Announcements

Makabi Members Invited to Sporting Tournament

Makabi Members Invited to Sporting Tournament

Dear Makabi members,

The Lithuanian Makabi Athletics Club will host a mini-Maccabiah Games event from 12 noon to 4:00 P.M. on June 16 at the Lithuanian Educology University, Studentų street no. 39, Vilnius. Badminton competitions will be held at the A. Puškinas School at Gabijos street no. 8 in Vilnius. Your local teams are invited to compete in:

Indoor soccer (7 players plus coach)
Three-on-three basketball (5 players plus coach)
Volleyball (9 players plus coach)
Table tennis (men’s and women’s)
Chess (men’s, women’s)
Badminton (men’s, women’s)

Rules for the competition will be set following determination of exact numbers of teams and players in different sports.

Please send an application by e-mail to makabilita.duskes@gmail.com by June 14.
For more information, call 8 698 19999

Michailas Duškesas, executive director

Jewish Influences in the Life of Russian Poetess Anna Akhmatova

Jewish Influences in the Life of Russian Poetess Anna Akhmatova

The Lithuanian Jewish Community will host an event dedicated to celebrating the 130th birthday of the Russian poetess Anna Akhmatova and discussing Jewish influences in her life. The event will take place at the LJC beginning at 1:00 P.M. on June 5. At least five speakers will present various topics. A screening of a film about Isaiah Berlin will punctuate the program of speakers, with a discussion with the audience following the last speaker. The event is expected to be held mainly in Russian.

Creative Activity

Creative Activity

The Ilan and Dubi Clubs of the Lithuanian Jewish Community are holding a creative activity at the Artistic Village traditional arts and crafts center in the Bebrusai village in the Molėtai region from 10:45 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. on Sunday, May 26. Registration is open till May 24. Transportation from the Community to the village and back will be provided. Call Sofja at +370 601 46656 or send an email to sofja@lzb.lt

Lag B’Omer Celebration

Lag B’Omer Celebration

A celebration of the Jewish holiday of unity Lag B’Omer will be held in Galgiai in the Vilnius region at 6:00 P.M. on May 23. The event includes music, a barbecue, activities for kids, a trampoline, face painting and archery.

Those who register before 12 noon on May 23 will be provided transportation. Please call 8 68508550 or write rabbi@jewishlita.com to register or for directions.

The bus will leave from the back of the Choral Synagogue in Vilnius, the side facing Plačioji street.

Eurovision at the Bagel Shop Café

Eurovision at the Bagel Shop Café

Come watch the semifinals in the Eurovision song contest at the Bagel Shop Café in the Lithuanian Jewish Community. We’re rooting for Jurijus Veklenko. This year the contest is being held in Israel and we’ll be watching live, with a bar and Israeli snacks.

The fun starts at 8:30 P.M. on May 16 at Pylimo street no. 4 in Vilnius.

German Translation of Markas Petuchauskas’s Book at Lithuanian Embassy Berlin

German Translation of Markas Petuchauskas’s Book at Lithuanian Embassy Berlin

The German translation of Markas Petuchauskas’s book “The Price of Concord” (Der Preis der Eintracht) will be presented at the Lithuanian embassy in Berlin May 15. The event will be moderated by theater director Gregorij H. von Leitis who is known for his work presenting and promoting Jewish culture. Von Leitis has Litvak roots.

This is not the first presentation of Petuchauskas’s book in Germany. Back in March it made a splash at the Leipzig International Book Fair with well-known personalities leading a panel discussion about the Litvak drama critic’s main work published originally in English.

Musical Evening “The Sounds of Music and Janusz Korczak”

Musical Evening “The Sounds of Music and Janusz Korczak”

Time: 5:30 P.M., May 15, 2019
Place: Central Library of the City of Vilnius

The Dr. Janusz Korczak Center and the Central Library of the City of Vilnius are pleased to invite you to an evening of music entitled Sounds of Music and Janusz Korczak.

Markas Volynskij and Marija Duškina will perform Yiddish songs.

Dr. Janusz Korczak Center director I. Belienė will be master of ceremonies.

Janusz Korczak’s real name was Henrik Goldshmit and was also known as Stary Doktor (Old Doctor) and Pan Doktor (Mr. Doctor). He was born in Warsaw on July 22, 1878, and died in August of 1942 at Treblinka. He was a doctor, teacher, writer, publicist and Jewish public figure. He was the originator of children’s rights and the idea that children should enjoy equal rights.

The Central Library of the City of Vilnius is located at Žirmūnų street no. 6 in Vilnius.

Suicide Prevention Workshop safeTALK May 23, 2019

Suicide Prevention Workshop safeTALK May 23, 2019

The public health unit of the Vilnius municipality invites the public to attend a workshop called safeTALK on suicide prevention to teach people how to recognize the signs of someone in crisis and how to react appropriately to suicidal behavior.

The workshop will be held from 2 to 6:00 P.M. on May 23, 2019, at the Lithuanian Jewish Community located at Pylimo street no. 4 in Vilnius. Speakers include Vaiva Juškevičiūtė and Giedrė Putelytė. Note the workshop will run for four hours with a break.

This is a Lithuanian adaptation of the safeTALK suicide prevention program created by the LivingWorks Education organization. It is constantly updated based on global academic studies and practical experience in the field of suicide prevention. The workshops are conducted by a team of specialists trained and certified by LivingWorks Education. For more information on the workshops, see http://www.vvsb.lt/mokymai-ir-renginiai/ in Lithuanian and https://www.livingworks.net/programs/safetalk/ in English.

The workshop is accredited by the Lithuanian Health Protection Ministry and is financed by the city of Vilnius. Those completing the workshop will be issued an international certificate. Prior registration is required and space is limited. Register here: http://www.vvsb.lt/savizudybiu-prevencija/

Ilan Club Invites Children to Another Animation Workshop

Ilan Club Invites Children to Another Animation Workshop

The Ilan Club invites children to another animation workshop this Sunday, May 12, at 1:30 P.M., at the Ilan Club on the second floor of the Lithuanian Jewish Community at Pylimo street no. 4 in Vilnius.

Registration is required. Send an email to sofja@lzb.lt or call 8 601 46656

We will create scenes for an animated film. We will draw, move and film and use this material to create animated characters. The children themselves will be the main characters in the cartoon.

Hebrew and English Summer Day Camp for Children

Hebrew and English Summer Day Camp for Children

The Hebrew and English summer day camp in Vilnius is a summer camp for younger children where they will receive fun lessons and get a chance to use their knowledge of the Hebrew and English languages, to play with people their own age and dive into the wonderful and enthralling world of learning.

It is for children aged 6 to 11. The camp will run from 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. from June 10 to 14.

Children will engage in four academic hours of Hebrew and English activities in the morning. According to age and level of proficiency, language group activities will work on all four aspects of language acquisition: listening, reading, writing and speaking.

Activities and excursions in the afternoon are oriented towards fostering creativity and learning about the social and cultural environment. Children will be guided by camp leaders at the creative workshops in carrying out creative tasks.

Snacks, lunch and excursions are included in the cost for the camp.

For more information and to register, contact Ruth at +37068689530.

Public Announcement of Convocation of Lithuanian Jewish Community Reporting and Elections Conference

The Lithuanian Jewish Community, corporation code 190722117, will hold a reporting and elections conference at the Lithuanian Jewish Community at Pylimo street no. 4, Vilnius, at 12 noon on May 28, 2019.

Agenda:

1. Election of LJC conference chair and secretary;
2. Adoption and confirmation of independent audit of LJC and financial report for 2018;
3. Confirmation of report on LJC activities for 2018;
4. Election of LJC executive board.

Representatives (delegates) of LJC association members are invited to attend the conference. More detailed material on the planned conference is available for viewing at the LJC at Pylimo street no. 4, Vilnius.

For more information write info@lzb.lt or call (8 5) 261 3003.

LJC Statement on Adolfas Ramanauskas

LJC Statement on Adolfas Ramanauskas

The Lithuanian Jewish Community in response to a difference of opinion regarding a monument commemorating Adolfas “Vanagas” Ramanauskas unveiled in Chicago underlines our support for the struggle by the Lithuanian nation for an independent Lithuanian state. The LJC does not question making monuments to honor those who fought for Lithuanian freedom so long as the facts don’t testify to more controversial facts implicating such fighters as Holocaust perpetrators. In the cases of Jonas Noreika, Krištaponis and Kazys Škirpa such facts are known. At the present time the LJC has no reliable information implicating Lithuanian partisan leader Adolfas Ramanauskas in Holocaust crimes.

Yom haShoah May 2

Yom haShoah May 2

For members who want to attend the Yom haShoah Holocaust commemoration on Thursday, May 2, in Ponar, a bus will leave the Lithuanian Jewish Community at 11:00 A.M. Registration is not required but there are only 45 seats.

Everyone is invited to attend a memorial concert at 6:00 P.M. at the LJC. Julija Sadaunykaitė on paino and Paulius Gefenas on flute will perform works by Ravel, Šenderovas, Mendelssohn, Debussy and Ibert.

Lithuanian Jewish Community Chairwoman Visits South African Litvak Community

Lithuanian Jewish Community Chairwoman Visits South African Litvak Community

Photo: Lithuanian Jewish Community chairwoman Faina Kukliansky visits the South African Jewish Museum in Cape Town

Lithuanian Jewish Community chairwoman Faina Kukliansky is currently visiting the largest Litvak community in exile, the South African Jewish community, from April 8 to 13.

Although the Community and chairwoman Kukliansky have long maintained close ties with Litvaks in the Republic of South Africa, this is the first official visit by the LJC.

In meetings with South African Litvaks scheduled for the morning of April 10 at the Johannesburg Holocaust and Genocide Centre, Kukliansky planned to discuss issues surrounding historical justice, restoration of Lithuanian citizenship and possible joint projects to celebrate 2020 as the Year of the Vilna Gaon and Jewish History in Lithuania.

Sacred Texts: The Story of the Talmud

Sacred Texts: The Story of the Talmud

Time: 6:00 P.M., April 4, 2019
Location: atrium, 5th floor, Lithuanian National Martynas Mažvydas Library, Gedimino prospect no. 51, Vilnius

The Sacred Texts of the World lecture series by the Philosophy Faculty of Vilnius University continues with a seventh lecture on the Talmud by Dr. Aušra Pažėraitė.

She will attempt to answer the questions of who the Talmudic sages were/are, what the structure of the Talmud is and what the special features of Talmudic discourse consist of.

The lecture is free and open to the public.

Saying Goodbye to Anatolijus Šenderovas

Saying Goodbye to Anatolijus Šenderovas

Lithuanian composer and conductor Anatolijus Šenderovas passed away in the US on March 25. His funeral will be held in Vilnius on Friday, March 29.

The funeral begins at 10:00 A.M. in the Jewish section of the Sudervės road cemetery in Vilnius, with speeches and burials starting at 11:30 A.M. (procession with seven stops according to Jewish tradition). A bus will be made available to ferry mourners to the cemetery leaving from Pylimo street no. 4 at 9:30 A.M.