Philanthropist Henry Lazarus Gaidis honoured in Washington, Gediminas Vaitiekūnas also honoured for philanthropy
On 19 October, Henry Lazarus Gaidis, a collector and a member of the Lithuanian diaspora, was honoured in Washington, D.C., at the Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania to the United States of America. He was thanked for his philanthropy and he was presented with the Philanthropist’s Medallion of the City of Vilnius. Presenting the award, the Lithuanian Ambassador to the USA, Audra Plepytė, thanked the philanthropist for his many years of support for the Lithuanian Hall, home to Baltimore’s Lithuanian-American Community, as well as for his efforts to collect and preserve the rich history of Lithuanians in the USA and his unending passion for collecting items of significance to Lithuania and the stories behind them.
Before presenting the Philanthropist’s Medallion to the honouree, a video greeting recorded by Vilnius Mayor Valdas Benkunskas especially for the occasion was shown to the assembled guests. Friends and loved ones, a group of Lithuanian-Americans from the Washington-Baltimore area, and Gražina Michnevičiūtė, the Lithuanian cultural attaché in the USA, congratulated the philanthropist on receiving the award as well as on his approaching birthday, 20 October.
The Philanthropy Council, appointed by Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys, recommended to the Vilnius City Council that Gaidis be awarded the Philanthropist’s Medallion.
An active member of the Lithuanian-American Community and curator of the Lithuanian Hall-Museum in Baltimore, Gaidis donated to the National Museum of Lithuania a collection valued at nearly €359,000, consisting of a unique and extensive collection, assembled over more than 50 years, of military weaponry, accoutrements, and accessories as well as archival and written materials.
“The Museum often receives items donated by people. Such items become unique and one-of-a-kind exhibits. But the philanthropic phenomenon raises this to a whole other level. Instances where a collection accumulated over a lifetime are donated to the state are rare indeed, and in the case of Henry Gaidis – absolutely exceptional. Thanks to his endless sense of devotion, a part of Lithuania’s history was collected and preserved that our memory institutions would not have been able to preserve before the restoration of independence. It enriches our telling of history, and for this reason the Museum is extraordinarily grateful,” says Rūta Kačkutė, the General Director of the National Museum of Lithuania. “The collection donated by Henry Gaidis is one of the largest museum collections ever donated to Lithuania, second in size only to that of Kazys Varnelis, which, by the way, was also donated to the National Museum of Lithuania.”
After the award ceremony, Dr Jūratė Čerškutė delivered a lecture, “Contemporary Lithuanian Prose and its Geography: From Vilnius to...”, marking the 700th anniversary of the City of Vilnius. The cultural attaché helped make arrangements for the lecture.
At the recommendation of the Philanthropy Council, the title of Philanthropist of the City of Vilnius was also awarded to Gediminas Vaitiekūnas (Public Institution “GV muziejus”) for significant contributions to the Vilnius University Foundation. The Philanthropist’s Medallion was presented to him in March.
“Gediminas Vaitiekūnas has given a strong start to the establishment of endowment sub-funds for academic units at Vilnius University. It is a common practice that has proven itself over the years at the largest universities in the world, where the payouts from investment returns on donated funds are used for predetermined purposes set by the philanthropist. At the request of philanthropist Gediminas Vaitiekūnas, the VU Museum of Zoology Endowment Sub-fund received €180,000, the VU Museum Endowment Sub-fund received €60,000, and a further €60,000 was allocated to the general fund. The contribution is invested, and the payout from the investment return is used to fund the museums and academic talent,” says Vilnius University Foundation CEO Justinas Noreika. “Being an alumnus or alumna of Vilnius University takes on a vivid and impactful philanthropic form. We are grateful to Gediminas Vaitiekūnas, an alumnus of the VU Faculty of Physics, and to all the donors contributing to the VU Foundation, for their leadership, for the example they have shown, for their faith in the importance of higher education to development of the country. It is only a matter of time until we have the first Lithuanian philanthropic unicorn, so to speak.”
Photograph courtesy of the Embassy of the Republic of Lithuania to the USA
Last updated: 07-11-2023