EVENTS

Brattleboro, Vermont, connected to the war in Ukraine through local activist and Honorary Lithuanian Consul Kerry Stromberg Secrest, and Christian Stromberg founder of Saxtons River Distiller, hosted the "Front Line Life Lines" benefit concerts at the Latchis Theater in early 2025 to raise funds for frontline medical kits containing critical trauma supplies like tourniquets and chest seals for the war zone.  They have supported Blue/Yellow USA's efforts for several years through local campaigns, together with a team of volunteers. Brattleboro lost one of its own, Andrew Mario, a 33-year-old combat medic who was killed in action in Ukraine on December 3, 2025, becoming the first reported Vermont casualty of Russia's war on Ukraine.

https://www.commonsnews.org/issue/852/852WWAC_Ukraine

 As a member of the American Coalition for Ukraine Blue/Yellow USA participates in at least one summit per year. The Ukraine Action Summit is a bi-annual event that unites individuals and organizations to learn, connect, and advocate for continued U.S. support of Ukraine’s defense, recovery, and democratic future.

The Summit provides a unique opportunity for participants from across the United States to exchange knowledge, share successful advocacy strategies, and engage in educational discussions about Ukraine’s current challenges and global significance. Through meetings with elected officials, delegates help ensure that policymakers remain informed about why sustained U.S. support is critical to Ukraine’s victory and long-term stability.

Organized twice a year by the American Coalition for Ukraine (ACU), the Summit offers a dynamic platform for expert panels, cultural and networking events, and coordinated advocacy efforts. With each gathering, the ACU strengthens a growing grassroots movement—most recently welcoming over 700 delegates from all 50 states to the Spring 2026 Summit.

 Harmony for Hope: A Ukrainian Aid Concert
Blue / Yellow for Ukraine USA and the Ukrainian Daughters Foundation both dedicated 501(c)(3) charities, organized an evening of powerful music and critical fundraising at Harmony for Hope: A Ukrainian Aid Concert!

Guests experienced the captivating sounds of KOZAK SIROMAHA live at the Chicago Grand Gallery.

Every note played supports a vital cause: ensuring Ukraine's defenders and civilians receive the non-lethal military, medical, and humanitarian aid they urgently need.

ttendance at such events makes a direct impact!
All proceeds fund essential aid delivered to Ukraine.

  The Atlantic Council’s Transatlantic Security Initiative, in partnership with the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Lithuania, organized the hybrid public conference, “From Ideas to Implementation: Priorities for NATO’s Vilnius Summit” May 5th, 2023.

A high-level, public NATO curtain raiser discussion. Its agenda included discussions on the key importance of NATO, reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank, :

Dr. Matthew Kroenig, Vice President and Senior Director, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Atlantic Council

H.E. Arvydas Anušauskas, Minister of National Defense, Republic of Lithuania  

H.E. Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense, Ukraine

Linas Kojala, Director, Eastern Europe Studies Centre
Samuel J. Brannen, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Plans and Posture in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (OUSDP), Department of Defense
The Hon. Rose Gottemoeller, Steven C. Házy Lecturer, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Center for International Security and Cooperation, Stanford University; Former Deputy Secretary General, NATO

Dr. Michael E. O’Hanlon, Senior Fellow, Director of Research, Foreign Policy, Brookings Institution

Rima Ziuraitis, Managing Director, Blue/Yellow USA

The Hon. Jeanne Shaheen, U.S. Senator (D-NH), US Senate
Amb. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Former U.S. Senator (R-TX), US Senate; Former US Ambassador to NATO
Frederick Kempe, President and Chief Executive Officer, Atlantic Council
Col Aurelijus Motiejūnas, Lithuanian Land Force, Commander, Lithuanian Land Force Infantry Brigade Iron Wolf
Lt Col Lars Neitzel, German Army, Commander, NATO Enhanced Forward Presence Multinational Battlegroup in Lithuania
Lt. Col. Jay Ireland, US Army, Commander, 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, U.S. Force Presence in Lithuania

General Philippe Lavigne, Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, NATO
Giedrimas Jeglinskas, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Transatlantic Security Initiative, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Atlantic Council; Former Assistant Secretary General for Executive Management, NATO
Dr. Sarah Kirchberger, Head of the Center for Asia-Pacific Strategy and Security, Institute for Security Policy, Kiel University; Nonresident Senior Fellow, Transatlantic Security Initiative, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Atlantic Council
Moderator: Leah Scheunemann, Deputy Director, Transatlantic Security Initiative, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Atlantic Council

Since this initial event Mykola has not only received his prostheses, and gone through rehabilitation, but he has learned to dance, ski, run marathons, play soccer, and so much more, but he has also been working with other Ukrainian defenders who are amputees, getting them on the road to recovery.

Mantas Kvedaravicius' and Hanna Bilobrova's award-winning documentary film covers the end of March 2022, after journalists and most inhabitants had evacuated Mariupol. The film team includes Hanna Bilobrova, Iryna Prudkova, Albina Lvutkina, and Valeriia Havrikova. It’s an intimate view of life during the siege of the city. Kvedaravicius was captured while evacuating some of the last remaining persons in Mariupol, tortured, executed and dumped. Bilobrova succeeded in her heroic effort to find his body, and bring it and the film hard drives to Lithuania, from behind enemy lines.

Cannes Film Festival
2022 Winner Golden Eye - Special Mention
European Film Awards
2022 Winner European Film Award
CinEuphoria Awards
2024 Winner CinEuphoria
Best Documentary - International Competition
Lithuanian Film Awards
2023 Winner Silver Crane
Vilnius International Film Festival
2023 Winner Lithuanian Star
Best Documentary

The screening was accompanied by the photo exhibit: NOT ALL OF THEM Portraits of War Refugees, and an exhibit of the works by Mariupol artists Lyudmila Shamis. It was followed by a Q&A session with co-director Hanna Bilobrova, and the film team. There was a silent auction and guests met with Mykola Shot, a wounded defender of Ukraine, and fellow Ukrainian soldiers receiving treatment here.

Mantas Kvedaravicius' and Hanna Bilobrova's award-winning documentary film, Cannes and Berlinale, covers the end of March 2022, after journalists and most inhabitants had evacuated. It’s an intimate view of life during the siege of the city. Kvedaravicius was captured while evacuating some of the last remaining persons in Mariupol, tortured, killed and dumped. Bilobrova succeeded in her heroic effort to find his body, and bring it and the film hard drives to Lithuania, from behind enemy lines.

The gallery was open showing the photo exhibit: NOT ALL OF THEM Portraits of War Refugees, of Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania featuring photographers Antanas Sutkus Artūras Morozovas and Tadas Kazakevičius and an exhibit of the works by Mariupol artist Lyudmila Shamis.

On December 7, 2022, the U.S. Helsinki Commission (the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe) hosted a congressional hearing titled "Crowdsourcing Victory for Ukraine." The session examined how grassroots civil society and decentralized organizations mobilized humanitarian and military support for the Ukrainian war effort. Blue/Yellow USA's Rima Ziuraitis joined Jonas Ohman of Blue/Yellow Lithuania on the panel.

In April of 2023 Blue/Yellow USA's former Managing Director, Rima Ziuraitis, was invited to participate in a panel organized by the Atlantic Council with Kyiv's Mayor  Vitali Klitschko and other distinguished guests to discuss the future of Kyiv and Ukraine.

Blue/Yellow USA frequently participates in LA Lithuanian Days and welcomes you to come by our booth this year. Lithuanian Days in Los Angeles celebrates its 40th-anniversary this year. It's an annual heritage festival featuring traditional food, folk art, and live music. It will take place on October 10–11, 2026, at the St. Casimir Lithuanian Parish located at 2718 St George St, Los Angeles this year. It generally attracts between 10,000 and 15,000 visitors each year. Visit for the fun, food and entertainment!!

Global Lithuanian Leaders' Global Lithuanian Awards 2022, established a new award for responding to Russia's war in Ukraine - "For Diaspora Engagement to Support Ukraine".  Rima Ziuraitis and Ausra Tallat-Kelpsa received the award – For focused efforts leading Blue/Yellow USA in the provision of humanitarian, medical and non-lethal aid to Ukraine. 

Update from the Ground

Chicago's Baltic Way commemorations honor the historic 1989 peaceful human chain protest uniting Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Local events—featuring human chains, flags, and cultural programs—are organized periodically around August 23 by local diaspora communities, the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture, and city cultural committees. On August 23, 1989, roughly two million people joined hands across a 600-kilometer human chain through Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to protest Soviet occupation. 

Chicago’s active Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian communities regularly mark its major milestones (such as the 25th and 30th anniversaries at Daley Plaza and Buckingham Fountain) with speeches, choir performances, and solidarity chains.