Sara Sandstrom-Kobi, Nederland. How does a family of five from a tiny village in Estonia end up moving to Nederland, Colorado? There are two reasons: The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and Google Earth. 

Erko and Liisi Jakobson are climatologists. They are experts in their field. They received a grant from the Baltic American Freedom Foundation to study and do research at NCAR in Boulder for one year. They will go home in the summer with more knowledge and new data to share with their colleagues at the University of Tartu in Tartu, Estonia. 

Their research is focused on how Arctic climate change is affecting the Baltic Sea region. Erko and Liisi both love working at NCAR. Erko says, “I have read about all these scientists and now I am working with them. It is amazing!” The Jakobson’s say that NCAR has incredible databases and they are honored to be working there. They will continue to work with NCAR scientists when they return to Estonia. 

Moving to another county to do research is one thing. Bringing an entire family is altogether another adventure. There was, of course, excitement and apprehension from the kids as they make plans to leave Estonia for one year. Liisi and Erko have three children. August is a seventh grader, Hele is a fifth grader and Manivald is in third grade. 

Knowing they would be working in Boulder, Liisi went to Google Earth to find a place close but not in the city. Nederland looked perfect with all the forests and mountains in the area. 

Estonia is a country with thick forests, many lakes and over a thousand islands. This Republic is in Northern Europe and is the northern-most country of the Baltic States. Latvia is to the south, Russia to the east and Finland is across the Baltic Sea to the west. Being rather close to the Arctic Circle means their summers have hours and hours of sunlight while their winters have mostly hours of darkness or near darkness. The Jakobson’s have loved all the sunshine Colorado has in the winter. 

They are very pleased with their decision to live in Nederland. Their village of Lutsu has a population of 50 so they have to travel to the next town to do any shopping, etc. They love that in Nederland they can walk to the library, the schools and shops.

The Jakobson’s have not come and shied away from the community. In fact, they have embraced it. One of Hele’s favorite things to do is go to the Nederland Community Library and find a good book to read. She also has been active in the Mountain Movers Dance group and has been playing hockey. August loves to run and is very pleased that he can take a higher level math class at school. Manivald would probably ski or snowboard everyday if he was allowed. He has also loved making snow forts with all the snow he has seen this winter. The entire family enjoys cross-country skiing, not surprising for people from a Nordic country. 

The kids have been attending Nederland schools since the fall. In Estonia, students begin to learn English when they are in third grade, so August and Hele came to the US knowing some English. Manivald, on the other hand, came knowing only a very small amount of English. It is exhausting and never easy to be in a class where you hardly understand what is being said. While it has been a struggle to always understand and always be understood, their English skills have soared. They have developed a solid foundation to be able to use English successfully in their futures.

The family spends time at the Nederland Community Center playing Pickle Ball and staying active. After only being here for a few months, Liisi was giving back to the community by volunteering at the Clothing Closet on Saturdays. The Jakobson’s are also very impressed with all the hiking trails in the area. They have been exploring the area through its nature. 

With permission to be in the US for a year, they have taken the opportunity to see different parts of the US. The family has traveled around Colorado and been to Yellowstone National Park and Puerto Rico. Erko and Liisi had a conference in California and decided to drive there. They visited as many places as they could along the way. They saw the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Las Vegas, Mesa Verde, Monument Valley, Yosemite and San Francisco. They all agree that everything in the US seems so big. The mountains are big, the weather is big, the bison are big and the land is so vast.  

When I inquired about the food here compared to in Estonia they responded as most Europeans do, it is too processed and too much sugar. And that the potatoes in Estonia taste much better. They have found some great tasting sausages in the US and say that the fruit is so much more flavorful here.

We spent some time talking about Estonia and what they hope the world knows about their county. When I asked Liisi about Estonia’s history she took a deep breath and said, “We are resistant, and we have survived. Our language and culture have survived years of invasions and occupations.” Other countries even used Estonia’s land to fight other countries. Estonians are small in number and have endured with determination and resilience. 

During the seventeenth century, Estonia was ruled by Sweden. These are known as the golden years because Sweden established universities and culture grew and flourished. More than once, Russia has controlled this small Baltic nation and has always loomed large over it. Liisi is quick to say how much Estonians appreciated Americans during the 48 years of Soviet occupation. The United States never accepted that the Baltic nations were a part of the USSR. Estonians knew the stance the US took during the Cold War and are extremely appreciative of their friendship. 

As most of us have heard, living in a Soviet occupied country was cruel. They lived in fear. If someone spoke up against the USSR they would suddenly disappear. Estonians love the land, the dirt. They value organic farming and are a very “green” society. The USSR would mine and take from the land. They would put pesticides on the crops. Then, in 1986 the Chernobyl disaster occurred. The winds brought the radiation. In the usual secretive Soviet way, people were told nothing of the dangers. Everything was covered up. Young Estonian men, as part of their required military service, had to go to Chernobyl and clean up. These men came back sick and many died very young. Liisi said her parents would not allow her family to eat mushrooms from the forest for two years after the Chernobyl disaster. 

Estonians care for the soil, the trees and nature. They strongly feel that the USSR ruined their land.

In 1991 Estonia broke free from the shackles of the Soviet Union. With their language, culture and identity still intact, they turned west and did not look back. This Baltic nation of only one million in population has become an IT giant. The internet is everywhere in Estonia. Skype was developed in Estonia. They pushed for modernization to distance themselves from Russia and prove that they were free. 

Estonians now have control to care for their land in a way that is instep with nature. The Jakobson’s live on a small farm and raise chickens and goats. They make their own goat cheese and use the forest for food. The whole family picks mushrooms and berries and does their part in caring for a large garden. 

No matter how awesome a year abroad is, there are always things that are missed. They miss their friends, family and Estonian food. Liisi misses her plants and they all miss the family dog and saunas. 

They are grateful for the wonderful year they are having. They have been very pleased with the schools and the Mountain Strong Family presentations at the elementary school. Liisi appreciates the personal and open conversations Americans have about politics and climate change and about anything really. 

Estonians would love for more Americans to visit their beautiful country. Go to Tallinn to see one of the best-preserved town centers in the world. The architecture starts with the Medieval Period and has an old-world ambiance. It is a mix of west and east and old and new. And don’t just go to the capital. Visit the countryside and go off the normal tourist paths. The Jakobson’s say that southern Estonia is especially beautiful. Most everyone knows English and it is a very safe country to visit.

It has been a privilege and a joy getting to know the Jakobson family. They are intelligent, kind, worldly and passionate about nature and the earth. I have had the absolute pleasure of working with Hele and Manivald in the English Language Development program at Nederland Elementary. We laugh as we stumble with language. They laugh as I attempt to speak a little Estonian. 

I hope they do not soon forget our little piece of the earth. And I hope we have helped provide a year full of positive memories. When they are back home in Estonia eating their yummy home-grown potatoes and gathering mushrooms from their forest, I hope they remember the friendships they have made and the tasty fruit in the US. I, for one, will not forget them. 

(Originally published in the March 12, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)