Sept. 30--Dalia Slenys and her family fled the Soviet occupation of their native Lithuania during the early part of World War II. They lived in a displaced persons camp in Nazi Germany, where thousands of Lithuanians formed their own little community.
"She remembers how hard it was on so many families, including her own," said her husband of 40 years, Liudas. "But they banded together to preserve their homeland's traditions and customs as best they could."
After immigrating with her family to the U.S. and in the 1950s settling in Chicago's Bridgeport neighborhood, a Lithuanian enclave, Slenys came to feel at home, her husband said. A talented painter and ceramist, she was active in her community and the Lithuanian Sea Scouts, a youth group, where she met her husband.
Twenty-six years ago, when the Lithuanian Art Museum opened in the basement of a former Roman Catholic Seminary in Lemont that also housed the Lithuanian World Center, Slenys became its director. The museum's mission was to preserve and showcase the rich history of her homeland's art.
"Lithuanians are very artistic people," she said in a 1994 Chicago Tribune story. "They love to sing, they love to dance and sculpt. It's a small country but there are so many artists there."
Slenys, 80, died of congestive heart failure Sept. 16 at the Lemont Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
"She was a smart, witty and elegant woman, who put her heart and soul into our museum," said Asta Zimkus, the museum's current director. "She promoted Lithuanian art and culture in a way that created energy and excitement for both our artists and our patrons."
When the 6,000-square-foot museum opened in 1989, its goal was to research and exhibit works by native and immigrant Lithuanian artists. It now has more than a thousand pieces in its permanent collection, which includes about 600 paintings. It also features traditional Lithuanian costumes, linens and crafts, and has a Wood Carver's Gallery that includes a collection of diverse wood sculptures by Lithuanian carvers.
"Because of Dalia's hard work and efforts, we have thousands of people from all over the world visiting us each year," Zimkus said.
Born Dalia Lukosiunas in Kaunas, Lithuania, Slenys was a graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Vogue Design School in Chicago.
After completing her education, she also worked for many years as an executive secretary for the president of the Associated Cotton Shops, a chain of women's clothing stores in Chicago.
According to Zimkus, Slenys' passion for art and her knowledge of the Chicago art scene served as a magnet for many artists who, after exhibiting their artwork, often donated one or two of their pieces to the museum's permanent collection.
"Dalia's imprint on our museum is everywhere -- in every nook and cranny and space where our precious art survives and thrives," Zimkus said.
There are no other immediate survivors.
Services were held.
Joan Giangrasse Kates is a freelance reporter.
