The estate is still being restored, with help from local historians and the museum director, Sergey Semenyuk. Three events have been determined which will be organised annually. In May, there will be a conference entitled Meeting the Niemcewiczs. Meanwhile, December will mark the anniversary of the conclusion of truce in 1917. Two months ago Skoki hosted an international festival, reconstructing events from WWI on the Eastern Front and dedicated to the 95th anniversary since the Skoki Truce. The Treaty of Brest was close on its tail. February saw the Ursyn-Night concert, marking the birthday of the most famous local resident.
All school children learn about Niemcewicz — the adjutant of Kościuszko. As well as being a revolutionary, he was a reporter and wrote poetry. He is even recognised as the first biographer of US President George Washington.
Brest’s Svetloyar club intrigued guests by telling the story of how Tsar Alexander I fell in love with Julian’s cousin-once-removed, Yulia, who lived in the village of Nepli, not far from Skoki, on the left side of the River Bug. Local historian Anatoly Gladyshchuk researched the story for his book Niemcewiczs. Real Stories. The love affair resulted in illegitimate children, since the pair were never married. The home built by Yulia’s later husband still stands today, awaiting restoration.
