The second Kupres evening brought together numerous generations of Kuprešaks from Slavonia and Baranja in the Gardens grand hall, where 360 Kuprešaks gathered. The event was organised by the Association of Kuprešaks of Slavonia and Baranja, which has held such a large gathering for the second time in less than two years of existence.
The surprise guest was Stjepan Jeršek Štef, who performed the song Sve poštivam, svoje uživam (I respect everything, I enjoy my own). This year’s evening also featured a performance by Boris Šilija, a raffle and a musical surprise.
Marin Rebrina, president of the Association of Kuprešaks of Slavonia and Baranja, belongs to the second generation of Kuprešaks in Slavonia and visits Kupres three to four times a year. The association, founded in 2024, brings together approximately 200 members. According to Rebrina’s estimates, around 10,000 people of Kupres origin live in Slavonia and Baranja, though there are no precise data on this number. The largest waves of migration occurred after the Second World War and during the 1970s and 1980s.
Hrvoje Barišić, a member of the association’s executive board, was born in Osijek, while his father moved from Kupres in the 1960s, arriving with four siblings. Barišić is from the Cvjetno Naselje neighbourhood and travels to Kupres at least two to three times a year. He passes his love for Kupres on to his son, who is not yet seven years old.
Danko Jurič, mayor of the Kupres municipality, attended the Kupres evening for the second consecutive year. His grandparents moved to Slavonia, and his mother was born in Osijek. Ivan Radić, mayor of Osijek, also attended the evening, while Nataša Tramišak, county prefect of Osijek-Baranja County, emphasised the importance of preserving identity and intergenerational connection.
The Association of Kuprešaks of Slavonia and Baranja organises book presentations, such as Ružica Hrnjkaš’s Kupreški spomenar (Kupres Memorial), trips to Kupres and commemorations of important dates in the history of the Kupres region.
