Romanian Roots newsletter of the Romanian Genealogy Society Volume 2, Number 2 April 2013

Vicki Albu, Editor & President

RGS Quarterly Meeting Saturday, May 18th Translation Assistance 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Bogdan Filipescu, a native speaker of Romanian Genealogy Society will meet at Romanian, will again be available at 12:00 its usual location, Genealogical noon for one-on-one consultations and Society offices, 1185 N. Concord St., South translation assistance, one hour prior to St. Paul, MN, in the 2nd floor meeting this meeting. Please make an appointment room. in advance by contacting Vicki Albu at [email protected]. Meeting Topic: “Requesting Records from the Romanian National Archives” President’s Message Continuing with the theme of the By Vicki Albu February meeting, Bogdan Filipescu and Vicki Albu will lead a discussion about Enclosed with this newsletter mailing are finding the village of origin and how to the Charter Membership Certificates of identify the county archives where a letter the earliest members who helped to may be sent to request records. Please establish this organization. Your support bring your research problems and is greatly appreciated. successes to share with the group. Please help us to find more members! Quarterly membership meetings are held Your dues payments and tax-deductible on the third Saturday of every third month contributions help to ensure that we can at 1:00 p.m., at the office and library of print and mail the newsletters, and will the Minnesota Genealogical Society. help us to establish a web site, reference Future meeting dates for 2013 are August materials, and other resources to help 17 and November 16. Remember that RGS with Romanian genealogy research. members receive free admission to the MGS Library, which opens at 10:00 a.m. Thank you! on Saturdays.

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Romanian Roots since 2011

ISSN 2169-1495

Newsletter of the Romanian Genealogy Society, a branch group of the Minnesota Genealogical Society www.mngs.org and HORA News affiliated with the Heritage Organization of Romanian in Minnesota For more information, see www.hora- www.hora-mn.org mn.org.

Contact us at: Euro-American Celebration Romanian Genealogy Society in the Twin Cities

Attn: Vicki Albu Nine exciting European culture-filled days 1185 N. Concord Street, Suite 218 May 1st through May 9th, 2013 South St. Paul, MN 55075

For complete information on all events, www.Facebook.com/RomanianGenealogy please see: Society http://www.afmsp.org/Events/EuroAmerican Celebration/tabid/774/Default.aspx By e-mail: [email protected]

Membership dues are $20.00 per Do you have news to share about a calendar year. Members may use the Romanian organization or event in your MGS Library at no charge. community? Please submit it for publication in this newsletter. 2012-2013 Officers: Vicki Young Albu, President Dorrene Dragos Hern, Secretary Peggy Corniea, Treasurer

Members are invited to submit articles, Oral History photos, and other information that pertains to Romanian genealogy and Project preservation of traditions. HORA was awarded a Legacy Grant from While we are based in Minnesota, our the State of Minnesota to conduct a organization is committed to providing Romanian Immigration & Traditions oral opportunities for exchange of knowledge history project. The project involves a about , Romanian immigration, partnership among HORA, RGS and and Romanian family history research Square Television. For more complete throughout North America. information, see the HORA web site at http://www.hora-mn.org/10.html.

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If you would like to interview your own family members, you can develop your own questions, or we will supply the list of questions that were asked. There are several web sites dedicated to the practice of oral history. Please consider sharing a copy of your interview results with RGS, and we will store copies at our library shelf at the Minnesota Genealogical Society Library.

This particular project is focused on In photo at left, Vicki Albu prepares to who immigrated to the Saint interview John Sarafolean in studio. Below, Paul and South Saint Paul communities of Mrs. Ella Motu (on left) talks to Dorrene Hern Minnesota prior to 1930. So far we have after her interview. (Photos by Raluca Octav) interviewed on camera nine persons with personal knowledge of first-generation Romanian immigration to the Twin Cities.

Once interviews are transcribed and edited, the print and digital files will be deposited with the Dakota County Historical Society Museum, and offered to the Minnesota History Center in St. Paul and the U of M’s Immigration History Research Center in Minneapolis.

Persons interviewed for this project were Ann Popa Bongard, Eugene Evasku, Vasile “Wes” Jura, Ella Choban Motu, John Omorean, John Sarafolean, Joe Stoi, Romanian Oral Histories Mihail Ticiu, and Phil Toconiţa. Interviewees shared their memories of in Mahoning County, family members and family relationships, childhood, church events, music and We wish we would have started this dance, Festival of Nations participation, project twenty years ago. Recently I weddings and funerals, living conditions, discovered a treasure trove of oral history jobs, traditional foods, and the paths their interview transcripts from Ohio. These families took to emigrate to the U.S. or interviews were conducted in the 1970s, Canada. and transcripts are housed and made available online in .pdf format by Almost all of the interviews included Youngstown State University, whose web discussions of traditional Romanian foods site is and their preparation. Places of origin in http://www.maag.ysu.edu/oralhistory/or Romania, migration routes, and al_hist.html. relationships to other families in the Twin Cities will prove especially interesting to The interviews were conducted in English. genealogists. By reading these interviews, one can learn about migration patterns and what life was like for Romanian immigrants from

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diverse backgrounds in the 1920s to 1940s. This is helpful because many of us Hundorfean was born near Sighisoara in failed to ask questions of our parents and . His father was born in 1873. grandparents, and sometimes when we After his father made two trips to did, they didn’t want to talk about their America, he came back to get his wife and experiences. they left Romania in 1908; Dragoman and his sister were raised by his grandparents. The collection includes 22 oral history He discusses life in Romania including transcripts related to Romanian- agriculture, home construction, clothing, Americans living in Ohio, primarily in Gypsy musicians, education, and his Youngstown, Mahoning County, including experiences as a draftee in the Austro- these examples: Hungarian army, dancing the brau, his journey to America where he survived on “Romanian Culture in Mahoning bread and wine, and his astonishment County Project,” Interview with upon arrival that American buildings were George Radu, Jr. by his godson not splendid palaces as he had been led to John Muntean, 1976. believe. He relates that at least one of his siblings was born in a boxcar when his Radu was born in , Transylvania; father worked for the steel mills. his family came first to before settling in Ohio. As was common with many Romanians at that time, the Andrew Muntean interviewed by father came first in 1909, followed by the John Muntean, 1975. mother and children in 1912. Radu’s father was a blacksmith in Romania; Andrew Muntean’s parents came from therefore he had to learn several Moartes and in Transylvania in languages including Hungarian and 1909, and Muntean was born in 1911. His German, in order to do business. Radu father hopped the train to get to work in discusses his concerns about change and the steel mills in Pennsylvania. Muntean why he believes it is important for parents describes traveling Romanian plays with to teach their children Romanian orchestra and dancing that entertained in traditions. various U.S. cities, transportation by horse and buggy or street car in “Life in Romania Project,” Youngstown, his first job as a newspaper Interview with John Dragoman, boy, the annual Romanian Day reunions, interviewed by John Flood in 1976. traditional Romanian foods eaten by Midwesterners, the seating or standing Dragoman was born in 1936 in Streza- arrangements in church, Father Lazar and Cartisoara in Fagaras, later , in Father Stanila, and observations made Romania. In 1968 he immigrated to the during his return visit to Romania. United States, settling in Youngstown. He discusses education, celebrating Other interview subjects are: Christmas, life under Communism, farm life, World War II, freedom of the press, series: and the Dracula legend. Vlad, Victor – 1976 Marmureanu, John – 1975 Simon Hundorfean, interviewed Radu, - 1976 by John Muntean, 1975.

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Romanian Culture project: Transylvanians in Youngstown: Muntean, Florence – 1976 Badila, John – 1976 Theis, William - 1974 Gibb, Louise – 1976 Biris, George – 1975 Buta, Mary O.- 1976 Shonn, Judith – 1976 Moga, Eli – 1975 Popa, John V. (1912 - ?) – 1975 Sacui, Alex – 1975 Badila, Tillie – 1976 Gibb, Nick – 1976 Carulea, Alexandra – 1975 Chetian, Charles – 1976 Roman, Eli – 1975 Curea, John – 1975

Upcoming Events RGS Quarterly Meeting

Saturday, August 17 at 1:00 p.m. Romanian Heritage Festival Watch newsletter for details.

June 15-17, -Niles, Best Internet Resources for Food, dancing, costumes, and the World’s East European Genealogy: Largest Grill. More information: www.romanianheritagefestival.com/ Free webinar by Lisa Alzo available online for a limited time.

http://news.legacyfamilytree.com/legacy_ne FEEFHS 20th Annual Eastern ws/2013/01/best-internet-resources-for-east- European Research Workshop european-genealogy-free-webinar-by-lisa- alzo-now-online-for-a-limit.html August 6-10, Salt Lake City, Utah

Networking Reception, three days of presentations, one-on-one consultation, research at nearby Family History Library, closing banquet, and optional special events. This year's Names We Are Searching workshop includes presentations or tracks on German, Polish, Jewish, Kingdom of Hungary, See the November 2012 Newsletter for a list Russian, Germans from Russia, and Baltic States research. A third track on Research Essentials of families and surnames that our members offers courses such as "Historical Geography" are researching. The list will be updated and "Latin for Genealogists". annually in the November newsletter.

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National Archives of Romania Finding Records in Romania Important Internet sites to visit before you begin

There is not enough space here to give a complete introduction. Read previous newsletter articles about how to identify the ancestral town of origin and its present-day name and jurisdiction of administration. It helps to know the religion of your ancestors (to aid archival staff in locating baptism, marriage, and funeral records). Gazetteers will help you to ascertain the locations of churches or synagogues, which may not necessarily have been located in your ancestor’s hometown or village. We also recommend that you review the following web sites:

1. Family Search Wiki: Basic Romanian Genealogical Research outline

https://www.familysearch.org/learn/wiki/en/images/6/64/Romanian_Genealogical_Research. pdf

2. Romanian National Archives web site and catalog at http://www.arhivelenationale.ro/

3. Look for “Directii Judetene” (directory of collections by judeţe, or jurisdictions). Open the box named: “alege” (choose) and select the jurisdiction of interest.

a. There, you get a PDF file containing a listing of record types in the collection. For example, some collections contain a brief history of the organization of the Orthodox churches in a particular area and may lead to listings of church registers. Others may contain court and other records.

b. If you don’t read Romanian, this may be challenging. You can try using Google translate to decipher some of the text, but you may need to enlist the aid of a translator.

4. Once you have identified the record group you would like searched, you are ready to contact the Archives. A written letter is recommended, but we have heard at least one story of success using e-mail contact. You may write in English, but Romanian may produce a better chance of response. In our next newsletter, we will provide a sample letter in Romanian. The Family Search web site has an example you can use.

5. We regret that we do not have current information about fees and practices related to archival research requests, or whether they are uniform throughout all jurisdictional archives. Please let us know of your research successes or failures so that we may update this reference guide.

Jurisdictions

Romania has 41 counties or more properly, jurisdictions (judet – singular, judeţe – plural) and one (), the capital city . The word judet is usually seen in the form judeţul, which means “the jurisdiction” or “the district.” Romanian Roots, Vol. 2, No. 2, April 2013, page 6

The National Archives of Romania (Romanian: Arhivele Naţionale ale României), until 1996 the State Archives (Arhivele Statului), are headquartered in Bucharest. It is subordinate to the Ministry of Interior and Administrative Reform. There are 42 regional branches, one in each county and one in Bucharest (holding documents pertaining specifically to the city). Each branch has its own library.

Address: Arhivele Nationale (Sediul Central) Bulevardul Regina Elisabeta nr. 49, Sector 5, 050000 Bucuresti Romania

Telephone: +40-21-3126710, or +40-21-3126710 ext. 11029; Fax: +40-21-3125841 E-mail: [email protected]

Addresses for Regional Branches of the Romanian National Archives http://www.arhivelentionale.ro

Alba Bistrita-Nasaud Adresa: , str. Mihai Viteazu nr. 29, cod Adresa: Bistriţa, Str. Gării nr.3-5, jud. Bistriţa- 510010, jud. Alba Năsăud Telefon: 0258/810996 Telefon: 0263/203249, 0263/203293, 0263/203294 Fax: 0258/810996 Fax: 0263/203249 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Arad Botosani Adresa: Str. Ceaikovski nr. 2-6, Arad, judeţul Arad, Adresa: Botoşani, Str. Col. V. Tomoroveanu Nr. 9, cod 310052 cod 710076, jud. Botoşani Telefon: 0257/233818 Telefon: 0231/584047 Fax: 0257/233818 Fax: 0231/507309 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Arges Adresa: Piteşti, str. Exercitiu nr. 208, cod poştal 110 Braila 210, jud. Arges Adresă: Brăila, Strada Plevna nr. 8 bis, cod 810 111, Telefon:0248/ 253144 jud. Brăila Fax: 0248/ 254232 Telefon: 0239/613 147 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Bacău Brasov Adresa: Strada Vasile Alecsandri nr. 5, Bacău, cod Adresa: Str. Gh. Bariţiu 34, Braşov, cod 500025, 600010, jud. Bacău jud. Braşov Telefon: 0234/511686 Telefon: 0268/475256 Fax: 0234/511686 Fax: 0268/478742 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Bucuresti (Bucharest)* Adresa: Bucureşti, Calea Văcăreşti, nr. 470, sect. 4. Bihor Telefon Relaţii cu Publicul: 021/332.07.71 Adresa: , Piaţa Independenţei nr. 39, cod Fax Secretariat: 021/332.52.35 410076, jud. Bihor E-mail: [email protected] Telefon: 0259/413876 E-mail: [email protected]

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Buzau Adresa: b-dul Nicolae Băcescu nr. 42 bis, Buzău, Galati cod 120187, jud. Buzău Adresa: Galaţi, Str. Constructorilor nr. 2, cod Telefon: 0238/719465 800360, jud. Galaţi Fax: 0238/719465 Telefon: 0236/436114 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0236/436114 E-mail: [email protected] Calarasi Adresa: strada Pompierilor nr.1, Călărasi, jud. Gorj Călărasi, cod 910002 Adresa: Târgu-Jiu, str. I.C. Popilian nr. 32-34, Jud. Telefon: 0242/316118, 0242/312131/2977 Gorj Fax: 0242/316118 Telefon: 0253/212315, 0253/207968. 0253/207969, E-mail: [email protected] 0253/207970, 0253/207971, 0253/207972 Fax: 0253/212315 Caras-Severin E-mail: [email protected] Adresa: Caransebeş, strada Şesul Roşu, nr. 12, jud.Caraş-Severin Telefon : 0255/512981, 0255/51 29 18 Adresa: Giurgiu, b-dul C.F.R. nr. 7, jud.Giurgiu Fax: 0255/512981 Telefon: 0246/207.276 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0246/207.270 E-mail: [email protected] Cluj Adresa: Cluj-Napoca, Str. Mihail Kogălniceanu nr. Harghita 10, cod 400084, jud. Cluj Adresa: , str. Bulevardul Frăţiei nr. 6, Telefon: 0264/598 979 cod 530112, Jud. Harghita Fax: 0264/598 979 Telefon: 0266/312598 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0266312598 E-mail: [email protected] Constanta Hunedora Adresa: str. Ştefan cel Mare nr. 121, cod 900705, Adresa: Str. Aurel Vlaicu nr. 2, Deva, cod 330005, Jud. Constanţa jud. Telefon: 241/665463 Telefon: 0254/213875, 0254/214347 Fax: 241/665463 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Ialomita Covasna Adresa: , Str. Al. Odobescu nr. 4 , cod Adresa: Sf. Gheorghe, b-dul Gen. Grigore Bălan nr. 920025, jud. Ialomiţa 12, cod 520013, jud. Covasna Telefon: 0243/211640 Telefon: 0267/310645, 0267/300407/ 2311 Fax: 0243/211640 Fax: 0267/310645 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Iasi Dâmboviţa Adresa: B-dul Carol I nr. 26, Iaşi, jud. Iaşi Adresa: Str. Plutonier Diţescu Stan nr. 6, Târgovişte, Telefon: 0232/267635 cod 130015, jud. Dâmboviţa Fax: 0232/267635 Telefon: 0245/220536, 0245/207200/2307 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0245/220536 E-mail: [email protected] Ilfov Adresa: Bucureşti, str. Leaota nr. 2A, sector 6 Dolj Telefon: 021/7774993 Adresa: , str. Libertăţii nr. 34, jud. Dolj Fax: 021/7774993 Telefon: 0251/416661 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0251/419100 E-mail: [email protected] Romanian Roots, Vol. 2, No. 2, April 2013, page 8

Maramures Adresa: B-dul Bucuresti nr. 26, Mare, jud. Sibiu Maramureş Adresa: Sibiu, Str. Arhivelor nr.3, cod 550164, jud. Telefon: 0262/437948 Sibiu E-mail: [email protected] Telefon: 0269/ 208519 E-mail: [email protected] Mehedinţi Adresa: B-dul Carol I nr. 75, Drobeta Turnu- Severin, Cod 240149, jud. Mehedinţi Adresa: Suceava, strada Ştefan cel Mare nr. 33, cod Telefon: 0252/311241 720003, jud. Suceava Fax: 0252311241 Telefon: 0230/531572 (secretariat), 0230/203726 E-mail: [email protected] (relaţii cu publicul), 0230/203722 (sala de studiu) Fax: 0230/203720 Mures E-mail: [email protected] Adresa: Tîrgu-Mureş, Str. Crizantemelor, Nr. 8, cod 540073, jud. Mureş Teleorman Telefon: 0265/202372, 0265/202371 Adresa: Şos. Turnu Magurele nr.5, Alexandria, jud. Fax: 0265/235064 Teleorman, cod 140003 E-mail: [email protected] Telefon : 0247/312669 E-mail: [email protected] Neamt Adresa: Piatra Neamţ, strada V.A. Urechia nr.4- Timis 6, jud. Neamţ Adresa: Timişoara, str. Andrei Mocioni nr. 8,cod Telefon: 0233/211360 300038, jud. Timiş Fax: 0233/235035 Telefon: 0256/402371 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Olt Adresa: Slatina, str. Primăverii nr. 15, cod 230002, Adresa: Tulcea, Str. Isaccei nr. 173, judeţul Tulcea jud. Olt Telefon: 0240/537944 Telefon: 0249/436005 E-mail: [email protected] Fax: 0249/436005 E-mail: [email protected] Vâlcea Adresa: Râmnicu Vâlcea, strada General Prahova Praporgescu nr. 16, jud. Vâlcea Adresa: Str. Logofăt Tăutu nr. 3, Ploieşti, cod Telefon: 0250/731457, 0250/703155 100573, jud. Prahova Fax: 0250/731457 Telefon: 0244/525307, 0244/302356 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Vaslui Salaj Adresa: , Str. Mihail Kogălniceanu nr. 2, jud. Adresa: Str. Tudor Vladimirescu nr. 26/A, Zalău, Vaslui cod 450067, jud. Sălaj Telefon: 0235/303258 Telefon: 0260/611016 Fax: 0235/303258 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

Satu Mare Vrancea Adresa: , str. 1918 nr. 13, Adresa: Focşani, Str. Dimitrie Cantemir nr. 19, cod cod 44001, jud. Satu Mare 620098, jud. Vrancea Telefon: 0261/711102 Telefon/ Fax: 0237/ 613712 Fax: 0261/711102 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected]

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Pigeon Hill: Growing Up Romanian and Mom’s Story By George W. Trippon and Mary Trippon

Short Stories of the Life and Times 1908-1932 in Aurora, Illinois

172 pages, published 2001 by iUniverse, Inc. Available from amazon.com and other booksellers.

Reviewed by Vicki Albu

blessing the Easter baskets at church, Christmas rituals, and working in the family grocery store. He describes in great detail his sister’s 1931 wedding: fifteen bridesmaids and how they dressed, the dollar dance, kidnapping the bride.

George’s mother Mary tells of a hard life in Romania after her father emigrated to the U.S. in 1905 with about a dozen neighborhood men from Madarasul Mare, a town near Satu Mare. Mary’s brother Dan decided to go to America also. Meanwhile, Mary turned fifteen and was urged to marry, but instead she yearned for This book contains excellent firsthand America. “So many of the men in our village accounts of what it was like to live in Romania had returned from America with wonders to and the Midwest in the early part of the relate that of that far-away country. I dreamed twentieth century, when Romanian-American day and night of going there, and marriage to immigration was at its peak. some boy I had known all my life had little George W. Trippon was born in 1916 to attraction in comparison,” she wrote. Romanian immigrants, Mary Szilagyi and Mary describes her family’s daily life in George Trippon and was raised in a the village, her father’s eventual return, and how neighborhoold called Pigeon Hill in Aurora, in 1910 she was allowed to emigrate to join her Illinois. brother in , Ohio. She provides details The book is written in two sections: about the journey by ship, the strange foods they George recalls growing up in Pigeon Hill, while ate, what types of clothes people wore, and her his mother Mary recounts her emigration from arrival at Ellis Island. Romania and her experiences adjusting to life in For reasons explained in the book, Mary a new country. There are numerous black and left Cleveland for Aurora, Illinois, where she white photos. met George Trippon. Mary had known George Aurora is the home of St. Michael’s in Romania, as he had been born in the village of Romanian Greek Catholic Church, built in 1908. Rusi, not far from her hometown. They married George describes funeral traditions, including in 1911. Before they started the grocery store, memorial prayer meetings at the home of the they ran a boarding house. deceased, where each child received a cupcake For a quick and enjoyable read, this with a nickel embedded on top. book is recommend to others who are interested Other chapters conjure up vivid images in learning about the day-to-day lives of our describing holiday traditions of butchering a pig, Romanian-American ancestors. making garlic sausage and baking special treats, Romanian Roots, Vol. 2, No. 2, April 2013, page 10

Our Family Stories

Please send us your family stories, recipes, traditions, photos, etc. and we will share them in this space. Or contact [email protected] or phone (651) 402-6805 to arrange an interview.

Sarafolean Family of South Saint Paul, MN Submitted by John H. Sarafolean

In 1910 my grandfather John Sarafolean at the age of 20 left his home in Sannicolau Mare, Romania (formerly called Nagyszentmiklos, Hungary) in the county of Timis. The name means “Great Saint Nicholas” in English. Many Minnesota Romanians hail from this town. Interestingly, six miles east of Sannicolau Mare is a commune called , in German: Sarafol, in Hungarian: Sarafalva, in Serbian: Saravola, the striking similarity to the Sarafolean name is extremely curious.

My grandfather left behind his wife Sofia and infant daughter Maria, planning to send for them at a later date. His destination was the city of , with hopes of going to work at the Ford Motor Company. He got the job and after working there for a few months, he transferred to the Twin Cities Ford Plant. He then sent for his wife and young daughter to join him. Sofia and Maria traveled by train from Sannicolau Mare to Cuxhaven, Germany, a seaport at the mouth of the Elbe River. They departed from Cuxhaven on the ship Pennsylvania and arrived in the U.S. on February 22, 1912. They settled on a farm in Clear Lake, WI. My father John was born there on August 14, 1914, the exact date of the start of World War I.

Photo at left of John Sarafolean with sons Peter and John when they lived and farmed in Clear Lake, , circa 1920.

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A year later, his brother Peter was born. In 1920 my grandmother returned to Sannicolau Mare with her children Maria, John and Peter to visit family. My father told me that he and Peter were separated from their mother at the dock in Bremerhaven on the return trip. While they were frantically looking for their mother, my father recognized the family blanket hanging on a clothesline on the deck of the ship. He took his brother Peter by the hand and they stood by the blanket until their mother returned and they were reunited. In 1928 my father (age 14) and his brother Peter (age 13) quit school and got jobs at the Cudahy meat processing plant in Newport, MN. They walked down to the river every day from their home in South Saint Paul, and crossed by ferry to the plant.

My grandfather found that working at Ford and trying to farm in Wisconsin was too difficult and he decided to move to SSP where there was a settlement of Romanians, many from the same area in the old country and mostly employed at the packinghouses.

My father eventually went to work for Swift & Co. where the men would congregate at the front door of the plant every morning and wait for their name to be called to work that day. Fortunately for my father, his uncle Steve Raica was the hiring boss and my father had steady work. Peter stayed at Cudahy for many more years, finally getting a job as a government meat inspector.

My grandfather John Sarafolean died of stomach cancer in 1932. I never met him.

MY EARLIEST MEMORIES I was born in June 1934 to John Sarafolean and Beatrice Braun. My earliest memories and ones that are indelibly marked in my mind are of the Romanian funerals and the intensity of the grieving. The images of women dressed completely in black weeping and wailing at the graveside are as clear today as they were then. The services at St. Stephen’s are also memorable, with the sweet smell of incense and the chanting of the priest. My father’s sister Maria was married to the priest and was severely injured in an auto accident on the Hastings Spiral Bridge, leaving her completely paralyzed. She died in 1938.

ROLE OF RELIGION, CHURCH My father was not a religious man and did not go to church. My mother, being a German Lutheran, took my sister Mary Lou and me to Grace Lutheran Church which was conveniently close to our house. So, I was baptized in the and schooled in Lutheran Doctrine.

CONNECTIONS WITH ROMANIAN RELATIVES I have been in contact with some Sarafoleans in Timisoara via e-mail and Facebook. Silviu Sarafolean, the patriarch of the family I contacted, died in 2012 at age 65. He was a chemical engineer and a political activist who was watched closely by the Ceausescu Communist regime. He was the founder of a Baragan Deportees Organization. Silviu, age four at the time, and his family were deported along with over 40,000 other Romanians, Germans, Bulgarians and Serbs from their homes in Timis County in 1951. A political conflict with the Serbian government was the reason for the deportations. Timis County is on the border with and only sixty miles from Belgrade. The deportees were forced to settle in the Baragan Plain, a desolate mostly uninhabited section of southeastern Romania. There are no trees and temperatures can reach 112 degrees F. in summer, and winters are cold and snowy. The government had hopes of populating and developing the area.

I regret in my lack of curiosity about my Romanian heritage when I was younger. My parents and relatives were not forthcoming with much information either. My guess is that the times were tough and cruel, and it’s not hard to understand their reluctance in sharing bad memories.

Romanian Roots, Vol. 2, No. 2, April 2013, page 12