Lithuanian Family Explained

Rachela on her wedding

For the whole story about my Christmas break, check here.

In the early 1900s, my great grandmother Rachela moved to the United States from a small city in present day Lithuania called Vievus.   She had other siblings move to the U.S., but her brother Antanas stayed in Lithuania.  His son, Mecislovas, is the current patriarch of the Lithuanian family.   He my great grandmother's nephew and my grandfather’s first cousin.

Mecislovas has three children, Leokadija, Teodoras, and Regina.  When I was younger, Regina came to the US for two years and stayed with other family members in Ohio.  Seeing her is always amazing because she is so happy to see me!  It’s hard to say goodbye because she’s tears up easily.  Right now, she lives with her father, Mecislovas on a farm outside of Vievus (about 45 minutes from Vilnius).

Regina and Mecislovas

Mecislovas doesn’t just live on a farm, he lives on the farm pretty much the same way he lived there in the 1920s when he was born.  There isn’t a bathroom with running water…it’s a little chamber pot in an outhouse connected to the entry way.  And he still farms the land with a horse and plow, even at 86 years old.  This time, he kept telling me how his knees always hurt because he’s so old, but he’s in fantastic shape for almost 90 years old.  

Regina's son and grandkids

Saulius, the son of Regina, has two children.  Gabiya reminds me a lot of my cousin Jillian except for she’s very shy and won’t practice her English with me!  Her brother, Jonas, is also very quiet and I’ve never really talked to him much.   However, the last two times I was in Lithuania, Gabiya and I were

Teodoras has two children and four grandkids.  When I was in Lithuania for Easter 2010, his grandson Edvinas was an invaluable translator.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see them this visit because Edvinas was with his girlfriend’s family for Christmas.  Not entirely sure where the rest of the family was.  

Mecislovas’s third daughter, Leokadija, is the one I spend the most time with because I stay at her house in Elektranai.  It’s pretty much smack dab in the middle of Vilnius and Kaunas, the two major cities in Lithuania.  This trip was extra special because four months ago, because her daughter Rita had a beautiful little girl named Liepa!  I was also surprised with a visit from Leokadija’s other granddaughters, Rugile and Radvile.  The previous two trips, the girls were with their mother, not Renatas, my cousin and Leokadija’s son.