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Joseph P. Kazickas, was born in 1918 in the tiny village of Ciornaya Padina on the Russian steppes where his ancestors had been deported from Lithuania during the uprising against the Tzars in 1863. His family returned to Lithuania when he was four years old.

It was not until 2002 that he saw his birthplace again. He and his wife, Alexandra, and some family members and friends, visited Ciornaya Padina that seemed to have barely changed from his childhood memories.

Over the subsequent years, Kazickas kept in contact with some of the villagers, providing support, sending gifts and even building a small chapel for them as they had requested.

In 2018 the Russian edition of Odyssey of Hope was published, timed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Kazickas’s birth. Two hundred copies were delivered to Ciornay Padina in November, 2018. The book was also distributed to some schools and libraries in Russia and Russian speaking communities in other countries. One hopes that the people of Ciornaya Padina, reading this book, will be filled with pride that one of their own, Joseph Peter Kazickas, went on to create a fine life, filled with high achievement, personal success and happiness in the United States from his origins in a tiny village in Russia. But more importantly, one hopes that every reader absorbs the true message of Kazickas’ life. As he wrote:

“Economic success and fairy-tale wealth do not bring joy. A person can only feel true happiness in creating a more beautiful life for others – not only for one self. The worth of a person is not measured by how much he or she has but how much one is able to give. Life only has meaning when one is sharing good fortune with others and contributing to a better life for everyone.“

Joseph Kazickas died on July 9, 2014. His children and grandchildren continue to support the residents of Ciornaya Padina through the Kazickas Family Foundation. Kazickas’ legacy of good works lives on.