Faces of the Community

MARK BUSLOV

Where does your family come from?

My childhood and youth were spent in the small provincial town of Pochep, Bryansk region. Before the war, it was a real shtetl with more than a dozen active synagogues. Pochep is the hometown of my mother, who was born and died there. She said that in this place Jews made up the majority of the inhabitants, and even local Russians spoke Yiddish. When the war began, the family was evacuated in a such a huge hurry that my mother, Dveira Panteleevna, and my father, Nokhim Yeuda Leibovich, ended up in different cars. My parents did not know anything about each other’s fate for a year and a half. Three small children remained in my mother's arms – two of her own children, and a nephew. My mother spent the entire war escaping the front, moving from place to place to stay ahead of the troop movements, from the Smolensk to the Saratov region. For a short time in the Smolensk region, my mother even ended up in the zone of German occupation, and she had a yellow star sewn on her sleeve – a mandatory mark for all Jews. It was saved only by the fact that the Soviet troops quickly liberated this territory.

My parents met in the Saratov region in 1942. Thank G-d, the Germans did not reach Saratov. I was born in 1943, a few months after the Battle of Stalingrad, on the other side of Saratov. My family was evacuated there. During the evacuation, my elder brother Pavel and my mother's nephew died of starvation. At that time, all of my father's documents were lost, and he could take any name and surname that would sound more acceptable in a communist country. But he chose to retain his full Jewish name and paternal last name.

My father came from the Belarusian city of Rogachev, which also had a very large Jewish history. He said that his father, Leiba Buslov, was involved in the manufacture of tar – a thick, black substance derived from birch stumps. They used it to lubricate tarpaulin boots (so that they do not let water through) and wheels.

After the war, our family returned to our hometown, Pochep. There were so few Jews left there that they could not even gather a minyan (a quorum of ten men for prayers). Practically everyone who did not make the evacuation in time or who chose to stay was shot.

Although I do not know the full history of my family, because I did not find my grandparents, I remember well how Passover was celebrated in our family. I remember that once at our house they even baked matzah in the oven. My m other used to make wonderful stuffed fish.

What is your profession?

I am a chemist by profession. I graduated from the Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology.

How did you personally experience anti-Semitism?

I'll tell you about one case. In Leningrad, I lived in a hostel where there were seven people in a room. One day I came into the room and see that my nightstand is pasted over with yellow, six-pointed stars. Everyone, of course, was waiting for my angry reaction. But instead I said: “Thank G-d, the room has acquired a Jewish look and adopted the Jewish faith.” To which one of the inhabitants (the one who glued the nightstand) said: “It's a pity that you were not all shot during the war.”

My wife, Vera Grigoryevna Kuntsman, is a native Muscovite. I met her when I came to Moscow to visit my aunt. She is a medical professional. She graduated from the medical college at the Kremlin Hospital, after which she worked there. For our daughter, we also planned a medical education. When the time came for her to pursue a higher education, we were going to apply to a medical institute. But knowledgeable people explained that this should not be done, since it is almost impossible for a Jewish girl to enter there. Our daughter decided to enter a technical university related to electronics. At the very first exam, she was put in a separate row. She did not pass the exam. The specialist, to whom we showed her examination task, said that the task was from the category of unsolvable. The daughter said that there were girls and boys of Jewish appearance in her row, and none of them could complete the tasks. Because it was impossible!

My wife's father, Grigory Aronovich Kuntsman, came from the town of Khislavichi, Smolensk region. He studied in cheder and remained a traditional Jew throughout his life. Thanks to this, Jewish holidays were always celebrated in my wife's family. He went through two wars - the Finnish and Patriotic Wars, and was a participant in the Battle of Stalingrad, about which he retained terrible memories for the rest of his life. My wife and I lived together in Moscow for 25 years before immigrating to Canada. We came as a big family – with a daughter, grandson and my wife's mother. Therefore, I took any job, as it was necessary to survive. Gradually, supporting each other, we managed to rebuild our lives. My grandson was circumcised here, and we began to