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was born on June 22, 1927 in Ljubljana, the capital
city of Slovenia. She was the daughter of Ana Cebulj
and Edvard Antosiewicz, a prominent businessman,
Olympic medalist, and ardent defender of
democracy. From her parents she acquired her fortitude,
her family values, and her fluency in five
languages. As a teenager, she endured the German
occupation during World War II but, to avoid the
Communist rule in post-war Yugoslavia, fled to
Trieste. There she worked as an interpreter for the
local government and did intelligence work for the
American government.
In Venice, Italy, she met and then married Captain
Clay A. Sloan, M.D., who helped her become
reunited with her parents. With her husband, she
moved to his native Arkansas in 1948 to start her
own family. She was devoted to her family, earning
her the nickname "Mama Bulba". Her greatest joy in
life was being a mother to her eight children, and she
encouraged her sons and her daughters to excel in their
chosen professions - whether pilot or plastic surgeon,
pastry chef or engineer. As her children grew, she
was active in church, school and civic projects, most
notably, her presidency of St. Joseph's Hospital
Guild in Hot Springs.
She opened her heart and hearth to young and old
alike and habitually put the welfare of others before
her own needs. Those who knew her saw her as an
intelligent and beautiful woman, full of life, who made
everyone feel both welcomed and wanted. Among her
most memorable expressions were "You can't pass
around democracy like it's a plate of fudge!" and
"Have you had anything to eat yet?"
On the evening of November 5, 2001, Ana Sloan left
this world and went waltzing with the Moon, so brightly
shining together in their dance across the heavens on that cool,
clear night.
She did not want anyone to mourn her death but to celebrate
her life as she did ours.
And she is most certainly missed.
Copyright 2001-2011 Barbara A. Sloan
Courtesy of AKAS II.
Ana (Cebulj) Antosiewicz - In Memoriam
Ana's Kitchen Art Services II - Barbara A. Sloan, BFA, JD
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