East Coast

Legislation signed into law at the end of 2020 included several items relevant to the Baltic countries and the broader region. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (NDAA) and the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (FY21 Omnibus) had provisions for funding and policy that support Baltic and European...

Estonian American National Council (EANC) leadership recently took part in a video conference with the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires in Tallinn, Brian Roraff.    EANC President Marju Rink-Abel and Vice President Mai-Liis Bartling represented EANC, with Washington, DC Director Karin Shuey and Joint Baltic American National Committee (JBANC) Managing Director Karl...

Estonian Youth Spoke Up on Global Diaspora Day On November 28, Estonian Global Diaspora Day was celebrated with a live internet broadcast organised by Vabamu, the Museum of Occupations and Freedom in Tallinn.   Estonian Diaspora Day is celebrated as a moving holiday each year on the last Saturday of...

  Elmar Sepp was born on the island of Saaremaa in a free and independent Estonia in 1925.   The fifth of six children of Hindrik, a merchant marine, and Mari, a farmer and homemaker. After his father was imprisoned and killed by Soviet invaders at the outbreak of World...

It is just amazing how little it takes to give desperate people a little happiness.    In Estonia today, there are still many women and children whose only aim in life is to survive for another day.    Fantasy dreams consist of dolls, french fries, toys, enough food to eat,...

Foreign Ministry Conducting Global Survey of Estonians   The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is inviting all Estonians living abroad to participate in a survey in order to receive feedback on community involvement and satisfaction with consular services.   This is the first time such a survey has been conducted at...

  Widely known as the Grace Jones of the NYC a cappella scene, Lehho Rebassoo cast a large shadow wherever he went, mainly because he was very, very tall.   But there was more to him than his height— he was also very blond, and very Estonian.   Born on...

One in three women around the world have experienced violence at least once in their life.   This tragic percentage applies to women in Estonia, Canada and the United States.   Emergency women’s shelters offer temporary shelter and support to women and their children who have suffered psychological, physical or...

2020 Fall golf Winners – left M. Vahtra and right D. Sestrich.   The Estonian Amateur Athletic Association (Eesti Spordiliit USA) conducted its yearly fall golf gathering at Rob Ashford's Locust Valley golf course on Oct 10th.   16 players turned out to enjoy perfect golf weather for a 2-man...

August 6, 1961-October 7, 2020     On October 8, tearful phone calls and heartbreaking messages conveyed unimaginable news – Jyri Erik Kork had died from coronavirus at the mere age of 59.   For more than four decades, Jyri Erik was such an essential part of the Estonian cultural...