Final piece from Draugas

[I posted Gita's comments from the funeral already, but below is the adaptation as published in Draugas.]

In the fall of 1990, when Darius Kuolys (then Minister of Education in the newly re-established republic of Lithuania) approached Jūrate Krokyte Stirbiene and Vaiva Vėbra Gust for their assistance, he envisioned that they would organize a few retired Lithuanian American educators to share their expertise with the teachers of Lithuania. Little did he know what he was about to ignite.

Jūrate, experienced in the field of special education, immediately turned her attention to work in that area. Vaiva took on the administrative task of establishing a grassroots organization, which included Americans from the United States and Canada, not all of them of Lithuanian heritage. Some, indeed, were retired educators while many were still practicing professionals. The inspired name, A.P.P.L.E.—the American Professional Partnership for Lithuanian Education—came from Vaiva‘s husband, Jim Gust. There was a lengthy equivalent name in Lithuanian, but it never caught on. Right from the beginning, the people of Lithuania did their best to pronounce A.P.P.L.E.

What exciting times those were, sitting around the dining room table in the Vėbra-Gust home, brainstorming, strategizing, working for a cause. We worked out ways to do fundraising. We established a newsletter to get our message out to the wider public. Deep down we knew that our efforts were important; we could make a difference in the education of the children of Lithuania and, therefore, in the future of the whole country.

Vaiva guided A.P.P.L.E. through the first eight years before assuming a position as Vice-minister of Education in Lithuania. Before she stepped down, Vaiva had the good sense to choose a capable successor, Emilija Sakadolskiene. In her turn, Emilija had the foresight to work out a process for insuring continued leadership for A.P.P.L.E. down to the present day with Barbara Henriques currently serving as president.

Over the years 28,000 teachers in Lithuania have attended A.P.P.L.E. courses. That is about 47%, almost half, of the teachers in Lithuania. Through our efforts fifty-nine teacher centers have been established throughout the country to support teachers all year long, not just when the A.P.P.L.E. summer seminars are running. A Lithuanian Scholars Fund was founded, and to date seventy-six teachers in Lithuania have been funded to do further research on topics that have been presented by A.P.P.L.E.

Those who have participated will readily tell you that being part of A.P.P.L.E. is a life-altering experience, and not just for the educators of Lithuania but for all of us involved in organizing and presenting to our colleagues in Lithuania as well. We all have very special memories of A.P.P.L.E. to share. We have become a family.

Although she took on other tasks over the years, Vaiva never really left us. When she served in the ministry or later as advisor to President Adamkus, Vaiva always kept contact with A.P.P.L.E. and shared with us her vision of what was important for Lithuanian education. In fact, when Vaiva went into remission after her first bout with breast cancer, she assumed the role of A.P.P.L.E. president again and organized the 2005 summer seminars. As recently as this past August, 2008, Vaiva attended the officers meeting to lend her support for the work of A.P.P.L.E.

I will be honest with you. It wasn‘t always easy working with Vaiva. She was demanding. Those of us who worked closely with her understood that she was passionate—one might even say driven—when it came to working for educational reform in Lithuania. Now that Vaiva is no longer with us, the A.P.P.L.E. family is exchanging condolenscences. As people write about Vaiva, they are using words like inspiring and guiding light. Luminary and visionary. We know that in a very real way Vaiva‘s guidance will always be with us.

The A.P.P.L.E. family mourns with the Vėbra Gust family, with Vaiva‘s husband Jim, and their wonderful children Aras, Liepa, Lokys, and Sirvydas.

Gita Kupčinskienė