St. Anne's Church Cemetery in Pavandenė

When we first arrived at St. Anne's Church in Pavandenė, the church was locked. While we waited for someone that Vincas contacted to unlock the church for us, we visited the adjacent cemetery to look for family grave sites. Unfortunately, we only found one - the grave of Vytautas Rekasius (1928 - 1942). He was the son of my Grandfather Slykas' sister. Vytautas was also the twin brother of Antanas Rekasius, the composer who once visited our family in Illinois.

The photograph of the wooden cross may show why we were unable to find additional family markers. If our family was poor, they may have only had wooden markers that would have deteriorated over time. In addition, we saw many stone markers that were worn with age. If the family did have stone markers, they may still be there but unable to be read.Read more