„I look upon you with gratitude for the fact that we are together today. And for the fact that, at one stage or another in our lives, we stood side by side – we worked, we fought for Lithuania’s freedom, and we built our own state,“ said Adamkus at the formal ceremony.
„I see the number ‘one hundred’ before my eyes, and I think: how history can influence a person’s life, and how a person can influence history. History had the greatest impact on my life in the middle of the last century. The Soviet, Nazi and then Soviet occupations showed us what we stand to lose. As a young man, I realised the value of freedom, and this became the foundation of my life. As far as I could, I strove to defend my own freedom, that of my nation and that of my country. In this struggle, I would have achieved nothing without you, without the people of Lithuania. Kazys Grinius, Gabrielius Žemkalnis, Vytautas Kavolis and Stasys Lozoraitis, along with countless other figures, guided me along the true path of values. The people with whom I have had, and continue to have, the privilege of interacting have been, and remain, my strength and my support,“ he added.
Furthermore, the head of state, whose term of office has ended, thanked the people of Lithuania.
„There has been a great deal. Successes and doubts, blows of fate and wonderful achievements. I did what I could. And today I look people in the eye with sincerity. Especially the young people, to whom I have asked: who, if not you? Who, if not you, will build the homeland of the future; who, if not you, will govern it on the foundations of freedom and democracy? Thank you to everyone who answers this question through their daily work. Thank you to everyone with whom we have walked and continue to walk the same path – the path of Lithuania. Thank you, dear and beloved people of Lithuania, for allowing me to be one of you,“ he said.
Indeed, Adamkus also remembered his wife, Alma Adamkienė, whom he called the greatest gift of fate.
„I cannot fail to mention Alma – the person who was the greatest gift from God and fate to me, with whom we have travelled a long road, one that spared us neither difficulties nor trials,“ said the president.
As the president took to the stage, the audience gathered at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre greeted him with applause and chants of „thank you“.
As reported by ELTA, Adamkus is celebrating his 100th birthday on Tuesday. To mark the occasion, a formal celebration will take place at the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre.
Adamkus was born on 3 November 1926 in Kaunas. During the war, he was involved in resistance activities. In July 1944, he fled with his parents to Germany, where, whilst studying at the Lithuanian Gymnasium in Eichstätt, he met his future wife, Alma.
He later studied at the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Munich. In 1949, he arrived in the USA and, in the 1970s, became actively involved in politics; he was invited to work for the newly established US federal environmental protection agency – the Environmental Protection Agency.
The future Lithuanian leader played an active role in the social and political life of the Lithuanian diaspora.
Adamkus was elected President of Lithuania in 1998 and 2004.