The Misija Sibiras (Mission Siberia) Expedition Comes to the Museum 2017 expedition members to reveal oral history about Lithuanian deportees at the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture

This year, during the “Mission Siberia ’17” (“Misija Sibiras ’17” ) expedition, members viewed, among other things, decorated crosses with 9 Lithuanian folk art suns in Irkutsk, Siberia, one thousand kilometers from Lithuania. Siberian locals shared stories and oral histories about Lithuanians that were exiled to the region.

The “Mission Siberia” expedition takes place yearly, traveling to Siberian locations of Lithuanian exile. There, expedition members meet with Lithuanians who still live in the regions and restore abandoned and neglected cemeteries. Upon returning home to Lithuania, program participants share their experiences and newly acquired Lithuanian spirit in Lithuanian schools, institutions, organizations and meeting places.

Information from this year’s expedition will be shared on November 2, 2017 at 7:00 at the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture, 6500 S. Pulaski Rd. Chicago, Illinois 60629. The “Mission Siberia ’17” photography collection will be available for viewing. History will be revealed, not only by the photos on view, but also with presentations of the “Mission Siberia ’17” expedition members, who will share information about the trip as well as their experiences and emotions about the journey. Among the expedition members, also present, will be charity support foundation “For Youth” (“Jauniems”) director Raminta Kezelyte and the long term expedition leader Arnoldas Fokas.

Translation by Daiva Valeria Karuza