I was thirteen years old when we moved to the United States. It was my first trip on the airplane, and I remember feeling excited and scared at the same time. Scared because I have never flown on an airplane before, and excited because I wanted to see my city from a bird’s eye ... Read More »
William Gottlieb Schauffler’s journey to the U.S. was a long one. Born in 1798 in Stuttgart, in the Kingdom of Wurttemberg, in the southeastern corner of what is now Germany. He wrote that “My parents were not at all wealthy and when, in consequence of the constant wars which had shaken Europe ever since the great French Revolution in 1789, ... Read More »
It was a cold winter night in St Petersburg 2008, Tatiana (name changed) was around 30 and had 2 children, still working her night shift in her pharmacy to earn enough to pay for all the life necessities during the cold Russian winter. She then received a interesting phone call. It came from her father residing in the United States. ... Read More »
I was soaring through the air as quickly as an eagle chasing its prey. Around me, the landscape progressively shifted from large clusters of oak trees, to gentle, sloping valleys, to vast ponds that stood so still, they barely had so much as a ripple on the surface as I flew past them. I had ... Read More »
One day, a strange woman showed up at the door, saying that Sarah was alive, but she and her family were starving in Kiev. My Great grandfather lost it all when the Communists took over. Joseph was born around 1899 in a village outside the city of Kiev in Russia. He had four brothers and sisters. His parents were upper-middle ... Read More »
He eventually became a very successful attorney and even argued a case against GM in the Supreme Court for workers’ rights. Many years ago, a young boy named Jacob lived in a small Russian town with his family. He lived happily without a care in the world until one day his father left to escape from being drafted into the ... Read More »
It is 1975, and Russia was known as the Soviet Union, a strong, communist country that strictly limited Russians’ rights. Vlad was born in 1971 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, which was part of the USSR. Vlad (name changed by request) experienced significant hearing loss at the age of 9 months due to a high fever and his parents immediately decided that listening and ... Read More »
Larry Klein’s grandfather Lazar Kasofsky, born in 1884 in the rural town of Slonim, Russia, was the eldest of seven children in a Jewish family. Late 19th Century Russia was a dangerous place for Jews. In addition, the Russian army conscripted boys at age sixteen, many never to be seen by their families again. With these facts in mind Lazar’s parents, Jacob and Ester Hanna, decided ... Read More »
My Grandma and Grandpa decided to leave Simbirsk, Russia and begin a new life in the United States. They started their emigration from Simbursk in Oct. 1900 traveling through Siberia to China. Eventually they left Harbin Manchuria China, with John (Ivan), their only surviving child, and made their way to Kobe, Japan. In March of 1910 – 10 years since ... Read More »
As I walked into the Stevenson House, I noticed that everyone waiting to meet us was smiling. They seemed genuinely happy to see a big group of 63 girls walk into their midst. We were there to interview the residents of Stevenson House about their lives and learn a little more about their immigrant pasts. I sat down in front ... Read More »