On July 6, 2018, work began on the restoration of the church of Saint Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky in the Germanov Monastery on the island of Syuskuyansaari, which is the last destroyed church of Old Valaam. This church was handed over to the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Valaam Monastery in a very dilapidated state.

There were 13 monasteries on Old Valaam, and monastic life has now been revived in eleven of them: Nikolsky, the monastery in honor of All Saints, Preobrazhensky, Sergievsky, Ilyinsky, Svyatoostrovsky, Smolensky, Gethsemane, Voskresensky, Konevsky, and Svyato-Vladimirsky. By the blessing of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, work is underway to restore three more monasteries: the monastery in honor of the Venerable Abraham of Rostov, the Kazan Monastery, and the monastery in honor of the Venerable Seraphim of Sarov on Parfiry Island.

The monastery's chronicles for the year 1878 describe the remote islands where the Germanov and Sergievsky monasteries were located: "The area is excellent and majestic: giant stone mountains 30 fathoms high stand opposite each other like impregnable fortresses. Their peaks are covered with forests and vegetation. At the foot of the mountains lie green fields and meadows, diverse forests, as well as lakes full of fish, where ducks and loons inhabit."

On the island of Saint German in the early 20th century was one of the largest and most remote monasteries of the monastery, the monastery in honor of the Venerable German, the Miracle Worker of Valaam. There were numerous buildings: a two-story wooden brotherhood building with cells, storage rooms, and barns for livestock. The monks engaged in agriculture, fishing, and tended to the garden. There was a pier for boats from Valaam on the shore. 300 meters from the church, "Valaam" granite was mined from the rocks, which was sent to Valaam, St. Petersburg, and Moscow.

The foundation of life in the monastery was prayer, not just obedience. Initially, there was a chapel on the island in honor of the Venerable German of Valaam, which was later dismantled. In 1901, under the igumen Gabriel, a church was laid in honor of Saint Prince Alexander Nevsky.

The stone Alexander Nevsky Church was built according to the design of architect Nikolai Prokofyev from red brick and Ladoga stone. The construction was completed under igumen Vitaly, and the consecration of the church took place on July 25, 1904, by Archbishop Nikolai of Finland and Vyborg.

Nikolai Saiki, a former novice at Valaam, recalled: "Much has already been forgotten. That summer, when I worked in the hayfield in Syuskusalmi, every Saturday and Sunday I read and sang at services with Hieromonk Pion. On Saturday, we read the akathist to Saint Alexander Nevsky. There was a church or chapel on every island, and everywhere services were held if there was a hieromonk."

The brotherhood of the Germanov Monastery was small. Help was provided by monks sent from the monastery during the haymaking and harvest season. Nikolai Saiki wrote: "In the spring, we renewed the roofs of the haylofts. I worked on the roof of the main building in Syuskusalmi, 30 kilometers from the monastery. A month later, the steamboat came for the brotherhood, and I stayed to mow hay. I took care of the mower and sharpened its blades. Two horses were harnessed to it. This is how the monastery taught various obediences."

The Valaam granite mined on the island of Saint German was gray and red. It was called "royal" for its noble color and the affection of the emperors of Russia.

After 1940, when the monks left the islands, monastic life in the Saint German Monastery ceased. The Alexander Nevsky Church on the island of Syuskuyansaari is in an emergency state. A traveler noted: "The church is collapsing, the cross is shot and bent, creating the impression of a crucifixion. The patterned cast-iron railings have survived. Nearby, the Finns erected a memorial sign."

Vandals continue to destroy the church, chipping marble and hauling away stones. In the 1990s, attempts were made to establish granite processing on the island, leading to the appearance of hangars that spoil the landscape.

However, time goes on, and what seemed impossible is becoming a reality. Work has already begun on the restoration of the Sergievsky Monastery, which gives hope for the revival of the Venerable German Monastery.