The Rochester Review, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York, USA
In the February 29 issue of The Independent, a semi-weekly newspaper in the Hudson-Berkshire region (N.Y. and Mass.), Gwen Meltzer Greene '65 wrote of her volunteer work for the United Jewish Appeal/Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of Greater New York. (Professionally, she's associate director of Bear Stearns & Co., Inc.)
"As I sit in front of my fireplace, classical music in the background and gardening catalogues all around me, it is hard to believe that just a week ago I was in Russia, in a 30-degree-below-zero blizzard, assisting in the rescue of 25 Chechnyan Jews, flying them to Israel. . . ."
She writes of one family, the Davidoffs, who had gotten word out from their hiding place that they were ready to flee. The family included an 84-year-old grandmother, a mother and father, and two sons, Sergei, 14, and Pavel, 20. "We made 'arrangements' for all five to be smuggled out in a Russian army truck to a safe house 60 miles away in Piatigorsk. . . .
"We flew in a dilapidated Aeroflot 100-seater, seatbelts broken, no
loudspeaker system, no cabin crew, our bags strewn all over the plane. But
the kids, none of whom had ever flown before (indeed, neither had any of
the adults), gravitated to each other. . . . Sergei, who 24 hours earlier
had told me he did not want to go to Israel and leave his friends, was pulling
me over to the window and yelling, 'Gwen, sunshine,' and 'Gwen,
shalom.' Sergei's mother, speechless, tears streaming down her face,
hugged me and gave me her silver necklace to keep. . . . Pavel, who had never
said a word to me, tapped me on the arm and said simply, 'Home.'"
Copyright 1996, University of Rochester