moldova” will broadcast live the funeral. A lecture in memory of the great poet will be taught in all the education institutions. The public authorities, enterprises and organizations are urged not to carry out recreational activities on January 20, while the newspapers, radio stations and television channels are asked to take into account the specific character of this day when editing publications and preparing the programs for this day. The State Commission for the Organization of Grigore Vieru’s Funeral consists of: Head of Parliament Marian Lupu, Minister of Health Larisa Catrinici, president of the Writers Union Mihai Cimpoi, Mayor General of Chisinau Dorin Chirtoaca, president of the Academy of Sciences Gheorghe Duca, mayor of Pererata village of Briceni district Victoria Migalcean, presidential adviser Viorelia Moldovan-Batranac, Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Ion Munteanu, head of the Government’s Apparatus Mihail Pop, Minister of the Interior Gheorghe Papuc, Deputy Prime Minister Victor Stepaniuc, Minister of Education and Youth Larisa Savga, president of the national public broadcaster “Teleradio-Moldova” Valentin Toderacan. Taking into account the wish of Grigore Vieru’s family, the State Commission decided to put the body of the poet in the National Opera House for farewell. The funeral will take place on January 20 starting at 9.00. The body will be buried at the central cemetery situated on Armeneasca Street in Chisinau. Ziarul de Garda has announced that the body of Grigore Vieru will be brought to Saint Teodora de la Sihla Church on Monday afternoon. Bishop Ioan Ciuntu said that everyone is welcome to bid farewell to the poet. Those that will want could leave a message in memory of the bard in the Memory Book.  [Grigore Vieru passed away] [2009-01-18] Grigore Vieru departed this life as a result of a cardiac arrest on Sunday night at 01.20. The poet suffered from cardiovascular, renal-hepatic and respiratory insufficiency, Minister of Health Larisa Catrinici has said. According to the minister, the poet had been in a critical condition during the 48 hours after the car accident. “We hoped in a miracle, but it did not come. The doctors held three councils and consulted their colleagues in Bucharest and Frankfurt, but the trauma was too serious and nothing could be done.” The death of the poet as a result of cardiac arrest was also confirmed by Aurel Grosu, the first vice director of the Institute of Cardiology. “A progressive cardiac insufficiency was ascertained at 1.00. Unfortunately, the resuscitation measures did not produce results and the poet died.” It is not yet known when and where the poet will be buried. Grigore Vieru was born in 1935 in a peasant family in Pererata village of Briceni district. In 1957, while a student, he made his editorial debut with a poetry book for children titled "Alarma" (“The Alarm”), which was appreciated by literary critics. The volume of lyric poems "Numele tau" (“Your Name”) with a preface by Ion Druta published in 1968 marked a turning point in the poet’s destiny. Literary critics described the books as the most original collection of poems. In the same year, it began to be studied at the national contemporary literature university courses. In 1973, Grigore Vieru crosses the Prut as part of a delegation of Soviet writers. He returned to Chisinau with a sack of books. Later, the poet confessed: “Some people dream of flying into the cosmos, but my dream was to cross the Prut.” In 1978, the poet became a laureate of Moldova’s State Prize for the collection of poems “Un verde ne vede” (“A Green Sees Us”). In 1980, he started to cooperate with Doina and Ion Aldea-Teodorovici. There is produced a film about Grigore Vieru “Aproape” (“Close”). In 1982, the musical film for children “Maria Mirabela” by the prominent director Ion Popescu Gopo was released. The music was written by Eugen Doga, while the texts for the songs by Grigore Vieru. In 1988, he was awarded the “Andersen” Diploma of Honor of the International Board on Books for Young People. In 1991, he was honored with the Top Prize “Hercules” for literature. For special contribution towards the assertion of the ideals of national unity, he was awarded the prize of “Romanul” publishing house for 1990. In 1992, he was conferred the honorary title “People’s Writer of Moldova” and awarded the prize of “Europa” journal for his realistic position on national unity. The Romanian Academy proposed him for the Nobel Peace Prize. He was honored with the international prize for poetry “Lucian Blaga”. In 1994, he won the Special Prize of the Writers Union of Moldova for “Albinuta” – the book for Romanian preschool children from everywhere. In 2000, he was awarded Romania’s Governmental Medal “Eminescu. 150 Years of the Birth” and the Diploma and Trophy of the “Romania — 2000” Foundation. In 2005, the Chisinau Teacher Training University “Ion Creanga” conferred on him the title of Doctor Honoris Causa. On January 16, 2009, the poet was involved in a road accident. He was taken to the Emergency Hospital in Chisinau, where he died 48 hours later.  [Vieru's doctors: There are risks at any moment] [2009-01-17] Grigore Vieru is still critical as doctors promise an update on his condition by 6:00 PM, when the poet will have undergone a series of medical exams, Info-Prim Neo reports. “There are risks at any moment. Affected are the brain, the thorax and the abdomen, at rather high levels of severity”, said Emergency Hospital head Grigore Ciobanu Saturday afternoon. “The positive signs that we managed to obtain starting at 1:00 PM on Friday seem to persist. The blood circulation has stabilized, the kidneys are working properly and the treatment goes on”, added Ciobanu. The doctor denied rumors that last night Grigore Vieru suffered a third heart attack. Ciobanu said the hospitalization and treatment costs are fully covered by the government. “The assistance offered by the Romanian authorities is not needed at this point. The hospitalization conditions for Grigore Vieru are adequate and meet the European standards”, Ciobanu assured. The 73-year-old poet Grigore Vieru was hospitalized with severe injuries after a car accident in the early-morning hours of Friday. Police blamed the accident on bad weather and high speeds.  [Vieru's condition remains critical, but blood circulation stabilized] [2009-01-17] The condition of 73-year-old poet Grigore Vieru, badly injured in a car accident, remains critical, but his blood circulation and renal function have stabilized during this night, raising hopes for recovery. He is still connected to an artificial ventilation device, Info-Prim Neo reports. On Friday at 8:00PM an extended council of doctors, including Romanian specialists, gathered to establish a treatment strategy for Vieru. In the morning, the Romanian doctors returned to Bucharest, leaving Vieru in the custody of the Moldovan Center for Emergency Medicine, as the condition of the patent was deemed too serious to allow his transportation to Romania. After the council gathered again in the morning at 9:00 AM, Grigore Ciobanu, the head of the the Emergency Center, said Vieru's state of health remained very serious, but his blood circulation and renal function have normalized. Ciobanu also said that the condition of Gheorghe Munteanu, the man who was behind the wheel when the accident occurred, and also a friend of Vieru, is stable, but unlike the poet, he is conscious. Grigore Vieru was admitted to the intensive care section of the Emergency Center after being badly injured in a car accident in the early-morning hours of Friday on a national road some 10 kilometers from Chisinau. Police blamed the accident on bad weather and high speeds, but proper investigation results are not available yet. The poet suffered multiple injuries, including head trauma and cardiac contusion, which drove him into a coma while in hospital. A long heart disease record and his age aggravate his condition.  [Vieru's condition remains critical as Romanian doctors rush to Chisinau to help] [2009-01-16] The condition of the renowned Moldovan poet Grigore Vieru remains very serious after he was injured in a car accident last night. A team of doctors from Bucharest are bound for Chisinau to help save the poet's life as a council of local specialists are on permanent vigil at the Chisinau Emergency Hospital. “When the Romanian specialists arrive, we will form a council together”, Emergency Hospital GM Grigore Ciobanu told Info-Prim Neo. The Moldovan doctors also phoned a professor in Cluj for advice. The patient's treatment is revised once in two hours, but his organism seems to be unresponsive. 73-year-old Vieru is still in coma, but there are hopes for recovery. “It is too early. These are the first 24 hours after a very serious trauma. We are now fighting to stabilize vital bodily functions”, said Ciobanu. The condition of the driver, Gheorghe Munteanu, is stable. Unlike his friend, Munteanu is conscious but also badly injured. The car accident occurred last night at around 1:30AM some 10 kilometers from Chisinau as Vieru and Munteanu were returning home from a trip to southern Moldova. Bad weather coupled with high speed caused Munteanu to lose steering control over his Opel Astra, which ran into an obstacle at an intersection. Police are working on the case to establish all the circumstances.  [Vieru is critical, doctors] [2009-01-16] Poet Grigore Vieru is now in critical condition after being injured in a car crash last night. “Doctors are fighting for his life, but his condition is very serious”, Grigore Ciobanu, general manager of the Chisinau Emergecy Hospital, has told Info-Prim Neo. Vieru is connected to an artificial ventilation device and a commission of doctors from across Moldova has been gathered up to supervise his treatment, he added. As a result of the accident, 73-year-old Vieru suffered multiple injuries, including head trauma, brain contusion, thoracic trauma, cardiac and lung contusion, and contusion of the abdominal organs. Vieru's heart disease record, which includes two heart attacks, aggravates his condition. The poet was admitted to the Emergency Hospital around 1:55 AM, after the car he was traveling in smashed into a decorative structure at an intersection near Ialoveni town, some 15 kilometers from Chisinau. According to Eleonora Tcaci, head of the Ialoveni emergency station, an ambulance was called to the scene at around 01:25 AM. The poet was inside the car. He seemed confused, complained of headaches and his face was bleeding from wounds caused by pieces of broken glass from the windshield. The car's driver was not hospitalized. The two were returning to Chisinau after a trip to southern Moldova. Grigore Vieru is perhaps the most popular Moldovan poet alive, mostly known for his poems and books for children. Vieru has been married to Raisa Vieru since 1959, they have two sons, Teodor and Calin.  [Poet Vieru in intensive care after car crash] [2009-01-16] Renowned Moldovan poet Grigore Vieru was admitted last night to the intensive care section of the Chisinau Emergency Hospital following a car crash near Ialoveni town, about 15 kilometers from Chisinau, Info-Prim Neo reports. The accident occurred after the car Vieru was traveling in crashed into a decorative structure at an intersection, it was reported. According to Dr. Eleonora Tcaci, head of the Ialoveni emergency station, an ambulance was called to the scene at around 01:25 AM. The poet was inside the car. He seemed confused, complained of headaches and his face was bleeding from wounds caused by fragments of broken glass from the windshield. The poet was diagnosed with head trauma, brain concussion and multiple facial wounds. The car's driver, Gheorghe Munteanu, deputy head of the folk dance ensemble Joc, was not hospitalized, but doctors do not rule out the possibility that complications may appear later. The two were returning to Chisinau after a trip to southern Moldova. The accident is investigated by the Road Police. Grigore Vieru is perhaps the most popular Moldovan poet alive, mostly known for his poems and books for children. Vieru has been married to Raisa Vieru since 1959, they have two sons, Teodor and Calin.