‘Live for Them All’: A Survivor Shares Her Story
It’s very difficult to remember the pain, but I know how important it is to share these stories. I grew up near Odessa in a
Why I No Longer Need My Holiday Tree
As we approach the end of the calendar year, I am often asked, “Why do Soviet Jews buy evergreen trees for New Year’s?” The truth
Nothing Is Coincidental, Not Even a Set of Sofas
Shmuel Aulov was born in Tashkent, Uzbekistan (then part of the Soviet Union), and came to the United States as a teenager in 1991. He went
A Russian Doll and an Unlikely Legacy of Kindness
My grandmother, Zelda, was born in July, 1924 in a city called Samara on the Volga River in the former Soviet Union. There was so
Jews in Exile, Making their Way Home
Jewish people can be found in the most unexpected corners of the world, sharing remarkable stories of survival and endurance. Empty synagogues and cemeteries can be
My Grandmother and the 1922 Russian Typhus Epidemic
In 1922, the typhus epidemic reached its peak in Soviet territory, with 25 to 30 million cases in Russia. My grandmother, Zelda, was born in