draugas

Lithuania: Image Breakers

By Linas Jegelevičius. From a distance, the three teenagers blend in almost perfectly with a crowd of students at a Catholic high school in the Lithuanian capital. Their very dark hair sets them apart from many of their classmates, but the strongest clue to their newcomer status is how they use …

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Lithuanian Songs on the Korean War Front

By VIKTORAS JAUTOKAS. A confluence of this summer’s Lithuanian song Festival in Chicago and ongoing news reports about North Korea rattling sabers at south Korea and America rekindled memories of my army service in the Korean war. In the trenches, I experienced the good, the bad and the ugly. Enemy artillery …

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Mysteries of the Night Sky: the Northern Lights in Lithuania

by Tadas Janušonis. The sky – an open treasure chest whose riches have been a source of wonder for mankind. Once the sun sets and darkness clutches the earth, thousands of clear sparkling gems adorn the sky. The stars have helped man to orient himself not only in place but …

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Diving German U-Boats Off the East Coast

Personal Memories of World War II, Lithuania, and the Lithuanian Diaspora By VALENTINAS RAUGAS. As a recreational New Jersey wreck diver for ten years, I had the opportunity to do two separate dives on german u-Boat 853. This wreck was a german electric submarine which was sunk on the East …

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Winning the Silver and the Respect : Team LT, Eurobasket 2015

by Neal Maloney. This year Lithuania gave another strong showing at the Eurobasket, bringing home national pride with a silver medal for the second time in a row. At the last Eurobasket in 2013, Lithuania also took the silver medal. The team this year was a little different than it …

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Springfield Lithuanians

By Sandy Baksys. Sandy Baksys’ new book “A Century of Lithuanians in Springfield, Illinois” is an extensive collection of individual family stories providing a personalized record of the experiences shared by thousands of immigrants who came to United States in the previous century. This is rediscovering of one’s roots on steroids. …

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Veronika Krausas-Driven to create music

By TADDES KORRIS. Lithuanian-Canadian composer Veronika Krausas is driven to create music that coalesces with other art forms. Be it film, dance, poetry and other mediums, it has been Krausas’ vision to link her music with the arts as a whole. Her relationships with leading figures in the realms of theater, …

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A Song Festival to Be Long-Remembered

by Rimas Cernius with photos by Jonas Kuprys and Arvydas Zabulionis Lithuanian song festivals in North America are special and rare events. The first one took place in Chicago’s Coliseum in 1956. This year the 10th Lithuanian Song Festival took place at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago on July 5th. …

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Once in a Lifetime!

By DALIA CIDZIKAITĖ. The title of this article is not an allusion to the Talking Heads song from 1980 “Once in a Lifetime,” which is included in the list of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.” I heard these words from Daniela Šablinskas, …

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Lithuania Under the Big Sky

By CECELIA LANKUTIS.   When one considers Lithuanian American communities in the United States, ethnic enclaves in cities such as Chicago, New York and Boston come to mind. I too can claim part of my heritage from Chicago, since that is where my mother grew up and where all of …

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