I had always heard stories about how my grandmother and her family immigrated to the United States from Ukraine, but I was surprised to find out that my mother had kept an item that represented their six year trip from leaving their home in Ukraine. It's the trunk that my great grandmother used to carry all of her belongings. The trunk is about 4 feet wide and 3 feet tall, it is heavy and made out of wood. My great grandmother's name is written on it in big letters as well as an address. My grandmother and her family left Ukraine in the 50s. My grandmother was only around 10 years old at the time. They wanted to come to the United States to escape Soviet rule (which Ukraine was under at the time). Over the course of the next five years my grandmother and her family spent time in various displaced persons (DP) camps in Germany. During the time that they spent in Germany, my great aunt was born. They were in DP camps for about five years because they needed a sponsor to take them to the United States, and stay with them until they got on their feet. The address on the trunk is the address of their sponsor, and their first home in the US. This house is in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, several blocks away from my old house, and my grandmother has taken me to see this building a few times.

– Slava Hausler Lew

Relationship:  Grandchild of im/migrant Grandchild of im/migrant