Many thanks to the many members who were able to attend our annual meeting on October 5th. It was a hugely successful get-together, as so much was accomplished. Very stimulating and productive ideas, input and suggestions were shared by those in attendance. We look forward to exploring them further for implementation. It was fascinating to hear from Vaida Holwager, Tara Barauskas, Tanya Barauskaite-Dorff and Giedra Kiskis share their experiences visiting many of the places we support in Lithuania. Their heartfelt stories of interacting with the children, elderly, and Ukrainian refugees brought smiles to our faces and tears to our eyes.
On this Valentine’s Day, we are pleased to share a few greetings from the kids in Lithuania filled with love and gratitude for your support. Thank you for opening your hearts to the children, elderly and Ukrainian refugees in need. We hope you feel the love that is being sent your way today!
From St. John’s Home for Children:
Dear Daughters of Lithuania LA,
Love brings us together and makes us strong. We are grateful to have you all in our lives. Wishing you a beautiful Valentine’s Day!
With warmest wishes / Šilčiausi linkėjimai,
The big family of “Šv. Jono vaikai” and Rita
From Sodžiaus Meistrai Trade School:
Dear Daughters of Lithuania LA,
If we were together, we would sit around the table, sharing love and our thoughts. A prayer—this is what we send to you now, across seas and oceans. And the prayer is quite simple:
‘With love, through love, and with faith – in daily moments, on special days, and in every heartfelt dream”.
Jei būtume šalia, meile ir jaukiomis mintimis dalintis sėstume prie stalo. Maldą, štai ką siunčiame jums dabar, per jūras ir vandenynus. O malda skamba itin paprastai:
„Meilėje, su meile ir paskui tikėjimą, kasdieniuose darbuose, šventinėje dienoje ir kiekvienoje nuoširdžioje svajonėje“.
This year was filled with love and support. Please enjoy this video of our visit to Lithuania this past summer, which shows where your donations go and who benefits. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Sharing memories from our Kūčios 2024 fundraiser. Thank you for being a part of this work of love. Without the support of our donor community, we would not be able to provide services to those in need in Lithuania. We appreciate your ongoing commitment. You are a vital part of the successes we achieve.
What a difference a donation makes…you fill hearts with hope!
Many thanks to all of you for your support and participation in this year’s hugely successful Lithuanian Days Fair! We appreciate you!
We are grateful to our new Consul General, Sandra Brikaitė, for taking the time to visit with us and bring joy and laughter to our booth.
A special shout-out to these members…
Audra Dabšyte and Aida Merrill who had the difficult task of setting up the booth.
Ida Dambrauskiene kicked off the start of the weekend graciously representing our organization.
Dalia Teti, Angele Vaičiakauskiene, and Sigute Miller for their warmth and welcoming of all the guests who stopped by.
Mykolas Andrulis for his expertise in getting donations and modeling the juostas!
Patricia Wright for manning the booth and hanging in there during the sweltering part of Sunday.
Tara Barauskas and Tanya Dorff for their commitment to our mission and selling tickets to our Kūčias event.
Vale Ruzgys for donating amber works of art and Lithuanian handmade Christmas ornaments, Dalia Teti for her hand-crocheted “Smiley Faces” which the kids just loved, and Audrone Kazlauskiene for donating mushroom bouillon cubes from Lithuania. All these gifts brought in a lot of donations…thank you ladies!
Also, a big thanks to Giedra Kiskis who showed up exactly when needed to knock down the booth.
And, of course, much gratitude to Vaida Holwager (working tirelessly and contributing constantly), Patricija Jocas (handling all the secretarial duties and providing the yearly binders documenting our work), and Vaida and Al Mikuckis (keeping our accounting and finances in order) for their continued commitment to our organization and mission.
We look forward to working together again toward the Kūčias Fundraiser on December 15th and hope to see you at our annual meeting on October 13th.
Vaida, Pat, Tanya and Darija toured the Šilo facilities with Lilija Markevičiene and Sigita Bajerčiūte. The amazing staff here offer educational programs for kids with special needs, affording them a bright future. Your donations help with their mission and also provide them with the ability to take excursions beyond the school. The children just returned from a retreat at the beach where they experienced much joy in new sights, smells, and touch.
Sharing a letter and pics from Sodžiaus Meistrai Trade School) 📫💌 •
Dear, DAUGHTERS OF LITHUANIA LA,
In this letter, I’m taking a moment to express our sincere gratitude for your thoughtfulness, generosity, and care for the students of “Sodžiaus Meistrai“.
The twentieth batch of students was just as important as the first, but five times larger. The celebration was a joy with its hustle, the Holy Mass, and the opportunity to pray once more for our community, graduates, and benefactors.
Thanks to you, we not only presented the young people with their diplomas but also with gifts related to their professions.
With all the gratitude from our team. Sincerely yours,
The Daughters of Lithuania LA visited Mamų Unijos Šeimos Namai yesterday with Birute Vizgirdiene and Vin Karnila. So inspired by the work they do to support cancer patients’ families in need by providing patient and caregiver housing and wellness therapy. Please visit their website to donate to their mission – https://mamuunija.lt/
