Velga Zēgnere- Treasurer

Velga Zēgnere is a Latvian exile who spent over 50 years living in Germany before returning to the land of her parents 10 years ago together with her family (husband and three children).

In her youth, Velga was actively involved for a number of years in the European Latvian Youth Association (ELJA), where she was a board member and represented ELJA on human rights issues. She took up the cause of dissidents in Soviet Latvia, for example, by collaborating with Amnesty International and writing petitions addressed to politicians in European countries and the USSR.

When the family’s three children had grown up, she became involved in organizing the European Summer School (EVS). EVS is a summer camp for the children of Latvian exiles, which is also attended by children from Latvia. In the year 2012 EVS also admitted four blind children. This project proved to be so successful that it will also be continued in years to come.

Riga, January 2014.