Lithuania: Chronology

September 1, 1907 • Memel, East Prussia (later Klaipėda, Lithuania)Herman Babbel and Gottlieb Klinger from the German-Austrian Mission visited Memel and held cottage meetings.

1909 • MemelThe Memel Branch was organized.

August 1914 • MemelWorld War I began. Friedrich Schulzke was called to lead the Memel Branch.

1939–45 • KlaipėdaDuring World War II, the Klaipėda Branch lost contact with Church headquarters.

1945–90During the Soviet Era, missionaries did not preach in the country.

March 15–18, 1992 • Vilnius, LithuaniaHans B. Ringger, Europe Area President, was welcomed by officials of the Lithuanian government.

November 17, 1992 • Kaunas, LithuaniaRobert and Ruth Rees began teaching English in Kaunas and arranged for missionaries to be included in local television broadcasts.

February 20, 1993 • VilniusBrothers Sergei and Aleksandr Semionov were baptized. They were the first two of 21 members who were baptized in Vilnius in 1993.

Dedication of Lithuania

May 20, 1993 • Vilnius

Elder M. Russell Ballard dedicated Lithuania for missionary work.

July 1993 • VilniusSenior missionaries Marvin and Ruth Folsom oversaw a program to teach missionaries Lithuanian.

July 11, 1993 • KaunasFifty-one people attended the first sacrament meeting in Kaunas.

June 5, 1994 • VilniusThe Vilnius Branch was created with Valdemaras Tamošiūnas as branch president and Svetlana Ščeklena as Relief Society president.

November 1994 • VilniusMarek Vasilkov became the first native Lithuanian to serve as a full-time missionary.

May 1995 • Stockholm, SwedenLithuanian Saints made their first trip to the Stockholm Sweden Temple.

October 1997 • KaunasA Relief Society for college-aged young women was formed, with Ramunė Blaževičiūtė as the adviser.

January 18, 1998 • VilniusThe Vilnius Lithuania District was created, initially consisting of the Vilnius, Kaunas, and Klaipėda Branches.

September 1999 • Vilnius, Kaunas, KlaipėdaMarina Rovdo, Svetlana Ščekleina, and Lilija Orlovska were called as the first seminary and institute teachers in Lithuania.

January 2001 • Salt Lake CityThe Book of Mormon was published in Lithuanian.

December 2001 • Šiauliai, LithuaniaMissionaries were assigned to the city of Šiauliai.

September 2004 • LithuaniaThe Church’s Humanitarian Services donated wheelchairs to disabled Lithuanians in need of aid.

September 2006 • LithuaniaThe Lithuanian triple combination was published.

October 2006 • Helsinki, FinlandLithuanian Saints took part in a cultural celebration and the dedication of the Helsinki Finland Temple.

May 24–25, 2013 • LithuaniaMembers in Lithuania celebrated the 20th anniversary of the dedication of Lithuania for missionary work.