We look forward to rescheduling our program with Bonnie Burke, Carpatho-Rusyn Society Branch Coordinator of the southeastern states. Her presentation was originally scheduled for early April. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we have temporarily suspended all in-person COGS programming but look forward to putting her back on our calendar as soon as it is safe to do so!
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”
Emma Lazarus
Come, hear and see the extraordinary story of immigration at the turn of the century. We have read and heard stories, but this DVD presentation captures the rare and complete visual experience of the immigrant’s journey from the poor, war torn villages, the cart ride to the train station, the boat ride in steerage to their arrival at Ellis Island. The focus is in the coal mining jobs in Northeastern Pennsylvania, but can be applied to any area where immigrants came to find work “where the streets are lined with gold.”
Bonnie Burke is an active member of the Carpatho-Rusyn Society. She has served on the board as a trustee and is presently a Chapter/Branch Liaison. She is from Cleveland, Ohio where she served as President of the Cleveland Chapter for over ten years. Since moving to South Carolina in 2011, she has formed branches in the southeastern states of North and South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Her passion for Carpatho-Rusyns, who do not have a country of their own and nearly became extinct before 1989, has led her to study Rusyn culture at Presov University in Slovakia and revisit last year to connect with family.
Image: “Photograph of a Group of Immigrants Outside a Building on Ellis Island” courtesy of The U.S. National Archives https://catalog.archives.gov/id/595669.
Clarke-Oconee Genealogical Society 