The First Maltesers Care Home Opens Its Doors
The 30th anniversary of the Order of Malta’s Relief Organisation coincided with another significant event for the community – the building in Viekšnaliai (Telšiai district), which was started two years ago, opened its doors and became the first Maltesers’ – St. John the Baptist – Care Home. The opening ceremony was attended by many distinguished people, important to the Maltesers’ community, who have contributed and supported us along the way – a dream that took a lot of money, time, patience and effort has become a reality.
On 16 September, the opening celebration began with a Holy Mass in the church of the Virgin Mary, which stands at the front of the Maltesers’ Care Home. It was celebrated by the Maltesers’ Bishop Darius Trijonis together with the spiritual leader of the Maltesers Vytautas Rapalis and the priest of the Viekšnaliai church Virginijus Palionis, who has become the new priest and patron of the Maltesers. During the Holy Mass, the clergy expressed their greetings, words of joy and faith in the future of this home. They did not present the orphanage with a blessed Chalice, symbolizing the sharing of kindness, but they also blessed the Maltesers’ votive with Holy Spirit – a personal gift to God for the grace of being Maltesers.
The Care Home opening was attended by the highest-ranking guest in Lithuania – the Grand Hospitaller of the Order of Malta, Dominque de La Rochefoucauld-Montbel, the Head of the “Global Fund for Forgotten People”, Lisa Sanchez-Corea Simpson, the Ambassador of the Order of Malta to Lithuania, Manfred Ritter Mautner von Markhof, Minister of Social Security and Labour, Monika Navickienė, Advisor to the Valentinas Bukauskas, Aušra Lukošiūtė, Mayor of the Telšiai District Municipality, Kęstutis Gusarovas, Elder of Luokė, Erikas Volskis, Chairman of the Ethics Committee of the Maltesers, Romas Abunevičius, Member of the Presidium, Algimantas Andrašiūnas, and, of course, the leader of the Maltesers – President Bronius Einars. Representatives of the companies that have contributed to the establishment of this home, as well as other members of the Maltesers and the Viekšnaliai community came to congratulate. The guests not only expressed their warm greetings, but also presented gifts that will decorate the Maltesers’ Care Home and will be useful in their daily work. The event was hosted by Maltesers’ Secretary General Dalia Kedavičienė and Head of Organisational Development Edvinas Regelskis.
The President of the Maltesers, Bronius Einars, invited the Grand Hospitaller of the Order of Malta, Dominque de La Rochefoucauld-Montbel, the Head of the Global Fund for Forgotten People, Lisa Sanchez-Corea Simpson, the Minister of Social Security and Labour, Monika Navickienė, and the director and the soul of the Maltesers’ Care Home, Jolanta Bielskienė, to participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony.
