In the first days of the war, the Nazi’s bombed Poltzk.

“Father was in the Red Army and had gone to the front.  Grandfather and grandmother decided to stay and wait out the war in our hometown, but mother decided to leave..  We all went to the train station – she said we would try to find Father.  I remember running at the railroad station, crowds of people, all running.  I was the 4^th of six children, five years old – the youngest of us was 1 month old .  Everyone was running because the Nazi’s were bombing the tracks.  After it stopped, we sat by the train, in the station, for one week.

“Someone told Father we were in the train station waiting to leave town.  He came back and found us.  He grabbed us all and shoved everyone onto the train.  The tracks were cleared and the train started to move.  We all went to St. Petersburg (Leningrad) to stay with relatives.

“When we got to Leningrad my father returned to the front and Mother took us to her relatives.  But they would not take us in.  They said it was because there were too many children.”

With Zinaida’s father back at the front and her mother with nowhere to take the children, she left Leningrad.  Hitler was now beginning to attack the city and her relatives told her they were afraid to let her stay with them.  Amidst the bombing of Leningrad, they left once again.�

“Father had told mother he would leave messages at whatever PO Box he came across to let her know where he was.�Mama took us children and began following the messages from him.  For 11 months we followed the trail of messages and continued to move so we could stay up with Father.”

“While we were constantly on the move, Mother sold or traded for bread and whatever food she could get. The one thing I remember more than anything else is always being hungry…

“In one town Mother got a job sewing; she was a professional seamstress.  All of us were put into Children’s Homes while she worked.  Our food was not very good and very sparse.  A lot of time I gave my food to my brothers and sisters. �When the train moved on again, or Mother heard from Father, we moved again.

“Several times one or more of the children would get left behind because the train would suddenly take off and not all were on board.  Sometimes it was because one of us had to run to the toilet or getting some food.  Often we were boiling water for drinking as we could not do that on the train. The train would take off with some children on the train and mother in the station or vice versa.  Then whoever was on the train would have to take a train back or wait for the others to catch up. Everyone had dysentery and we suffered greatly with it. We also had lice and other sicknesses as well as malnuitrition.

“At one time we came close to China, to Tashkent.  Father was in Uzbekistan.  When we got to the train station in Tashkent, the trains did not move and we sat for 2 weeks outside on our luggage.  Because there were so many people sitting and waiting and so many were sick with various illnesses, the government became afraid their would be an epidemic.  Their solution was to send everyone to different towns.

“Kolkant, a town one hundred kilometers from Tashkent, was where Father was stationed.  We had not heard from him, had no contact for quite some time, and did not know where he was.  During his stay there came many times to the train station hoping to see the family.

“One night he dreamt he was holding his 9 year old daughter, Rose, and singing to her.  He woke up and decided to go meet the next train because of his dream.  When he got there the train had just arrived.  He walked up to one of the entrances of the train and Mother, all of us children and his brother got off the train right in front of him!   What a surprise!   It was a miracle that we were all together!

“Now though Father was glad to see us he had a new problem – where to put us.  He went to his commander and told him about his large family being there.  His commander called everywhere to find a place for us.  Because of who he was he eventually found a college in town that gave us a room to live in and food.

“We stayed in the college until it was time for the Army to move on.  His commander called him in and told Father he was a ‘hero’ and he needed to go to us, ‘his children.'   His commander released him from the Red Army, told him he did not have to fight anymore and they moved west without him.

Zinaida’s father got a job at the college and they all remained living there.  They received some food coupons but it was very little.

“I recall begging my parents to allow me to go catch something for us to eat.  Of course, the only thing that was running around to catch were rats.

“Since we did not have enough food, we were all placed in Children’s Homes again, each one to a different home according to our ages.  We did get to see one another.  One time the oldest sibling received a sweet candy on a stick.  They brought it to all of us and we each got a lick until it was all gone.  It was a very difficult time.

“During our time of moving around we stole products to make oil - out of anything at all – motor oil, waste products – we didn’t waste anything.

When my parents came to get us out of the Children’s Homes, my brother was found to have his head swollen.  It was almost twice its normal size.  He had encephalitis.  My mother took care of him.

“We learned many of my father’s family in Leningrad, his brother and his family, had died of starvation during the Blockade.  Others, the ones who had refused to allow Mother and us to stay with them, came to Mother and Father for help.  They had escaped Leningrad and needed places to stay.  My mother forgave them and took in their baby boy.

“Four brothers of Zinaida’s father and three brothers of her mother died in the war.   Much of her family was lost.

In the first days of the war, the Nazi’s bombed Poltzk.

“Father was in the Red Army and had gone to the front.  Grandfather and grandmother decided to stay and wait out the war in our hometown, but mother decided to leave..  We all went to the train station – she said we would try to find Father.  I remember running at the railroad station, crowds of people, all running.  I was the 4^th of six children, five years old – the youngest of us was 1 month old .  Everyone was running because the Nazi’s were bombing the tracks.  After it stopped, we sat by the train, in the station, for one week.

“Someone told Father we were in the train station waiting to leave town.  He came back and found us.  He grabbed us all and shoved everyone onto the train.  The tracks were cleared and the train started to move.  We all went to St. Petersburg (Leningrad) to stay with relatives.

“When we got to Leningrad my father returned to the front and Mother took us to her relatives.  But they would not take us in.  They said it was because there were too many children.”

With Zinaida’s father back at the front and her mother with nowhere to take the children, she left Leningrad.  Hitler was now beginning to attack the city and her relatives told her they were afraid to let her stay with them.  Amidst the bombing of Leningrad, they left once again.�

“Father had told mother he would leave messages at whatever PO Box he came across to let her know where he was.�Mama took us children and began following the messages from him.  For 11 months we followed the trail of messages and continued to move so we could stay up with Father.”

“While we were constantly on the move, Mother sold or traded for bread and whatever food she could get. The one thing I remember more than anything else is always being hungry…

“In one town Mother got a job sewing; she was a professional seamstress.  All of us were put into Children’s Homes while she worked.  Our food was not very good and very sparse.  A lot of time I gave my food to my brothers and sisters. �When the train moved on again, or Mother heard from Father, we moved again.

“Several times one or more of the children would get left behind because the train would suddenly take off and not all were on board.  Sometimes it was because one of us had to run to the toilet or getting some food.  Often we were boiling water for drinking as we could not do that on the train. The train would take off with some children on the train and mother in the station or vice versa.  Then whoever was on the train would have to take a train back or wait for the others to catch up. Everyone had dysentery and we suffered greatly with it. We also had lice and other sicknesses as well as malnuitrition.

“At one time we came close to China, to Tashkent.  Father was in Uzbekistan.  When we got to the train station in Tashkent, the trains did not move and we sat for 2 weeks outside on our luggage.  Because there were so many people sitting and waiting and so many were sick with various illnesses, the government became afraid their would be an epidemic.  Their solution was to send everyone to different towns.

“Kolkant, a town one hundred kilometers from Tashkent, was where Father was stationed.  We had not heard from him, had no contact for quite some time, and did not know where he was.  During his stay there came many times to the train station hoping to see the family.

“One night he dreamt he was holding his 9 year old daughter, Rose, and singing to her.  He woke up and decided to go meet the next train because of his dream.  When he got there the train had just arrived.  He walked up to one of the entrances of the train and Mother, all of us children and his brother got off the train right in front of him!   What a surprise!   It was a miracle that we were all together!

“Now though Father was glad to see us he had a new problem – where to put us.  He went to his commander and told him about his large family being there.  His commander called everywhere to find a place for us.  Because of who he was he eventually found a college in town that gave us a room to live in and food.

“We stayed in the college until it was time for the Army to move on.  His commander called him in and told Father he was a ‘hero’ and he needed to go to us, ‘his children.'   His commander released him from the Red Army, told him he did not have to fight anymore and they moved west without him.

Zinaida’s father got a job at the college and they all remained living there.  They received some food coupons but it was very little.

“I recall begging my parents to allow me to go catch something for us to eat.  Of course, the only thing that was running around to catch were rats.

“Since we did not have enough food, we were all placed in Children’s Homes again, each one to a different home according to our ages.  We did get to see one another.  One time the oldest sibling received a sweet candy on a stick.  They brought it to all of us and we each got a lick until it was all gone.  It was a very difficult time.

“During our time of moving around we stole products to make oil - out of anything at all – motor oil, waste products – we didn’t waste anything.

When my parents came to get us out of the Children’s Homes, my brother was found to have his head swollen.  It was almost twice its normal size.  He had encephalitis.  My mother took care of him.

“We learned many of my father’s family in Leningrad, his brother and his family, had died of starvation during the Blockade.  Others, the ones who had refused to allow Mother and us to stay with them, came to Mother and Father for help.  They had escaped Leningrad and needed places to stay.  My mother forgave them and took in their baby boy.

“Four brothers of Zinaida’s father and three brothers of her mother died in the war.   Much of her family was lost.