Hello Nenad, 
My name is Diana. I am a nurse/health educator. I live in the Blue Ridge 
Mountains of South West Virginia. 
I grew up in New York. At the age of 6, my parents left Brooklyn and moved 
to Oceanside, Long Island, in pursuit of the American Dream. However, I 
remember that Brooklyn neighborhood with fondness and love. It was a place 
where people lingered on the sidewalk, where the corner candy store provided 
a pretzel and egg cream, and penny candy was plentiful. It was a place where 
we played stoop ball, and stick ball, and roller skated the hours away. 
There was a lot of activity, and a lot of emotion. 
Little did I know, however, that while I was growing up in an 
Italian/Jewish/African American neighborhood, I had a biological grandmother 
living close by who came from Croatia. 
In 1928, she gave birth to Helen Agnus, the child who would grow up to become 
my biological mother. She was born at a Catholic Hospital in Manhattan, close 
to where my grandmother, Luce, lived, (somewhere near the George Washington 
Bridge). 
When I was 6 months old, my birth mother set me free to be adopted. From 
that moment on, I lost contact with her until 45 years later. A few months 
before finding her, I found her brother, my biological uncle, George. He 
too, had not seen my birth mother for almost 5 decades. He was 82 when I 
found him. That was about 3 years ago. It was he who had the history of my 
biological grandmother, Luce. He told me she came from Dubrovnik, and 
immigrated to America around 1913. She originally went to Watsonville, 
California to live with her brother, Bozo. Another brother, Mato, left 
Croatia in 1902, but returned to Dubrovnik in 1911 and worked to arrange for 
my grandmother's fare to America. 
Unfortunately, she died in 1962. I was still a young girl, and of course 
knew nothing of her. Now, many years later, I am trying to reconnect with her 
by "resurrecting" her life. It is a fascinating story of a young Croatian 
immigrant woman, struggling to make a life for herself in a strange land. It 
is a story of unrequited love, loss, pain, and suffering. But, it is also a 
story of faith, determination, strong will, and an unyielding belief in God. 
Indeed, it was her Catholic religion that sustained her. 
Two years ago, after inquiring about her birth records from the Dubrovnik 
Historical Society, I was able to find the village where she was born. 
Searching the Internet, I found her brother's family (the one who returned to 
Croatia), still living in the hamlet where she grew up. I have connected with 
them. It is an exciting and wonderful revelation for me to learn I am 
Croatian and actually have cousins still living in the land of my ancestors. 
It is especially amazing for me, since I grew up without an identity--never 
knowing what nationality or ethnic roots I descended from. 
I now know who I am, and wish to celebrate my heritage. I want to live and 
learn everything Croatian. For some reason, I believe it is the voice of my 
ancestors who call me to this journey. 
When I first found my cousin Mato (44), and his father, Duro (89),the son of 
my grandmother's brother who returned to Croatia in 1911, I wrote this poem: 
                        
Distance can never separate 
hearts that really care. 
So think of me Mato, 
and I will be right there. 
You can hear my footsteps walking 
along your mountain side---- 
You can feel my heartbeat beating 
with much Croatian pride. 
The blood of our ancestors 
runs deep in both our veins. 
We honor every memory 
by sharing their joys and pains. 
So please remember Mato, 
when you see the sky, that I am right there with you 
standing so close by. 
Let the miles between us vanish 
as we listen to the wind -- our voices it will carry 
across a distant land. 
Bozo, Mato, and Luce 
once traveled over the sea 
Look at the ocean now Mato, 
and please remember me. 
We can visit anytime -- no matter when or where. 
For distance never separates 
hearts that really care. 
So this is part of my story. I am on a discovery to connect with my origins 
and biological past. Thank you for including me in your newsletter. I want 
to keep up with everything. 
Diana 
 
op-ed 
I am very proud to be able to connect to the second and third and "n"t 
Croatian generation. All the effort seems suddenly appropriate. This is our 
own strenght and honor. Welcome ! 
Nenad Bach 
 
p.s. Anybody knows Croatians from South West Virginia? Any school to learn 
Croatian language near by? Please contact me if you hear of one. 
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