Letter from the editor
In my family, we have always been hearing about Vinnytsia.
Though my grandfather did not talk much of his life in the Old Country, his brother (who was born in Texas) made up for it with an astonishing memory, coupled with both the interest in sharing the stories of his parents and siblings, as well as a unique ability to relate them. Unfortunately, by the time I grew interested in LISTENING to the stories, all of my grandparents had passed, and much of their possessions and papers which I would now trade an arm for are lost forever.
Thankfully, my 95 year old great uncle is still happily telling stories, and always available to answer questions, list the 16 specialty knishes from his grandmother's Vinnytsia grocery shop, or serve as a sounding board for some of my wackier theories that I use to fill in the missing gaps in what could be a Hollywood blockbuster. Over the years I found that those theories, and the stories, and even the exaggerations, are what make our family histories special. In the same way that mythology works, it is the stories we share within our families that create bonds, and define who we are- not necessarily the paper trail we leave throughout our lives (although there aren't many things as special and exciting for a genealogist as finding factual proof of a story).
I gauge the start of my story with the meeting and subsequent marriage of my great grandparents. In genealogy circles, that's like trying to remember what you ate yesterday morning. But we are not a talkative family, so that's what it is. The setting where our story begins is, of course, Vinnytsia. My great grandfather, Moishe Sherman was born in Pohrebyshche, in Vinnytsia Oblast, but about 75km from the city. His bride to be, Basia Frimmer, grew up in Voroshylivka, a town about 30km to the south. There is still much to learn of the circumstances leading up to them both living in Vinnytsia, but we do know for sure that their marriage was registered in 1913, and the next 10 years of their lives became the source of endless discussions and arguments and stories.
My objective here is not to tell those stories.
With this KehilaLinks site, I hope to provide enough background and setting for your own stories- whether provable through certificates, directories, censuses, and other documentation, or not. The way I see it, our job as historians / genealogists / interested family members is not to prove or disprove the stories we tell at family gatherings. Rather, our job is to explore, learn, and appreciate the innumerable but critical circumstances which occured to allow for us to be where we are today.
It is an honor and privilege to manage the Vinnytsia KehilaLink, and I am open to comments and contributions, especially for links to stories and research resources. Last I checked, there were nearly 340 Vinnytsia family researchers on JewishGen! Any lessons you have from your research would be more than welcome. As it is, all the links are external, and reflect only my interest in providing as comprehensive a picture of the life and times in Vinnytsia and its surroundings, as possible.
(Oh, and I would be happy to trade knish recipes with anyone who can produce a photo of that Frummer grocery shop)