Alma Adamkienė

Alma Adamkienė
Alma Adamkienė (right) with Laura Bush
First Lady of Lithuania
In office
February 26, 1998  July 12, 2009
President Valdas Adamkus
Preceded by Julija Brazauskienė
Personal details
Born Alma Nutautaitė
February 10, 1927
Šiauliai, Lithuania
Nationality Lithuanian
Political party Independent
Spouse(s) Valdas Adamkus (m. 1951)
Alma mater Friedrich-Alexander-University, Erlangen-Nuremberg
Profession Philology
Religion Roman Catholic

Alma Adamkienė (born Alma Nutautaitė in Šiauliai on February 10, 1927)[1] is the wife of the former President of Lithuania, Valdas Adamkus, and was First Lady during his two terms (1998–2003; 2004–2009). She also holds United States citizenship.

Her father, Stasys Nutautas, was a businessman; her mother, Ona Soblytė-Nutautienė, assisted her husband in various commercial activities. In 1944, when the Soviet Army returned to Lithuania, Alma Nutautaitė fled with her family to the West. She finished high school in Germany, and later studied Philology at Erlangen University in Nuremberg.[1]

Alma Nutautaitė emigrated to the United States of America in 1949. She first worked as a laboratory assistant at a steel factory. Later, she took a position with an insurance company. She also organized and participated in Lithuanian émigré activities. Alma Nutautaitė married Valdas Adamkus in 1951, and took her husband's surname (she is known as Alma Adamkus in the United States).[2]

During the presidential election held in Lithuania in 1997, Valdas Adamkus campaigned for the Presidency and won. After Adamkus became President, Adamkienė became involved in various Lithuanian social programs focusing on the welfare of children.[2] She opened a foundation, the Alma Adamkienė Charity and Support Fund, in 1999.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Alma Adamkiene, The First Lady". Office of the President of Lithuania. Retrieved 2009-04-13.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Behind the scenes. The nation's First Lady plays a vital role in her husband's career". Office of the President of Lithuania. Retrieved 2009-04-13.

External links

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