A speech from our president, Jānis Čakars, at the Annual Meeting - February 21, 2026

Latvieši ir spītīga tauta. Mēs nepadodamies. Šī ir mūsu 134ta gada sapulce. Kopš 1910. gada mēs tiekamies šajā ēkā. Man ir gods būt daļai no šīs tradīcijas.

Today, I would like to begin by reminding us all of our “mission statement.”

The Philadelphia Society of Free Letts’ (AKA The Latvian Society) mission is to foster public appreciation and understanding of the Latvian culture and language, to maintain and preserve archives, records, books, manuscripts, bibliography, and all materials, literature, documents, and papers relating to the Latvian culture, art, and language.

Since last February, we have held at least one event every month. Some Latvian societies have ceased operations,  and many others are not as active as we are. Let’s be proud of our community. Let’s be proud that we are fulfilling our mission.

Since we met last February, we have gathered for social hours, birthday celebrations, a Latvian music listening party, a pickle tasting party and novuss. We watched Latvian dance performances and films about Latvian dance performances, and we danced ourselves at a wonderful balle that revived a beautiful tradition in this hall. 

We got special permission to screen the film “Kriminālās Ekselences Fonds”.

We reached out to the wider community by taking Latvian culture on the road to the Hunterdon County World Fair. We also reached people via radio with programs about Latvian art and identity, Latvian music and a spotlight or two on everybody’s favorite member of the Latvian Society, Laris Krēsliņš.

As president, I was particularly proud to speak on behalf of our society at the 75th anniversary of Priedaine where our Philly people got to shake hands and take pictures with the president of Latvia. We welcomed Sudrabavots for Independence Day and once again the Latvian flag flew at City Hall and the Mayor proclaimed it Latvian Independence Day in Philadelphia. 

Of course, we have our always popular holiday market, the highlight of the year! 

Last week, we had a fascinating lecture by Kaspars Ģērmanis, who is affiliated with the Foreign Policy Research Institute. 

As president, it is also my job to tell you about our challenges.   As I mentioned, we have been in this building since 1910. It was remodeled in the  1960s. Our renters love it because it is retro. I love it because it is history.   It is heritage.  It is home, but it is old.

As you know, we are in a major campaign to replace the HVAC system. This is crucial maintenance for our use of the space. I am happy to report that we have raised enough money for Phase One of the project, which will be the theater floor of the building, and we have signed a contract. I want to thank our HVAC donors for their generosity. Without your support, this would not have been possible. 

We are delighted that phase 1 of the HVAC project can soon begin but there are some other challenges. We have a residual issue from the loss of our non-profit status. We have satisfied the requirements of the federal government, but are still working through the bureaucracy of the city government which levies property taxes. However, thanks to the herculean efforts of Pēteris Dajevskis we have had a major breakthrough and I recently received a letter from the city saying that soon they will request an onsite visit with me. This is the last step before freeing us from our property tax obligations. At that time, I will see if we can get back taxes refunded as well.

Pēteris Dajevskis deserves special mention. He is not on the board anymore, but continues to do great work for us. Beyond battling the city, he has secured two mission-focused grants. One is for a film about the society. The other is a grant for an evaluation and recommendations toward better maintaining and organizing our archives including attention to the library and our art.

We are fulfilling our mission thanks to many people.

I want to thank Andrea, Laura, Rita, Jolanta, and all the people that make our tirdziņš the success that it always is.

I want to thank all the people that came out to talkas this year. I want to thank our bartenders and Colton Rogers, who not only tends bar but volunteered to do our livestream and recording last week. I want to thank Ivars Mežgailis, who does more for this building than anyone else.

I want to thank my board: Kārlis, Annija, Ēriks, Silvija, Kristīne, Laura, and Kristaps. I am often the face of this place in front of people giving a speech, but they keep this place running and they do it with the help of all of you, so thank you for keeping this community whole and strong!

Lai dzīvo Filadelfijas Brīvo latvju biedrība! Liels paldies!