West Coast

Siim Sööt, Honorary Consul of Estonia in Chicago This is the first of three articles that explore where people of Estonian ancestry live in the United States. This article focuses on the number of individuals of Estonian ancestry (hereafter called US Estonians) and the recent change in that number. The...

The always beautiful and head-turning actress, who has for 30 years brought theatergoers into the Estonian Drama Theater, now brings the stories of her life to the audience quite openly and freely. The evening's program is not bound by any text or remarks written by the playwright, which the actress...

This article represents the first in a series of occasional notes to help our diaspora understand the types of companies coming out of Estonia and heading to the United States. Personally, it is an immensely fulfilling opportunity to bring my two native countries together and see both benefit. This first...

The Estonian TV Girls Choir (ETV Tütarlastekoor) started its USA tour in Stanford with two concerts with different programs: Estonian/folk/contemporary at Meyer Green and with a sacred music program at the very beautiful Memorial Church. The choir also performed at the Golden Gate International Choral Festival this week, with concerts...

The Estonian Society of Los Angeles is proud to announce the winners of the essay contest "The Importance of Community" for Middle and High School students. The contest was introduced earlier this year to encourage students to be actively thinking about their community and writing about it. The contest was...

On Saturday, July 8 at 5 PM, Stanford University Libraries hosts the Estonian Television Girls' Choir for an hour-long outdoor concert at Stanford (Meyer Green). The choir will perform classic Estonian pieces by Veljo Tormis, Cyrillus Kreek, Mart Saar, Pärt Uusberg, and Karin Kuulpak as well as a few surprise...

The San Francisco Bay Area Baltic community came together on June 4 to celebrate our friendship and our work together. The event was started in 2006 and includes traditional foods, kids' activities, sports, games, and folk dancing. Mai-Liis Bartling

On May 19, 2023, the Estonian American National Council (EANC) held a town hall for purposes of gathering input and ideas on the future of the beloved international Estonian festival known as ESTO. The event was held over Zoom, attended by approximately 75 Estonian Americans from across the USA, a...

There are many excellent refugee memoirs. Jaak Treiman’s “Carried by a Magic Fan: Memoir of an Estonian Refugee Family” expands that tradition by offering three perspectives of one family’s refugee journey. He then carries the story forward by chronicling refugee political activities that followed their settlement into new homes. During...

August 22, 1934 – May 11, 2023 Vello Ederma, 88, of Springfield, Virginia passed away on May 11, 2023, in his home surrounded by family. Vello was born on August 22, 1934, in Rakvere, Estonia to John (Juhan Hillar) and Klara (n. Vorteil) Ederma. He along with his parents and...