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

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

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

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

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

Growing up in the Former Soviet Union, I didn’t have much knowledge about my Jewish identity and traditions. Since 1989, after my family’s immigration to

A soul may descend to this world, and live 70 or 80 years, just in order to do a Jew a material favor, and certainly

Years ago, a few friends and I headed to New York City for a day of bonding and recreation. We drove to the station, parked,