The Croatian Ambassador Kolinda Grabar – Kitarovic opened the Croatian Center in Clearwater, near Tampa, in Florida. At the opening ceremony were more than 150 members of the Croatian Club of Tampa Bay and their guests, as well as the representative of the National Association of Croatian Americans Mr. Zvonko Labas.
In her remarks, Ambassador Grabar – Kitarovic talked about the active role that Americans of Croatian origin have been playing in promoting the interest of the Republic of Croatia in the USA and in preservation of their Croatian identity, and invited them to work more closely and intensively with the Croatian Embassy.
“Together we have changed the image of the Republic of Croatian the eyes of American citizens, and that is our joint success”, the Ambassador emphasized.
The Croatian Club of Tampa Bay gathers around 300 Americans of Croatian origin. The President of the Club is Ms. Ljubica Simunovic. The construction of the Center began by mid 2008, as a result of the efforts of the Community to have a place where its members can gather together.