Ria sends us the souvenir photo as the Archie Vinitsky Awardee of 2023. She also writes:
Dear friends,
As promised I send you herewith the photo of myself and the AV award. It was really a great moment to receive this award!! Thanks very much!!
Warm greetings from a cold Netherlands,
Ria Smeijers.
Ria Smeijers is a native of The Netherlands and for her career chose to be a social worker, a choice that ultimately proved very beneficial to the ostomy world. In 1977, Ria had an ileostomy which was subsequently reverted to a continent ileostomy (Koch Pouch) in 1984. An active member of the Dutch Ostomy Association, Ria’s abilities were recognised, culminating in becoming President of that association and a board member of the Dutch Federation of Cancer Organisations. In 2006, to mark the 40 th Anniversary of the Dutch Ostomy Association, Ria was recognised by the Queen of The Netherlands in the highly prestigious Royal Order “Knight of the Order of Oranien’Nassau”. This high honour was in recognition of her tireless commitment to the Dutch Ostomy Association and her many other voluntary activities.
As President of the European Ostomy Association (EOA) from 2011-2017, Ria worked tirelessly for ostomates all over Europe, travelling to many countries to bring the needs of ostomates to the attention of the authorities. During her Presidency, the Gerhard Englert Fund was set up to support projects all over Europe and Africa.
Ria’s gentle nature and kindly attitude endeared her to everyone and her work in this sector has been greatly appreciated not only by her colleagues in EOA and IOA, but also by ostomy associations all over the world. The Archie Vinitsky Award is true recognition of a job well done by an inspirational lady!
By; Anne Demick 2023
