Valdas Adamkus and Alma Adamkiene Photo by Džoja Gunda Barysaitė

Ms Alma Adamkiene was born in Siauliai on 10 February 1927. Her father Stasys Nutautas, born on 8 March 1899, was a trader and her mother Ona Nutautiene, nee Soblyte, born on 24 June 1904, assisted her husband in commercial activities.

In 1944 Alma Adamkiene retreated with the family to Germany, and later, in 1949, emigrated to the United States of America.

Ms Alma Adamkiene studied at Eichstätt College in Germany and later at the Faculty of Philology of the Erlangen University of Bavaria.

In 1951 she married Valdas Adamkus.

After moving to the United States, Alma Adamkiene worked as a laboratory assistant at a steel factory. Later, she took a position with an insurance company. Since 1962, for twenty-five years, she was the manager of the Tabor Farm Recreation Centre, to which she has a title.

Since 4 February 1998, when Valdas Adamkus became President of the Republic of Lithuania, Alma Adamkiene has been actively involved in social activities, paying the prime attention to children's homes and support of orphans and disabled children.

Behind the scenes. The nation's First Lady plays a vital role in her husband's career