When I was 5 or 6 the old synagogue was closed. It was closed because of the Soviet power that persecuted all religions, but I still remember it well from the time it was open. It was a two-storied stone building in Gogol Street between Volskaya and Chapaev Streets. My mother and I stayed on the upper floor from where we could see it all. I remember rabbi Gorelik in his kippah, lapserdak [traditional outer clothing of men, including rabbi] and tallit.
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Displaying 38731 - 38760 of 50826 results
Maria Zabozlaeva
We visited grandmother and grandfather on Sabbath and every other Saturday we spent with my mother’s brother Boris and Boris came to see us another time. My mother and I also made preparations to receive guests appropriately.
My mother and my mother brother’s wife Chasia switched to Yiddish when they didn’t want us to understand the subject of their discussion. When I began to study German at school I began to grasp the point of a subject of the discussion.
My parents didn’t discuss any political subjects in the presence of their children, but I cannot tell what they talked about when they switched to Yiddish. They were not members of the Party. I understand that my parents had a loyal attitude toward the Soviet rule. They didn’t have a fear of the regime.
Our family didn’t suffer during the period of arrests. At least, I know nothing about it. I guess, adults in our family discussed the situation in the USSR and Europe, but I was too young to take any notice of what adults were talking about.
I studied in school # 13 [18] for girls (present-day lyceum of physics and mathematics) in 1937 – 1947. The Jewish school in Saratov was closed in 1934.
We heard about the war on the radio when Molotov [19] spoke.
My father was called to his office. He was released from service in the army. He was a plumber and equipment repairman at the NKVD boiler house in Dzerzhynski Street. The NKVD office was called a ‘gray house’ (this building is still called so) and its boiler house was across the street from the office. My father worked there through the war. His brother Osip Avgustevich also worked there. They worked there 24 hours in a row, if necessary. I know that my father was respected at work.
We started school on 1 September 1941, as usual. There were talks about a war at school since many pupils’ brothers or fathers had been recruited to the army. Everybody kept track about news from the front. We were very concerned when German troops came close to Moscow. Many thought it was the end, but then the situation began to change and we were hearing about the advance of the Soviet army. I believe, some time in the end of 1943 we began to mark the advance of Soviet troops on our map at the history class at school.
We didn’t celebrate Jewish holidays during the war. We only baked matzah at Pesach. It was hard to observe traditions when we could hardly get what we vitally needed.
I had one Jewish classmate Fania Chait. There were Jewish girls at school. We never faced any different attitudes. I have my Jewish identity stated in all my documents. This is the so-called Item 5 [20]. I became a pioneer and joined the Komsomol [21]. I took an active part in pioneer activities. We supported and helped older people at home. I never faced any negative attitudes. Perhaps, I never gave it a thought, really. It’s hard to say now. I participated in amateur concerts reciting excerpts from books and poems: Gertzen [Gertzen, Alexander I. (1812-1870): Russian revolutionary, writer and philosopher] ‘The Bygone and Thoughts’. When a senior pupil I attended a history club in the House of Officers. Boys from a school for boys attended it, too.
I finished school in 1947 and entered the Pediatric Faculty at the Medical College. I passed my entrance exams and got all excellent marks. My Jewish identity didn’t play any role [22] I finished this college in 1953.
I heard about the ‘doctors’ plot’ [23], but I don’t remember anything about it. I was overwhelmed with medicine and believed that it was slander against doctors. Later newspapers began to publish disclaimers and my concerns disappeared.
We got married after I finished my third year in college. This happened in summer 1950, though he had proposed to me few years before. We had a very cheerful wedding. There were relatives on both sides and my co-students. We had a wedding party and tables set in Michael’s house that was bigger than ours. My relatives helped with cooking. We had teyglakh, Gefilte fish and forshmak made. There were also lots of pastries.
We had a civil ceremony in a registry office. We didn’t go to synagogue and didn’t have a chuppah.
We had a civil ceremony in a registry office. We didn’t go to synagogue and didn’t have a chuppah.
My brother Michael was 6 when my mother sent him to an NKVD kindergarten where our father worked. There was a small garden and a playground near the kindergarten. In 1944 Michael went to secondary school # 30 and music school to learn to play the violin. He became a young Octobrist, then a pioneer, joined Komsomol. After finishing the 7th form Michael entered the mechanical Faculty at the Aviation College in 1951. He studied well and played in the college orchestra. Students staged the musical comedy ‘A Wedding in Malinovka’ in college. He finished college in 1955 and entered an Automobile Faculty at the Polytechnic College of Saratov. In this college Michael also played in the orchestra. In 1960 he finished college and joined the Party.
Michael worked as an engineer in various companies of the automobile industry in Saratov. In 1969 he was appointed as director of the design office of Privolzhskstroytrans trust. In 1971 this design office was transformed into Saratov affiliate of the OMTS (Organization, Mechanization and Engineering Support of Construction) design institute and Michael became its director. He worked as director until 1992. He was fond of technical developments and was awarded a number of diplomas and patents for his innovations.
Michael worked as an engineer in various companies of the automobile industry in Saratov. In 1969 he was appointed as director of the design office of Privolzhskstroytrans trust. In 1971 this design office was transformed into Saratov affiliate of the OMTS (Organization, Mechanization and Engineering Support of Construction) design institute and Michael became its director. He worked as director until 1992. He was fond of technical developments and was awarded a number of diplomas and patents for his innovations.
My younger sister Vera was a weak and sickly child. Vera was 9 when father died in an accident. She stayed with relatives during the funeral and later Vera said she was grateful to her relatives that took her to their house. Father was always alive in her memory. Our cousin sister Elia Avgustevich took Vera to the synagogue for the first time. This was at Pesach. Vera was 6 years old. Vera wasn’t religious, but she liked Jewish holidays. She went school #13 for girls in 1948. When she was in the 6th form the schools for boys and girls merged. Some children were assigned to other schools nearer to their homes. Vera was transferred to a former school for boys. It took her some time to get adjusted to the new school. I know that in school 13 Vera had some Jewish classmates, but I cannot say they were close friends. There were no Jews in her new school or in the drama club in the houses of officers that Vera attended. Vera didn’t have Jewish friends. Her classmates sometimes abused her for her Jewish identity calling her ‘Jew’ in an abusive manner.
When giving the gelt to my grandchildren at Chanukkah I once felt like telling them about the Jewish history and holidays. I felt like telling them that we were Jews. In my daughter’s family they have friendly attitudes toward the Jewish identity. My granddaughter Yulia, my daughter Sophia and her husband Nikolay have been to Israel this year. They liked it there. Yulia attends the Jewish center for young people. They like Jewish holidays and Jewish food. . They are planning to move to Israel.
I do not take part in public activities in the Jewish community. I make contributions to the synagogue on holidays. They have a special charity box: tzdaki. The same with Hesed. I have always had their support and assistance when after surgery I needed help and Hesed sent me an attendant to look after me. They always send me gifts and greetings. I understand that I didn’t do anything big for them, but they still help me just because I am a Jew.
I didn’t feel my Jewish identity at work or at home. Our Jewish way of life in the family ended when grandfather Semyon died. However, our mother always tried to have celebrations on holidays, but we never spoke Yiddish at home. I didn’t face any oppression. Probably because I had a Russian husband. However, I am glad to have this feeling of my Jewish identity, I’am now proud as a Jew.
In 1995 I went to Israel at the invitation of my brother Michael. I traveled all over the country: Eilat, Beer Sheva and Haifa. I was greatly impressed, though I was very unhappy about Tatiana’s condition. I accompanied her to hospitals and clinics and gave moral support to her. I stayed three months in Israel when I realized that I was eager to go home.
Vera worked at the ‘mail box’ [25] over 30 years. I think that her career failed due to her Jewish identity. Her boss always included her on his lists of employees to be submitted for promotions or a raise, and then he always said ‘I can’t understand why they crossed your name out of the list’.., but Vera knew.
About 8-10 years ago Vera began to identify herself as a Jew. She said this happened when she began to work in a Jewish project of the Open Jewish University in Israel. Our cousin brother Semyon Avgustevich that was manager of Association of Public Universities employed her as project secretary in Moscow in 1996. Vera worked in this program for five years: she gained knowledge of the Jewish history and traditions. Vera studied the Jewish history. Employees of this project even studied ‘Introduction to Torah’. This project lasted four years. Later Semyon started a new program ‘Warm houses of Moscow’ and made Vera coordinator of this program. They celebrated Sabbath, Pesach and other holidays in ‘warm houses’ (‘warm houses’: charity cultural program for those who cannot attend Hesed. It includes celebration of Sabbath, birthdays, attending lectures on various subjects, small concerts and celebration of all Jewish holidays) and Vera became a hostess of one of such houses and at that time her Jewish identity showed up. She took part in celebration of Chanukkah at the ‘Russia’ cinema theater in Moscow. At the previous Pesach that Vera conducted in her ‘warm house’ there were 100 guests. Young people from the community of young Jews conducted seder and hid afikoman. Working in this program Vera visited Israel several times. Her first visit took place in 1996. Vera was greatly impressed. She traveled for the 2nd time in 1998. During her 3rd visit Vera, her daughter Katia and Michael celebrated the new Year in Jerusalem. Vera met a nice Jewish man in Moscow. They got married and she moved to him in Israel in 2000. She is very happy. They live in Karmiel.
When Stalin died we all had a feeling that it was the end of the world and of the life. All people were crying. Students attended a memorial meeting at the Revolution Square that is now called Teatralnaya. There were crowds of people at meetings. I cannot explain now why we were crying, but that was how we were feeling. We didn’t know the real state of things and in our family we never came into any details about politics, so I believed that everything wrong was done without Stalin’s involvement.
Upon graduation from Medical College I worked as a doctor in a children’s hospital, nursery school and was a district doctor.
Yuri and I kept moving from one place to another where Yuri’s military service required. From Balashov we moved to Cheliabinsk [about 1600 km from Moscow]. My husband finished his service in Feodorovka village Kustanai region [over 1700 km from Moscow] in Kazakhstan where our son was born in 1957.
Our children went to school and became young Octobrists, pioneers and Komsomol members.
There was overall devotion to the idea of communism and superiority of Russians and even if I wanted I wouldn’t have been able to keep any Jewish way of life. I’ve never tried to conceal the fact of my Jewish identity, but I didn’t feel anything specific about it. I’ve never faced any unjust attitudes. Our children didn’t know they were Jews. I told them about when they grew up. My husband always identified himself as a Jew.
We returned to Saratov in 1961. We lived with my mother in our house in Nizhnyaya Street the first six months. Yuri went to work at the aviation equipment plant named after Ordjonikidze. He was a technician. He received a two-room apartment in Leninski district. In 1973 me and my husband received another apartment. This is where I live now. In 1961 I went to work in the apartment of postnatal pathology in children’s infectious hospital #2. In 1962 - 1964 I finished a residency course and became a neonatologist. I worked there from 1961 till 1995. Our chief doctor was a Jew and so were many of my colleagues and I didn’t face any negative attitudes at work.
I had a happy life with my husband. We liked going to the cinema, theaters and concerts in the Philharmonic. We had a car and went to Mineralnyie Vody in the Caucasus on vacation. In 1968 we traveled to the Baltic Republics and Leningrad. In 1977 we made a tour of Western Ukraine and Moldova. We visited Kishinev, Yassy, Morshansk and Lvov. We had few friends and celebrated Soviet and family holidays with them. We had parties and sang Soviet songs and Russian folk songs. We didn’t sing any Jewish songs.
Like my mother, I tried to have no political subjects discussed in the family. Of course, we heard or read in newspapers about the ‘spring in Prague’ [26], dissidents [27] and departure of many Jews to Israel in early 1970s and that many Soviet citizens were deprived of their Soviet residency, but I didn’t share my opinions about it. I believe that people always do what they think is right. I’ve never considered moving to another country. I cannot imagine living without my family, friends or acquaintances. I had many Jewish colleagues and we always supported each other. We enjoyed working together and never had any problems due to our Jewish identity.