Monday, July 7, 2008

Crimea - A Black Sea Jewel

The beautiful Crimea – including its old German churches, cemeteries, homes and unusual sights – will be explored in a presentation during the 2008 International Convention of Germans from Russia in Casper, Wyoming. Entitled Crimea – A Black Sea Jewel, the session will also include research information for various parishes. Whether or not you’re Crimean, you’ll enjoy this workshop, scheduled for 3:45 p.m., Thursday, July 31st.

The five-day convention of Germans from Russia will take place at the Parkway Plaza Hotel and Convention Center in Casper July 28th - August 3rd. The Crimean workshop will be in Adrian's Room near the front of the hotel.

Wanda Huber Hopkins of Spokane, Washington will present the workshop. Her grandparents emigrated from Crimea, Bessarabia and Grossliebental to the Dakotas – eventually settling in North Dakota. Wanda was born and raised in Hazen, North Dakota. She later moved to Spokane, Washington, where she co-founded the Inland Northwest Chapter of GRHS, and she is a director and secretary of the chapter. She is also on the GRHS Board of Directors and serves as secretary. Wanda transcribes German and Russian church records, co-chairs the Crimean Records Retrieval Committee, and is a spokesperson and chapter director for the Crimea Regional Interest Group. She is a Village Coordinator for Crimean Villages, serves as a member of various GRHS committees, and is a Family History Center librarian.

Wanda says she so enjoyed Bob Schneider’s Ukrainian tour in 2006, that she plans a return trip this fall.

On the last leg of a lengthy car trip “around home” to visit relatives, courthouses and cemeteries, Wanda’s granddaughter – in the back seat – softly said to her friend, “Whew! Awnie sure spends a lot of time visiting relatives – even the dead ones!”

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