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... on the Internet ...

latest update: January 2020 ...

Since the 2005 celebrations, many of the URLs mentionned on the website for that date have been archived by their creators. That is to say that those particular pages are now -- no longer avilable.
Sorry for that ...

Below, are listed the few pages that managed to survive ...




Pskov Sister City Update

“Awaiting New News from Russia”

by R.F.R., AOW editor

Natasha and Sasha are on a trip to Russia. Just prior to leaving this happy note was received: “Anna Korshakova has had two wonderful Fall & Spring semesters on full scholarship at Ferrum College. Heart felt “Thanks” go to the many who have made her school year a memorable one. She says that although she is looking forward to seeing her family and friends, she is very sad at leaving Ferrum College. The Ferrum faculty, staff and students long will remember this bubbly, outgoing, kind, helpful young lady, whom we borrowed from Pskov P.I. for an academic year. She has made an indelible impression on all with whom she has had contact. God speed, Annachka!”

[Natasha and Sasha will have much to tell upon their return.]

Mentioning different community service hats which our membership wear (eg. Lijiang page), this AOW editor recently had a surprise revelation on a visit to the Bradley Free Clinic in Roanoke. I found Natasha in a cubby hole office, fingers flying on a CP keyboard, very much in charge of patient registration. Her smile and obvious joy in helping, made the editor’s day!

Another surprise came when I received the BFC Newsletter (www.bradleyfreeclinic.com) May 2004 issue. On page 5, the article “From East to West: One Volunteer’s Journey” by Mat Despard, was a fine snippet biography of Natasha.. Included was a photo, “Natasha Petersen at the patient check-in computer,” which documents my first paragraph experience. I called Estelle Avner, BFC Executive Director, for permission to use the article, which was granted, while she lauded Natasha’s service.

“It’s not unusual to a meet a volunteer at BFC who has had a rich repertoire of life experiences. It is unusual, however, to meet a volunteer whose life has taken so many interesting twists and turns. Such is the case for Natasha Petersen, a retired teacher who has volunteered at the clinic for 14 yrs.

Natasha’s parents met in Vladivostok, Russia after her Mother fled east from Moscow following the Bolshevik Revolution. In the early 1920s, they decided to leave Russia altogether and flee to China, where Natasha was born in Tientsin, a northern city with a large number of foreign nationals. During the Japanese occupation of China in WW II, she and her family were sent to Weihsien, China where they spent 2.5 yrs. in an Internment Camp. About this experience, Natasha remarked, “Many civilian and POW camps were very, very bad, but we lucked out --- ours was not so bad.”

Natasha came to the U.S. shortly after WW II after marrying a U.S. Marine in China. After stays in N.Y., California, Washington, D.C., her husband landed a job in radio in Lexington, VA. She helped her parents come to the U.S. from Australia, where they had relocated after fleeing another communist takeover---the last one in China. After serving as a Marine during the Korean War, her husband returned to work for WSLS in Roanoke.

Natasha taught Russian, English and Spanish in Roanoke City Schools [PHHS] for 32 yrs. before retiring 10 yrs. ago. Though her master’s degree is in Russian she is also certified in Spanish and English.” [A paragraph follows which enumerates Natasha’s involvement in RVSC & Pskov SCC- well known to us.]

“As Natasha had witnessed first hand what health care was/is like in the former Soviet Union, I was interested to know here opinion of the US health system. “There always seems to be a way people, including the uninsured, get the care they need in Roanoke.” She said. She was not sure if the same can be said of other communities, and added that the Free Clinic is a wonderful organization with which to be connected.

Natasha has two great sons, Kent and Don, a wonderful daughter-in-law, Cecilia, and two super grandsons, Erik and Nicholas. Both Kent and Don know Russian.”

M.D.

Pskov Executive Committee from April 1, 2004 to March 31, 2005

Chair: Natasha Petersen

Vice-Chair: Dr. Hugh Wells

Secretary: Bill Kenny

Directors: Ed Ewing; Dr. Sasha Saari; Liz Stone; Lawanna Walsh; Peggy Wells

N.D.L.R. (Webmaster)
It was Natasha Petersen who in 1999/2000 took the initiative of creating and organizing a chatlist on "Topica" to enable us, the ex-prisoners of the Weihsien Concentration Camp to exchange messages. We were all babies, children or teenagers in 1945. Many of the grown ups were already gone in 2000 or too old to use the Internet. Rapidly came the necessity of exchanging photos and documents between us an thus was created (a few years later) the website that you are now visiting.
Leopold.