On April 17, 2015, the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, on behalf of the State of Georgia, is hosting the annual State Official Observance “Days of Remembrance” in commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust and to honor survivors and liberators. The observance begins at 11:00 pm in the North Wing of the State Capitol. The 2015 Humanitarian Award will be presented to Eva Galambos.

Eva Galambos was the first mayor of Sandy Springs. She was elected in early November 2005 and served until November 2013. From 1975-2005, she was the president of the Committee for Sandy Springs which fought to incorporate the city. As mayor, she designed a model public/private partnership for city administration and the delivery of public services that has been recognized worldwide.

Eva was instrumental in bringing the exhibit Anne Frank in the World: 1929-1945 to Sandy Springs and has championed the mission of the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust for many years. In May 2013, she was appointed to the Commission’s board by House Speaker David Ralston.

Eva has a Ph.D. in economics from Georgia State University, a master's degree (M.A.) in labor and industrial relations from the University of Illinois, and a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) from the University of Georgia (1948).

She was recently named the 2014 Georgia State University Distinguished Alumna which is presented by the Georgia State Alumni Association each year to honor alumni who have become acknowledged leaders in their respective industries, significant contributors to the improvement of their communities and have shown a committed record of service to the university. She has also been recognized by the Andrew Young School’s Distinguished Alumni Awards for her prolific and impactful contributions in her field in 2011.

Eva also co-authored the popular text Making Sense out of Dollars: Economic Analysis for Local Government (National League of Cities, 1978), which is still used in classrooms today.

She is also a co-founder and former secretary of Sandy Springs Revitalization; founder of Sandy Springs Clean and Beautiful; chairwoman of services committee for the Sandy Springs Council of Neighborhoods; former chairwoman of the Fulton County Public Housing Authority; and founder of Sandy Springs Civic Roundtable.

Eva is married to Dr. John Galambos, a Holocaust survivor from Budapest, Hungary. In 1945, he was liberated from the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp by U.S. troops. The couple has three children and six grandchildren.