July 19-22, 2023, Mandan, ND
All ethnic groups must have gone through difficulties at one time or another during their historical existence. That is certainly true of the Germans from Russia who have formed themselves into an organization to keep memories. One of the sessions I attended revealed to me a powerful story that centered on a fellow who’d stepped on my foot the day before. The discussion turned to the Displaced Persons Act signed by President Truman in 1948. The man was included in that category and as a young boy participated in one of the long treks to reach safety and thus was able to come to the United States under that act. I asked him later if he remembered much of it and he replied, “I remember everything.” Then, stupidly, I asked how many days did it take. He answered somewhat irritatedly, “Days? Weeks! Months!”
The author Mark Sullivan has written a book, THE LAST GREEN VALLEY, that tells the story of that family’s flight from the advancing Russian army and the unknown future it would bring as World War II drew to a close. I was reminded of a veterinarian in Enderlin who was a DP. The young boy I was can still hear him telling Dad in his heavily accented voice to pronounce his name Ma-hi-look.
On the day before the convention we took advantage of the opportunity to do a bus tour Fort Yates with several points between. There are only a half dozen four star admirals in our navy and before we departed one of them came on board to talk about his connection to Germans from Russia. A native North Dakotan Admiral Stuart Munsch is based in Italy as the commander of our naval forces in Europe and Africa. Why he was there I’m not sure, but he soon departed with several naval aides in their crisp whites tending to him. I’m sure he was being kept apprised of the situation around the Crimea.
We toured the Catholic church in Fort Yates which features much from Indian folklore incorporated in its building. Behind the church we walked through the cemetery which surprisingly held many Germans from Russia graves with iron crosses.
One of the presenters talked of how hidden stories have a tendency to “bubble up” with the passing of time. The dark past remains unknown until researchers uncover hidden first families caused by war or political affairs. Only then could unknown half-siblings unite. Some refused to talk of their past for fear Stalin could still could have reached out to them. Real fear existed.
A sampling of sessions includes the following: Anti-German Hysteria in South Dakota in WWI, Tracing the Migration of German Colonists to South Russia, The Holodomor in Ukraine, Preserving Documents and Photographs, DNA and Genealogy, Knoefla Soup, Strudla and Kraut, How to Make “Red Eye”, plus a couple dozen more I won’t name. We eat lots of kuchen, too.
The turnout this year was large and came from several different states and Canadian provinces. Essay contests, family history research and books contests, silent auction, and good food can be found there. We always come away with ideas of pursuing our own family histories more deeply and already look forward to next year.
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