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A group of young women. Rita's great-aunt, Anna Letkemann sister of her grandmother, Maria (Letkemann) Barkowsky is second from the right in the front row. As a single woman, Anna Letkemann was sent to Siberia and came to Canada in the 1940s.

This photo is of The Mennonite Church (General Conference) choir in Kleefeld. Peter Peters, the leader of the choir and maternal grandfather of Marg Boldt may be the man seated in the middle of the middle row (4th from the right).

A group of men during their time of Alternative Service. Jakob Bergen, Elvera’s father is seated, the 3rd from the left. The man seated 1st at the left may be Martin Duerksen, brother-in-law of Jakob Bergen. The two men in front are Jacob Dyck at the left and Johann Duerksen? at the right. This is one of four pictures which Jakob Bergen sent home to the family while working in Alternative Service during WW I. See # 3, 4, and 5 which are related to Alternative Service.

People of Blumenort are gathered around the mass grave of 27 men. One night they were all herded into the basement of a house and shot to death. Two men related to Elvera’s husband were among those who died. Much of the village of Blumenort was destroyed by fire that night.

This photo of the Halbstaedter Musikverein was taken in Halbstadt circa 1908 and given to Alida’s grandmother, Frau Heinrich Unruh, on her birthday, January 14, 1914 by her brother David Schellenberg, a horn player who is wearing a light suit and is seated in the second row. This unique photo has survived two world wars and The Great Trek out of Russia in 1943.

This photo is of "Our oldest daughter, Lelja, with her family: her husband Hans Hildebrandt, formerly of Schoenau, and daughter, Kaetchen, five years old and son, Haenschen, two years old.

This photo is taken in the garden, at an after-wedding for Rita and Hans.
Front row (l-r): Sara, Anna, Rita, Hans (Lena's son), Lena
Back row (l-r): Viktor, Peter and Egon Neumann.

This photo is "For the G. Ennses"
Back row (l-r): Agnes with Kolja, I, Agnes' W. Wiebe
Centre row (l-r): Erna, my Sara, Lolja
Front row (l-r): Erna's three children, Lolja's two children

This photo is of "Hans Fast, as a 19 year old student at the Chortitza Teachers Training Institute and as a new teacher, 1914."

This photo is of Hans Fast with his grandson, Heini Wiebe. "For Brother Gerhard as a remembrance of his brother-in-law."

The Unruh Family, parents and 8 children, their ages given in brackets. Seated (left to right): David (20); the mother, Maria (nee Schellenberg); the father, Heinrich (59); Abraham (14). Standing (left to right): Maria (11); Peter (16); Erna Neumann (wife of David); Anna (25), Alida’s mother; Helena (26); Heinrich (23); Kaethe (10). Alida’s grandfather, Heinrich Unruh, returned home to his family on Dec. 31, 1938 after enduring 6 years of hard labour in a prison camp (Gefangenschaft). The entire family had suffered serious consequences due to his imprisonment. The four oldest siblings had to work at manual labour however received only 50% of their wages because they were considered “enemies of the people”. Ten-year-old Kaethe has the distended belly of malnutrition. She was also quite ashamed of her underpants, which were her brother’s cut-off pants and are visible under the dress. This photo was published in: Harry Loewen, ed. Road to Freedom, Mennonites Escape the Land of Suffering (Kitchener, ON: Pandora Press, 2000), p.66.

This photo is of Heinrich Enns, brother to Olga Enns’ father Gerhard Enns is with another man in the forest. Heinrich is probably the one standing behind the other man, to the right of the man holding the horse. This photo could be related to his Alternative Service during WW I, or, his work as an evangelist. Heinrich Enns worked as an evangelist during the chaotic times of the 1920s when preaching was forbidden. Because of this he was hunted down by the Bolsheviks, suffering severely because of this to the point of death. The Mennonites asked the Bolsheviks to finally leave him alone. He was brought to a house where he could die in peace. He died in the late 1920s when Olga’s family was already living in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.
Note: The original has been donated (Acc. No. 2010-025).