Meet Kimberly Kreiss, #BringTogetherLithuania Alumni ‘24, who interned at Invest Lithuania and decided to stay and work in Lithuania after the Bring Together Lithuania program.
Sveiki! I’m Kim, and I recently completed my Master’s in Public Affairs (MPA) from Princeton University, where I concentrated in Economics and Public Policy. Before that, I spent five years in Washington, DC working at the Federal Reserve. I’m from New Jersey originally, having completed my undergraduate degree in Economics at Rutgers University. This summer, I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to participate in Bring Together Lithuania and intern at Invest Lithuania.
I am a second-generation Lithuanian. My grandfather was from a small town in southwest Lithuania and my grandmother was from Poland. They met during the war, married, and came to the United States in 1949 through a displaced persons camp in Germany with their first child (my mom’s oldest sister, who was just a baby at the time). Though neither of my grandparents would ever see their home countries again, they both instilled in their children and grandchildren a deep love and respect for their homelands, especially Lithuania.
This part of my family history has always been deeply important to me and my family. My grandparents went on to have 8 kids (3 sets of twins!) and build a life in the United States. They preserved and shared the traditions of their home countries with their kids–my mom would talk fondly about the Lithuanian folk dancing she learned as a child. I have fond memories of big family gatherings and traditions of my grandparents’ homelands. But of course, times marches on, life gets busy, and as their kids went on to start their own lives and families in the U.S., connection to their home countries remained important but took a back seat. Still, we strongly value our Lithuanian heritage and many in my family, including myself, have returned to Lithuania previously.
For me, my family connection to Lithuania has always been very special. Because my grandparents came to the U.S. as a result of the war and never returned home, I have often lamented the loss of a stronger connection to Lithuania that comes with having to build a new life somewhere else.
Participating in Bring Together Lithuania has been a way for me to reconnect with this part of my family history, strengthen my ties to Lithuania, and see all the amazing changes that have taken place in Lithuania. Through the program, I was able to participate in Joninės celebrations in Kernavė, attend the 100th Dainų Šventė celebrations in Vilnius, and meet with policymakers and leaders in Lithuania. Having just finished my master’s, this last part has been especially interesting to me and really complements my previous education and professional experiences. Finally, I was fortunate to share these experiences with other Lithuanian diaspora from the U.S., Canada, Argentina, and the U.K. – it’s been truly such a wonderful and special opportunity and I am very grateful!
During her internship at Invest Lithuania, Kim learned about another program - Create for Lithuania. She participated in the selection process and was invited to participate, so she decided to stay in Lithuania.
"Bring Together Lithuania" is a unique summer internship and modern Lithuania discovery program for talented Lithuanian diaspora youth from around the world. The main goal of the program is to develop future leaders and young Lithuanian ambassadors, who during the summer gain not only professional knowledge but also rediscover their connection with their ancestral country, meet other Lithuanians from around the world, discover their Lithuanian identity, and learn about contemporary Lithuania.
Since 2018, the program has been initiated and sponsored by the Kazickas Family Foundation. The initiative has been supported since its inception by the Lithuanian Foundation based in the USA and entrepreneur Vladas Lašas. Since 2022, the program's development has been supported by the Ministry of Economy and Innovation and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Read more about the Bring Together Lithuania: www.bringtogether.lt
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