The little girl from the stamp
Topic: Personalities from the Highlands
On 17 June 1928, a moment took place in Žďár that changed the life of three-year-old Eva Neugebauer forever. Dressed in a traditional costume, little Eva was lifted into the arms of President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk during his ceremonial visit associated with the laying of the foundation stone of the sokolovna. This moment was captured by a photographer in a picture that ten years later became the model for the Czechoslovak postage stamp and earned the immortal nickname "the little girl from the stamp". Eva, later married to Haňková, lived a dramatic life imbued with the ideals symbolised by the president who held her in his arms at the time. Her life's journey took her through two dictatorships - Nazi and Communist. In the 1950s, with a heavy heart, she decided to leave her native Highlands and set out for freedom in the United States of America. In her new country she faced the challenges of emigrant life. She became actively involved in the Czech community in the USA, fought for a better status for women and promoted education for all. She raised her children in two cultures and languages, preserving their Czech identity and the Sokol ideals of the "divine spark" in every person.
While her likeness in the costume of Kyjov travelled on letters around the world and became part of the Czechoslovak collective memory, the real Eva lived her life far from home, but never forgot her roots in the hills of Vysočina. In 2025, Eva Haňková will celebrate her 100th birthday and Žďár nad Sázavou has decided to honour its famous native with the tenth town award for a lifetime of spreading its good name. The story of the "little girl from the stamp" thus remains a living testimony to the turbulent Czechoslovak 20th century and proof that even in the smallest places of the Highlands, stories of world significance can take place.
Sources:
https://www.databazeknih.cz/knihy/holcicka-ze-znamky-544591
