John Bunicci

Hello Ashley; Sorry for the delay! Page1) It was a pleasure to help you with your family history project! Here I added, some more details about our family, which may be of interest to you and our extended family. It would be appreciated by our future generations if other branches of our family would write their life experiences. Not to be published for the general population! Cherso, its Early History The island of Cres (Cherso) is located on the NortheasternAdriatic sea, which is part of the Mediterranean sea, Ruled for centuries by the Venetian Republic which was then a Powerfull Maritime force on the Mediterranean sea; alternating with some brief Slavic periods. During this time the Mediterranean sea was infestes with pirates who, mostly at night, were raiding coastal Towns and Villages, stealing livestock and whatever else they could carry away. Therefore these Communities oganized: Built defensive walls, fortresses etc. To minimize these incursions.The Town of Cherso buit massive stone walls several meters high and about one meter thick surrounding the town, including part the inner harbor. On the Eastern side of this wall were built two huge portal through which residents could exit/enter the Town. During the pirating periods the huge doors of these portals would be closed in the evenings and opened in the mornings. There was also a heavy chain strung between two stone pillars leading into Cherso’s inner harbor, which were lowered and raised during these periods to prevent Pirate boats from entering the inner harbor. The street where our former house is located,#8Via Fortezza, ( Put Fortece in Croatian). At the Western end of this street, during the late medieval period , was erected a high, stone fortress for observation and defense. From its open upper floor one can see most of the house’s roofs of the whole Town. Our earliest ancestors named Bunicich, I traced back to the year1620 ( see the copy of our “FamilyTree) which I constructed during the years about 200,0 utilizind the Mormon Church data and gave a copy to Rose Farrell and some other other members of our families; maybe also to Chris? the Mormon Church gathered Births, Marriages and Deaths records from various parts of the world, including Cres, Croatia. Those records were microfilmed and stored at their Headquarter in Salt Lake City, Utah. Anyone may see their Index of availiable microfilms then ordering them throug their local Mormon Church, one of whch is located on Terriville Rd. Terriville Suffolk, NY, and view the same on their microfilm viwer.. Cherso, before and duringWorldWar1,(WW1) was ruled by the Austro-Hungarian Empire therefore our parents and greatgrandparents were Austrtians, As also were two of my Father’s sisters: Mercedes, and Ida, who were Nuns in a Convent in Budapest, Hungary all of them were born during that period. During WWI My father and and other able young men were drafted into the (dark center)Austria (AustroHungarian Empire) (page2) Austrian Army then sent to various Eastern fronts. My father was sent to fight the Russians on the Ukranian front, where he was wounded and taken prisoner. My mother’s brother was sent to the Bosnian front where he was killed at the beginning of that war: (1914-to 1918), which was called “The Great War to end all Wars! “ The Central Powers: (Germany,Austria- Hungary, and Turkey) were opposed by the Allies: Russia, France, Great Britain, Belgium, Serbia and Italy; later joined by Japan, and the USA. The war, which ended in November 1918, involved the mobilization of 65 million men; nearly nine million died and about 22 million were wounded. At the end of that war parts of the territory belonging to Austria, including Cherso, was ceded to the victors, which included Italy. My father returned to Cherso, which after the war was given to Italy; married Giorgia Santulin in August 22-1922, had six children: Antonio “Tone” born 1923; Natale “Nadalin” (your grandfather) “Chris” in English, born 1924, Giorgio born1927, Maria 1931, Giovanni “Nino” born in1934 (John) and Giuseppe Joseph born 1941, During the Italian rule of Cherso and the other territories ceded to Italy after WW1 the Italian Govenment encouraged residents to Italianize their last name in exchange for Governmental benefits: my father, a middle class farmer, received some farmland for as long as he operated those farms. It was the reason for modifying his Slavic family name from Bunicich, to the Italianized “Bunicci”. December 1 1939 Italy enters WW 2 In 1942 my father died in Cherso, Italy, of pneumonia ; few months later my oldest brotherAntonio was drafted in the Italian Navy, shortly later my brother Natale, was drafted in the Italian Army. My brother Giorgio was Cherso’s town’s Baker whose services were needed by the Town to make bread, so he was temporarily excluded from military service.The care of our farms, horse and 4 milking cows fell to my mother, me and with occasional hired help. I learned how to milk and feed the cows And ride, bareback, our horse named Rossa, without falling from her all too often! (page3) Soon after my father’s death my aunt Antonia “zia Tona” took me to Trieste where she was working as a servantant and had an apartment. For few weeks I staid in Trieste, with her until there began the dangers of aerial bombardments, so she sent me back to Cherso by boat, accompanied by Ardo Filini, owner of Villa Filini in Cherso.To keep me occupied during the voyage Sgnor Filini bought me a tiny canon which could shoot rice grains, there was no rice availiable so I never used it! In 1942-3! the King of Italy,Vittorio Emanuele,removed “Il Duce” as Fascist Leader of Italy thereby withdrawing Italy from WW2. Germany, who was Italy’s Ally, was furious and considered the Italians traitors! so they invaded Northen Italy causing the disbandment of the ItalianArmy thus leaving the Italian soldiers free to go home, including my brothers, Antonio and Natale, who changed into civilian clothes, was able to reach Trieste where our aunt Antonia, our mother’s sister lived helping Natale to reachCherso safely. His brother Antonio, who was in the Italian Navy, and other Italian soldiers were arrested (actually presented by their Commander to theGermans) then sent to a prisoners of war camp in Gottinggen,Southern Germany as a forced laborer working in a factory making aluminum aircraft parts for the German Airforce and dodging American bombing raids until being liberated by the Anglo-American troops near the end of WW2. The first Communist invasions of the Island of Cherso 1943 the Island of Cherso was occupied, for the first time, by the Communist Army of Marshal Tito,they were looking for young men to forcibily induce into its Army,without succes! So they ordered all men of military age, icluding my sister’s future housband, Alvise Bommarco, also Teo Sabini, etc. to present themselves to the military authorities then transported them to the montainous forests on the mainland East of Cherso where Tito’s Army was waging a guerilia war against the Germans and her Allies. Many of those young men, never returning home alive, including; our adjacent neighbor’s son. Natale, who just arrived from Italy as a disbanded Italian soldier, was ordered to present himself to Tito’s military authorities, but our mother went to speak to the Army Commander about Natale: the only adult in our family, being indispensabile for running our farms, and household, also with three minor children and her oldest son, Antonio being a prisoner of war in Germany, loss of our father who died of pneumonia the year before, in 1942,our mother succeded at convincing the Military Commander! Natale would remain in Cherso, but: he would have to serve as a nightime (page4) military guard for Tito’s army at the Town’s various street intersections. One night, while Natale was guarding a nearby roads intersection he saw the shadow of someone walking nearby – As he was previously instructed by his Commander that if he saw someone at the intersection to yell 3 times (in Croatian) stop! stop! Stop! = stoj ,stoj,stoj if the person would not stop, Natale had to shoot his rifle into the air once, so he did! the shadow disappeared! The following morning he reported the incident to his Commander, who commended him for a job well done! The shadow Natale saw was of the same Commander! who was checking the intersectons to see if his guards were doing their Job! The German Invasion Few monts later, in 1943 when the German troops invaded Cherso, chasing Tito’s Communist troops East,accross the Adriatic sea to the mainland. During the German ocupation, because of English air raids around Cherso were frequent, we went to live few kilometers North of the town of Cherso, in our reatively large farm by the name of “Polje” where there was a primitive dry stones shelter for cooking and sleeping. During this period large formations of American B52 stratofortres bombers flying high, sometime, hundreds of them! were flying North towar Germany, were passing high over Cherso, for hours, on their way from their bases in Southern Italy or Northern Africa to bomb German targets, including Gottonggen, where my oldest brother Antonio was a POW working in an aluminum factotry manifacturing parts for German aircrafts. When their air-raid sirens sounded he had to scurry into the air-raid shelter: a deep hole dug in the ground. After the American planes dropped their bombs (I was told) they flew NEast to their England bases. If they had problems on board they flew back toSouthern Italy, passing low over Cherso. On a clear day I saw one of these Giant B52 Stratofortress, from where I was, on our farm by the named “Castel” North of the Town of Cherso; This huge plane was flying relatively low, making large circles overhead and every so often I would see a puff of smoke followed by small white discs, about 10 or more… ( Later I learned that the smoke was caused by opening the airplane hatch for the crew to jump out; The white discs were their parachutes opening after bailing out. I saw these parachutes being carried by the wind toward the Southern part of Cherso.I wastold that the Germans captured some of the crew members; One flyier drowned in Lake Vrana (Vranky jezero) the only fresh water lake on the Island of Cherso. (It was speculated that the parachutist may have see the reflections of the surrounding woods and medows from the calm water of the lake then steered his parachute in it and drowned.) (page5) The plane finally dove into the sea, not far from the Western shore of the Island and sank, leaving a plume of smoke billowing upward. Quite often, when the sea was calm, I could see, from the top of the Cres Nwestern hill its silhouette at the bottom of the sea. ________________________________ My older Brother Natale was making himself scarce during the German occupation of Cherso: went into hiding himself on our farms and stables until the second invasion, in the Spring of 1945, by Tito’s massive, Comunist Army who, with the help of the Engish Navy’s troops-Carriers which transported Tito’s Army from the Croatian Mainland Western shores to the Eastern coast of of the island of Cherso to defeat the Germans, who surrendered early on that day to Tito’s Partisans who led them near the Town’s Cemetery: ordered them to dig a large hole in the ground then shot and burried them. Years later some German relatives of those dead German soldiers had their remains exumed and brought to Germany. Now the Graveyard is a Memorial maintained by some Germans who lost relatives in Cherso toward the end of WW2. Some ItalianFascist soldiers, mainly native from the island of Cherso, who fought to the end of that day; until their Commander, who had his Command Post in the Elementary School, (which I attended previously), dismissed them and told them to save themselves whichever way they could; Their Commander surrendered,to the Communists: Tried,convicted and few months later was executed. The day of the 2nd Communist invasion of Cherso: During most of the War schools were generally closed so I had to help our family with our farms, cows, including feeding and milking them. Early on the day of the second invasion of Cherso by Tito’s Communist Troops, as usual, I was taking our cows to pasture. About one hour later, my brother Natale, on horseback, reached me and told me to come home right-away because a Military invasion began by Tito’s Army Troops who were ferried by English Warships to the Eastern Shores of Cherso The Germans, who had their hadquarters on the SW part of the Town, surrendered first. Most of them were Marched to a field near the Town’s Cemetery; Ordered to dig a large hole in the ground, shot and burried there. (page6) The Italian Fascists who fought most of the day. On the afternoon on that day their commander dismissed them as a fighting unit and told them to save themselves whichever way they could; He surrendered to the Communist,was judged, convicted then, few months later, Executed. The milk cows are iherently slow and slower yet when they have to return in the barn still hungry. It took hours for us to reach home. Meanwhile I had an unobstructed view of the town and Tito’s Troops descending down the Eastern hills, SEast from my position, toward the city; firing Rifles, Mortars, signal flares, etc, then saw some buildings near the Italian Fascists headquarters burning. To reach home I would have to go left (South) on the intersecting Cemetery Rd. then West to # 8, Via Fortezza where our home and barns were, But, before the intersection of the Road of Smergo there was a group of Tito’s soldiers who would not let me go home the way I wanted because at that time of the day the fighting front was there. After waiting a while I asked if I could go in another direction: to the right, (North), away from the Town? they let me go. As soon the cows and I exited on the Cemetery road to go North: around me I heard the wistles of bullets and the sound of a machine gun originating from the Town’s end of Turion Road. Maybe because of the distance (more than 200 meters?) the fighters coud not distinguish the figures; or maybe they were just panicking and shoot at anything that moved? Thank GOD the Italian Fascists who, were mostly from the island of Cherso, and fired that machine-gun toward us, missed us! (Later I learned that Italian Fascists were statoned at that end of the TurionRoad from where the machine-gun was fired toward me) I Took a Road North to Madalenski where another road leading West to the S.Salvador Rd. then South to Via Crucis, to a Road which opens on Via Fortezza, few meters East of the Fortezza itself. On the Road there was a long line of Tito’s Partisans crouched behind its Eastern stone wall of the road-some of them asking me for Mleko(Milk). The Commander of those Troops did not want to let me to pass to Via Fortezza because of continuous fighting in that area. Sometime later I pointed to the Commander where our stables and house were Finally, after a while he let me go. All of a sudden I saw my mother exiting from our rich neighbor’s palatial house and run to open the doors to our stables, secured the cows, then I went with her in the neighbor’s house cellar where were many other neighbors of ours taking refuge from the fightings. After a while, one of the owners of that house came in the cellar to ask me if I have seen the invading soldiers and who they were? I told him “I do not know who they are but they have a red star on their helmet and speak Croatian!”. (Via (page7) Fortezza known as N.8 Put Fortece) where our house and stables were–are? Fortezza) is a stone Fort built during the Late Middle Ages) for defending Cherso from Pirate raiders who infested the seas around the Adriatic Islands and coastal towns.) —————————————————————————– During WW2 between 1943 and 1945 Cherso was often bombarded by English bombers, with the aim of destroying shipyards and sinking any ships in the harbor, were frequent . Few times we also had naval bombardments, usually at night, from English warships often stationed outside Cherso’s Harbor; also small English warplanes were raiding cargo-boats which were carryng food provision from Fiume, (now Rjeka) to Cherso. One day, while I was on the SWestern shores of Cherso’s Outer harbor, on its Entrance chanell, was, at anchor, a Water tanker ship which normally carried potable water from the Mainland to Cherso during the dry months of Summer. (Cherso’s drinking water was principaly from Cisterns replenisced by rain water from houses roofs) I heard Aicraft sounds: when I looked up I see 3 small British aiplane and several clusters of bombs descending toward the Water Tanker, one of which hit its side. Sometime later the ship started listing but it did not sik – one crew member was killed. After the battle for liberating Cherso from the Axis in the Spring of 1945. Cherso was assigned to Tito (Cherso, Italy became Cres, Jugoslavia); About 1990 onward Cres is in Croatia. The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of internal political conflicts during the early 1990s) ( page8) Immediately after WW2, as a family, we were all together; for a short time! In the Evening I was going to school,with some friends of mine to learn music in order to play with the Town’s Marching band which the new Authorities used as a propaganda tool for celebrating the Glories of Communism’s new Projects. I was assigned to play the Tuba, also known as “Gennis.” my other two friends who were brothers, were assigned a Trumpet and Clarinet. One ptoject dear to the Administrators of Cres, (rightly so), was to build an Aqueduct from Lake Vrana (Vransky Jezero) for supplying water to the Islands of Cres, Losjn and their Villages. .( Nowday CRES and LOSINJ is a Premier TOURISM AREA ON theNEastern Adtiatic sea!) They were trying, exorting, for volunteers, to work on Sundays on this project. So we, The Marching Band, had to March around the town to encourage people to join and board the autobus waiting on the main sqare of Cres. The Marching Band also had to board the autobus which would carry us near the Lake then, with Pcks and Shovels sart building a road connecting the main road to the lake.Before begnning to work the Band had to play some encouraging music, then, everibody, including the musicians, were given pick and shovel to work on the project! So, I may say that I was among the first volunteers who helped build the Vransko Jezero aqueduct in Cres, Croatia! (page9) When I was growing up I had practically no toys!. After the April1945 final invasion by the Comunist army of Marshal Tito against the German / Italian Axis, defenders of Cherso, the island was littered with abandoned ammunition: hand granade, of German, Italian, English manufacture, small caliber guns munition, German Panzer faust (anti-tank weapon), unexploded mortars shells etc. which many boys were playing with, including I My family in Cherso never knew of this: that I, by miself, was playing,secretly, with these dangerous toys, taking them apart to see how they functioned, I was a loner who, luckily, became an expert loner but, some boys were not so lucky: Two boys, little younger than me were tossing, like a ball, back and forth to each other an Italian hand granade which exploded on one of the boy’s hands killing him almost instantly. Two young brothers, about13 and14 years old, were tossing around a disassembled Panzerfaus(German anty-tank projectile) which eventually exploded nearby wounding both of them, and leavin one of them partly blinded. __________________________________________ (pag)e10) When an Iternational agreement was reached by the World Powers for an Option for the people of Cres to emigrate to Italy or stay in Cres, a great number of families and individuals left the Island. Many of hose who were refused an Option to leave, escaped the island, usually crossing the Adriatic Sea by boat to reach the West. The Comunist Regime Nationalized most of the private assets: such as farms, fishing boats,stores, etc. whole families and individualds left, or tried to leaveCres. In our family: Giorgio went first, toTrieste then to PietraBruna,which is small town near the Italian Riviera, not far from the French border, to work as a Baker, married a local Girl, Lilia Rodi who bore them a baby girl, Mercedes.on 10-29-1948. Following Giorgio to Italy was Natale then Antonio who found jobs as sailors on merchant cargo ships: Natale (Chris) was assigned on a ship which was undergoiong repairs in Seatle, USA. When he arrived in Seatle the ship was not yet ready for use; so Chris found temporary work on a farm whose owners originally came from Fiume (Rjeka, Jugoslavia While in Seatle he was sending us “CARE” packages full of clothes and other useful things which were scarce in Cres. Antonio found a Job as a Seaman on a Norwegian cargo ship carrying merchadise, mainly to and from various Northern Seas ports. Years later he was a Seaman on an Oil Thanker whose Capitain was Alvise , our sister Maria’s husband. When Antonio retired, After marrying, “by Proxy” his girlfriend from Cres, Maria Petris, who was stil in Cres; settled on his Farm which he bought in Arma di Taggia while he was working as a Seaman. Their main Cash crops were various Flowes and Greens which they were selling, wholesale at the San Remo’s Flowers Markets on the Italian Riviera. After the end of WW2 the winning Powers; that is: The Eastern block led by Russia and the Western block led b the USA had a conference on how to delineate the post war borders: Cherso was awarded to Jugoslavia. Its residents had the option to remain in Cres and be Jugoslav, or opt to be Italian and go to Italy, Only a small number of those who opted to be Italian were allowed to leave for Italy: It depended on the (page11) whim of the rulers and how valuable their skills were to the Jugoslav economy. Many of those who were not allowed to leave, eventually escped Cres at night, usually by by sea. For them the Government’s patrol boats were the greater danger ; If aprehended they would be inprisoned. (Iknow personally peope who were inprisoned. Our mother opted for Italy, so, in 1949 she, and her three minor children : Maria, Giovanni, and Giuseppe went by boat to Rjeka then by train to Trieste where we stayed about a month with our aunt, zia Tona, my mother’s sister, in a single room apartment before going in a crowded refugees camp in Udine,North of Trieste; Few days later we went by train to Mestre, which is the Italian railroad station for the City of Venice; then an overnight train to Milano, Genova,then to our final destination, Arma di Taggia, Italy, where we were met by Lilia’s aunt because our brother Giorgio and his wife Lilia, with little Mercedes, had to go to an emigration Proccessing Camp in southern Italy where they previously applied for imigrating to Australia. The first night in Arma di Taggia we slept in the house of Mercede’s aunt Bianca Rodi where also some of our forniture from Cres was stored. (until then I never met a kinder and more cosiderate lady as Bianca Rodi! ) The following day we moved to the rented house where Giorgio and his family lived (near Antonio’s Farm) Weeks after our arrival, Giorgio and family came back from the Proccessing Camp, from where, soon after, Imigrated to Sydney, Australia. Giovanni worked a couple of months on Antonio’s farm, before finding a job in the Merchant Marine as “jack-of-all-trades” in Genova, On the S.S Argentina carrying North European turist on Summer Cruises around the Meditrranean Sea: Genova,Napoli , Malta; Piraeus-Grece Palermo-,Tunis, Africa, Canary Islands, Palma de Mallorca-Spain, then back to Genova. Afterward I was offered transatlantic voyages on the same Ship carrying Imigrants to America; boarding in Genova, Napoli, Lisbon-Portugal; crossing the Atlantic to Halifax-Canada, Hoboken, N.J.or Lower Manhattan, USA, My brother Natale, during the Korean War, was in the US Army Service as a paratrooper based in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. (page12) Every time the SS Argentina Passengers Ship arrived in the USA Natale took leave from the Army in order to see me, then encouraged me to stay in the USA. So eventually, after several transatlantic crossings, the Ship left without me! Natale told me to wait on the Pier near the Ship because he was going to pick me up with a Car I thougtht that the Car was a horse pulled car instead it was a Chevrolet automobile which e was storing in a garage, while in the Army! Next: we went to Astoria to find a job for me and meet some of his old friends. Did not find a job for me; maybe because did not speak English! The following night we rented a bedroom at the YMCA (Young Men ChristianAssociation) in Manhattan. The following day we went to various Employment Agencies and found a Job as a Dishwasher, etc. at the Howar Johnson Restaurant / Catering hall on Queens Blvd, Elmhurst; where they were also selling 28 flavors of icecream, then I rented a room in a private house two blocks from the Jamaica Railroad Station. Few months later I moved to another rental room on Highland Ave near: :Parsons Blvd, which was nearer to: the I IRT Subway line, the Jamaica Public Library, where I was spending a lot of my spare time; the School where I was attending for free English evening classes, the bus which I was riding to work via Hillside Ave & Queens Blvd;and the Dale Dancing School whre I met my future wife Louise Morgan with her childhood, friend Ruth Weber who was a dancing instructor at the same school; Then, when I maried Louise: Ruth and her housband, Ernie Ottiger were maid of honor and best man (witnesses) to our wedding at the Immaculate Conception Church in Jamaica Estate N.Y. We rented a small apartment: Bedoom / Livingroom combination, bathroom and a small kitchen, on the 3th floor of a new apartment building overlooking a huge parking lot for the Parsons Blv. IRT subway station passengers. The wedding recepton was very small: Louise’s relatives and her friends! My brother Natale did not come because he was very much opposed (Rightly so!) to I getting married at that time because he was waiting the arrival of our mother, Maria and Giuseppe. His expectation was for me to postpone our wedding then move in with the expected arrivals in an apartment in Asroria — If I had done so I would have lost control of my future life. Few days later we met the newly arrived family at Natale’s overcrowded apartment in Astoria. They also stayed few days at Ruth’s mother’s Wanda Weber, house in Jamaica, a short walk from our apartment. Wanda, an imiglant from Vienna, Austria. was very kind to us! Actually,Mary Bunici was triyng to fix me up: first with her Irish niece, Dolores, (pag)e13) Just arrived from Ireland who had a Job with a rich family in Glen Cove to where one evening I took the LI Railroad then a taxi which took me to the servant’s quarter of a palatial house to meet Dolores. I went out with Dolores several times but it did not work out!. When my mother , sister & brother arrived they staid for few days at of Wanda Weber-Radcliffe in Jamaica where Mary, with her sister, who just arrived from Ireland, came to meet me. The first words she said to me: “why you could not wait for me!???” Astoria was a more adapt place for them because of the many friends from Cherso who spoke our language lived in Astoria. Maria was engaged to be married to Alvise a Merchant Marine Capitan based in Italy; She was preparing to go back to Trieste for their marriage when our mother was stricken with cancer, so Maria took mother with her in Italy. Meanwhile Joseph was living in Astoria overtcrowded apartment with Natale’s family, babysitting their new baby, Rosemarie and going to school. Giuseppe came to live with us in the small apartment we had in Jamaica; I bought an accordion-type room divider to separate the bedroom in two parts; for which then I got in trouble with the Superintendent of the apartment building who insisted that it was aginst their rules. to dvide rooms. I worked and going to night school, Louise worked for Mcrory near 34th Street in Manhattan as an IBM Data entry Operator. At the end of the day when she came home we argued constantly about our lack of privacy situation. One day, when I came home from night school she told me that she phoned Natale and told him to pick up Joseph and some forniture which Mria left for for him -IT WAS A SAD DAY FOR ME! My work at the Howard Johnson was going OK: Thanks to an Egiptian Immigrant who was my Superior and befriended me. I got promoted from Dishwasher to food preparer which gave me plenty to eat (Howard Johnson specialized on 26 flavors of Ice cream). As, thkitchen helpers were required to come to work early in the morning, we had a choice what to eat: In the morning I often had different flavors of ice cream! Eventually I was promoted to Butcher (Meat cutter) at the Howard Johnson Commissary in Queens Village, Nassau County, which supplied frozen food to all the branches of the Howard Johnson Restaurants chain. It was in this place that, one fateful morning, while I was grinding meat, my supervisor came and told me to follow him to the main office where our maneger and two Immigration men were waiting for me: they asked for my Identification, of which I had only my Bank account # and name. (page14) They arrested me! (My Boss promessed me that I would have my job back when and if this problem with the Immigration would be cleared).The Immigration men. – drove me to a Manhattan Pier where a Ferry took me to Ellis Island, which then was an Illegal’s detention center- I was shure that my next stop would be Italy! I phoned Natale, who told me not to worry because he, and most of of the Chersini knew a Lawyer by the name of Anton Sintich, born in Caisole, Cherso, who, with his parents came to the USA before WW2. Anton became a lawyer, specializing on Immigration issues. He, and his Partner had an office on Madison Ave in Manhattan. Anton had another office in his house, where he lived with his family in Astoria. Sintich vas my Lawyer! – After posting bail of $1000, withing a week I was back at work in Queens Village. While waiting for the slow Process of Immigration I Married Louise Morgan. Not knowing that if I was married to a USA citizen I would be eligible to enter the USA legaly. In the evenings I was going to school to learn English;took Physics and Mathematic courses at NYU. Then in Jamaica I took a courses in electromechanical drafting becauseI I longed to follow the electromechanical field due to my fascination with ammunition in Cherso at the end of WW2 . I took mechanical drafting courses in Jamaica, N.Y.which eventually landed me a Job as a Mechanical Inspector at the Parker-Kalon Corporation on Varick Street in Lower Manhattan N.Y. which was Near NYU. It involved using instruments to measute dimensions of mechanical parts being manufactured, againist specified drawings dimensions. Meanwhile I was going to evening school.Two Years later Parker-Kalon buit a new factory in Clifton, NJ. Meanwhile I received a letter from the Immigration Department to present myself to their Ofice within a month prepared to leave the USA. Neither I inor Louise slept.that night The following day we went to our lawyer to ask what to do? Sintich asked me who is the lady with you? I said ,my wife! Louise! “Then there are no problems! I will write up the necessary documents so that you two can go to Canada, at the American Embassy, sign the document then return to the USA as an American Citizen then you will be done. Done was! It was mid- Jannuary and I had a terrible cold! When we got home in Jamaica, under the entrance door to our apartment we found a Telegram from Parker Kalon:Saying “Due to low volume for orderds you are being layid OFF, we will notify you when you will be needed”That day I decided to go to School full time; Louise decided to work full time.I enrolled at the Brooklyn campus of NYIT and worked at night in a factory in Brooklyn – that meant little sleep, little money input and a lot of commuting. After several months a professor asked me If I would be willing to (page15) work, after classes, at the college, taking care of the Physics and Elctronic Lab’s Instruments I said YESSS! The salary was not much but It saved me time, money & traveling. Three months later I received a telegram that my position at the Parker-Kalon Company was open. I declined the offer and continued going to school working for the School year-round, sometime, when needed, I would help students in the Electronics Lab. In the Summer of 1961 I and Louise got 7 days vacation, rented a cabin and a motorboat for a week, near Sag Harbor N.Y. and with the newly purchased white Chevrolet Inpala1960 we went on our first vacation, in Sag Harbor, by the Peconic Bay. At the end of our vacation, on our way to Jamaica we spotted a sign: Brookhaven National Laboratory-Atomic Energy Commission At that time I was not looking for a Job because I was working full time for the College from where I graduated at the top of the class, winning the Trustees Award in Electrical Technology. I decided to enter the Brookhaven National Laboratory. and go to the Personell office where the interviewer told me that they have an open position, but tried to discouraged me by saying “they will floor you with technical questions” I was sent for an interview to a newly built Nuclear Accellerator: The Alternating Gradient Synchrotron (AGS). After an interview of few hours and a tour of the facilities by its Chief Electonics Engineer, then at the office of the Accellerator department Chairman where I was told that if I pass the FBI security investigation and the medical examination, (which I undertook the same day at the BNL Medical Clinic),I will be hired and will be notified by mail within a month. At the Personnell office I was told that they will pay for my moving expenses from Jamaica to my new residence. Because the rental market arund the North Shore on late June was scarce. I told them that my brothe has a Summer house in nearby Sound Beach and I will ask him. On our way home to Jamaica we stopped in Sound Beach to ask Mary and Chris if they would rent us part of their Summer house for few months? They were glad to rent it, for $35 per month, because their Summer renters were abouth to move out. We moved to Sound Beach early in July 1961. The “Seven Santini Brothers Movers” brought our furniture from Jamaica. Days later Louise’s mother moved in with us in Sound Beach. Her bedroom was the Veranda on the upper floor, looking West. I waited little over one month without receiving the promised letter from (PAGE16) BNL so I telephoned to the Personell Office at Brookhaven National Laboratory to ask about it? I was told that the letter with an offer for a Job at the Laboratory was sent the day before so I should be getting it shortly, also enclosed was a form for me to complete for the Movers of my forniture from Jamica to Sound Beach because BNL will pay for moving (IN Sound Beach there was a kid by the name of Chrs jr who raced a motorized go-car up and down Seaford & Waterville Dr.) I started working at the Laboratory’s newly completed NuclearAccellerator: the AGS “Alternating Gradient Synchrotron” on July1961, two days before its Dedication Cerimony. The original vision was that AUI would create and manage facilities and laboratories so large, FOur Our residence in Sound Beach, according to Chris sr : its existing Kerosene heather under the floor of the livingroom / kitchen was, not sufficient for the winter months, so Chris decided to install a new Hot water Heathing system, which was then installed by a friend of his, whose appliances business in Astoria failed , after which he with his family moved,as, caretakers, of an old house across the Miller Place pond); He knew that I was looking for land to build a house on. He told me that he was doing plumbing work at a Housing development in Shoreham, for a Businesman / land developer who puchase a track of land in Shoreham, Named it “Shoridge Hills”, where I now have my residence, divided it in lots, added Roads (except Valentine Rd, which was already there) then named the Roads after various Universities in the USA because at that time he was searching for a College for his two sons to attend; He built several houses then sold them to people working mainily at Gruman Aircrafts Corporation and Brookhaven National Laboratory. This Plumber introduced me to the Developer, Jacob Kahn, who still had several building lots for sale. He wanted to sell me two adjoining lots for $4,500 . I told him that I did not have that much money because just recently I got a job at BNL! He told me “do not worry! you can pay me so much every month when you get your paycheck from BNL.” While living in Sound Beach I rewired my brother’s house and installed a new Electric Service panel in the cubicle of the upstairs rear door. In 1962 we were looking at various models houses being buit,then settled for a HighRanch model – (still standing now! on the South side of the road leading from the Southern end of end of the William Floyd Parkway, West, half-way. For about, if I racall correctly,$ 8,000 which we had to borrow from the Bank, we got a barebone Shell of our future house with:completed exterior, doors, roof, windows, gutters, Basement with concrete floor, and Chiminy. Then, on about the middle of April 1964, (page17) began my real work: After getting the various permits from the Town ( At that time any owner of his house under construction coud do the work required on his own house withoutbeingLicesed) I contacted the Elctric Power Company to instal a LIne as a temporary Electrical connection. After work at BNL and every weekend I was going directly to Shoreham to work: Installing theMain electric distribution Pannel in the Garage, the various circuits wirings, outlets, switches, Then the electric, Heating, Plumbing. Then inspection by theTown’s Inspectors; followed by installation of fiberglass Insulation Mats in all the walls and Atic; With the help of my brother Chris, we installed the ceilings sheetrock panels. The walls sheetrock panels Icould handle myself! For the interior spackling I payd $250 to aProfessional to do it! ON NOVEMBER 1964, TANKSGIVING DAY, WE MOVED IN OUR NEW RESIDENCE AT N. 8 DARTMOUTH RD. SHOREHAM, NY 11786 In the 1960’s onward to the 1970’s Chris and Mary purchased several rental houses around Sound Beach and other places; Unfortunately Chris developed some health problems which made it dificult for him to keep up with the houses maintanance. Early one cold morning the telephoned rang in my office at Brookhaven Lab, was: Chris to ask me for help because the Tenant of one of his house on Shanon Blv. in Yaphank, not far from BNL where I was working, called him because they had no running water. Chris was very sick that morning , I took few hours leave from BNL to see what was the problem: They had no running water in the house! The deep well and pump which supplied water to the house were OK. The copper tubing which supplyed water from the well was burried underground then entered the house through the basement’s concrete foundation. When I punctured ths tube in the basement no water from the well was coming out from the punctured tube, which meant that the underground tube was blocked, probably by ice. Lunchtime I went home to get an electric heater I had, then place it upside down over the water tube burried under the frozen ground; then,to fix the puncture I made on the water pipe I wrapped a piece of rubber, held it in place with a hose clamp, tigtened the clamp to seal the the puncture I previously made on the copper tube and went back to work at the Lab. In the evening, before going home, I went to Yaphahk, started the well’s pump (page18) and, to the delight of the Tenant, the flow of wather was restored. I told them to leave the water faucets slightly open to prevent a repeat of ftozen pipes, I also placed some yard debris over the burried water tubing to decrease the probability of another freeze-up. _____________________________________ Brookhaven National Laboratory(BNL) Is an Atomic Research Facility managed by a consortium of 11 Universities. For our first half century, AUI managed the Brookhaven National Laboratory. During this time 11NobePrizes were awarded for research conducted wholly or in part at theBNL while under the management by Asociated Universities Incorporated “AUI”. ON, Long Island,which was formally established in 19 47 at the site of Camp Upton, a former U.S. Army base. Its name stems from its location within theTown of Brookhaven, approximately 60 miles East of New York City. Research at BNL specializes in nuclear and high energy physics, energy science and technology, environmental and bioscience, nanoscience and National security. The 5300 acre Campus contains several large research facilities, including theRelativistic Heavy Ion Collider, theNational Synchrotron, Light Source II. SevenNobel prizes have been awarded for work conducted at Brookhaven lab. The Altnating Gradient Synchrotron was built on the innovative concept of the altirnating gradient, o rstrong-focusing principle, developed by Brookhaven physicists. This breakthrough concept in accelerator design allowed scientists to accelerate protons to energies that would have been otherwise unachievable. The AGS became the world’s premiere accelerator when it reached its design energy of 33 billion electron volts (GeV) on July 29, 1960.Until 1968, the AGS was the highest energy accelerator in the world, slightly higher than its 28 GEV sister (machine: theProton Synchrotronat CERN laboratory for high-energy physics. While today’s newest Accellatoercan reach energies in the trillion electron volts region, the AGS has earned researchers threeNobel Prizes and today serves as (page19) the injector for Brookhaven’s Relativistic Heavy Ion Colliders (RHIC); it remains the world’s highest intensity high-energy proton accelerator. 1. My work at BNL Involved design, construction, installation and testing of prototype electronic controls for various electromagnets which are used for protons beam deflection and acceleration onto the experimenter’s target, as specified by the PhD scientist overseeing the Experiment. Depending on the Power parameters required for individual experiments, the physical size of each Power supply varies greatly, Depending on their size; these were purchased from external manifacturers. Often BNL personnel had to inspect them at various points of their construction before delivery to BNL. One of them, a large one, for our project, weighting tons, was built by a Company by the name: “American High Voltage Iinc” located in in a small Town by the named “Accident”, in Maryland, USA, where I and two other BNLexperts went by Plane, a small (6 seater) assigned for use by BNL personnel, to discuss its construction. On my second trip to Accident I drove a Government car for inspecting its construction progress. On my return drive to BNL, while still in Maryland, driving downhill on a nice, almost empty highway I heard the whailing siren of a police car behind me I stopped, the policeman asked for my driving license, and the Registration of my car, which had US Government plates; I gave him my Licese but I did not have a Registration for the vehicle.I gave him the car’s key on which was attached a (page20) U.S.Government Tag. After talking to someone on his radio phone the policeman gave back my license and the car key, with a warning that I was driving 10 mph above the speed limit and “ Welcome to Maryland! Have a nice day!” When the Power Supply construction was finished I again had to drive to Accident, Maryland for its final Testing and Acceptance. This time I drove our own OldsmobileCutlass; together with Louise, to Accident . We rented a room at a beautifull hotel near Deep Creek Lake which is a resort for the Washington DC tourists crowd. While I was inspecting and testing the H.V. Power Supply at the “American- High Voltage factory”, Louise was enjoying the day by swimming in the Lake or in the Hotel’s indoor swimming pool, where she made friend with a lady from Washington,DC. As we had about 10 days vacatio left, we drove to Pennsylvania, North along the River to Oneanta, N.Y. then to our Summertime vacation Villa (an old trailer) on top of a hill in North Harpersfiels,N.Y. surrounded by my old frends, milk cows! Where we spent the rest of ourVacation. The huge Power Supply arrived at BNL , on a flat bed truck, two weeks later. In 1980 BNL sent me to Atlanta,Georgia to attend aHigh Voltage Seminars sponsored By Drexel University’s Office of Continuing Professional Education, on High Voltage Testing. I took Louise with me. We took a plane to Atlanta where we, after the Seminars went on a bus tour of the City: including the Martin Luther King Memorial and the STONE MOUNTAIN resort. Completed the Seminars we took a plane from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia where we rented a car, toured Simons and Jekyll islands on the Atlantic Ocean, where we stayed a couple of days, then toured Olde Savanah where we spent another night then South, along the Eastern coast of Florida Via Rt 1A. Stopped for the night In Palm Beach from where we phoned Mary and Joseph in Coral Gables. The following day we drove to their house where we spent the night then on our way to Key West where we spent some time. On our way back we spent another night on (page21) one of the Keys before driving along the Western coast of Florida, stopping in Naples where we took a swim in the shallow and warm, too warm for me, water. Then to St.Petersburg where the water was a bit cooler than in NaplesOur next stop was on the Florida Panhandle in Mary Ester where our friend Laurie Weber Price lives with her family; (She is the daughter whose parents: Ruth and Ernie Oettiger who were withneses for our wedding) Then back to Savanah Airport to return the rented car and take a plane back to Long Island. During the 1970’s energy crisis BNL research was re-directed by the Department of Energy, to focus on Energy research: The AGS created an offspring to study and improve electrical power distributon efficency by developing a superconducting (Cryogenic) ac power transmission cable at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). This project was undertaken in 1972 in response to growing National power requirements. The goal of this program was to develop an underground power transmission system suitable for transferring bulk quantities of electricity over distances of 16 to 160 km. Both the capital investment and operating costs must be low enough to make the system attractive to the Electric Utilities. After 15 years of developmental research work, of which I was a member, a prototype of this Cryogenic Cable was created. This cable was a concentric set of metal tubings separate by vacuum in the outer chamber of the multichamber cable, next chamber separated by nitrogen, next chamber separated by vacuum, then its central tube which contains liquid helium at about 4 degrees Kelvin and the superconductor made of niobium-tin metal which carries high voltage and Current= (High Power! Its controls and testing instrumentation were complex: we used a 240,000 volts ac power supply for power testing and a 1,000,000 volts Impulse generator to simulate tunderstorms lighting strikes on the HV cable. Due to these, the high voltages on the cable under test, its control instrumentation and monitoring cables located about 50 meters away, had to be isolated from each other.I designed and installed a fiberoptic cables system which electrically isolates the control and monitor cables. from the high Valtage. (page22) While working on this project I met many International Scientist: from the former Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Austria and Japan who in their Country were working on Cryogenic Power transmission projects. Actually, a Japanese researcher fromThe University of Tokyo with whom I worked, setting up instrumentation for his experiment, was a guest in our project for about a month and lived with his Japanese wife in one of the on site Cottages which BNL has for visiting researchers and family: One weekend evening, toward the end of his project he and his wife gave a party in their Cottage for the persons wo helped him with his project and their wives. When I and Louise arrived we were surprised to see them dressed in Japanese style: his wife in a full length kimono and on the table was an assortment of japanese food & drinks. For several years after he left BNL, during Christmas Holidays he would send us Holidays cards to our home; Likewise; the Bulgarian researcher from Sofia University when he left gave me a bottle of Bulgarian wine then sent me greeting cards from Bulgaria. I worked on this project until its successful completition about 15 years later. _____________________________________ My next and last Project I worked on at BNLwas: THE Heavy Ions Collider, which utilizesgold ions racing around the tunnel at 99.99% of the speed of Light I traveled to California’s Silicon Valley, where a private company was building some eqipment for our RHIC Accellerator. To Go there I took a flight from McArtur Airport, which is 40 minutes from our house, then to Chicago where had to change to another flight to SanFrancisco. Arrived at night, rented a car then had to find my hotel,at night, in Silicon Valley – no GPS! The second time I had to go to Silicon Valley I went with a RHIC research Engineer who was very familliar with SanFrancisco; When we finished the inspection for the day he guided me on a tour of the City, including China-Town where we had Lunch, then for a tour of the former Alkatraz Maximum SecurityPrison. In the evening, after dining by the harbor-with many sailboats at anchor, saw a moltitude of seals scampering on the boats. ______________________________________________________ (page23) Stanford University Linear Accelerator, where I spent some time Inspecting their Linear Accelerator’s Beam control instrumentation. In 1994, after a career of 33.3 years at Brookhaven National Laboratory I decided to collect my Retirement Pension, then,with my wife Louise do whatever our whim dictated: Gardening: Growing trees from seed, which I harvested from mature evergrieen trees: White Pines, Alberta Spruces, Holly trees, etc. Bees: for 10 years I kept on our garden 4 beehives which produced, on average,100 lb of honeyper year, Boating, fishing and, swimming; Louise liked to Swim, Socialize and to Dance, so we (page24) Joined the Brookhaven Seniors Citizens Club where they had may activities, including Dinner Dances, Traveling, etc. As the years went by, Louise developed some health problems: fell and broke her hip; few monts later, broke the other hip, was admitted in the hospital with, problems with heart Arrithmia, confined to wheellchair, then admitted to a hospice in Port Jefferson for about one month – That place was horrible! loud noises day and night, so I brought her home where I and a Caregiver took care of her until she died in our, house on January12-2014in our presence: John,Charles, Rose and Nana. (page25) At the NE corner of East Hill Rd. & EagleRd. In Cedar Hill Cemeter Port Jefferson, N.Y. (page26) SS Argentina, full of tourists- I was onboard when tnis photo was taken in Valleta,Malta 1950 ______________ SS Constitution in NY 1 Overview of Relativistic Heavy ionCollider (page27