Parents
Yushchenko's father, Mykhailo Chumachenko, was born in the village of Zaitsivka, Kharkiv Oblast, in 1917, to a large family of farmers. He was one of only a few members of his large family to survive the Ukrainian Genocide Famine of 1932–33.
Chumachenko studied electrical engineering in Lisichansk, Luhansk Oblast. He served in the Soviet Army, was captured by Nazi forces and taken to Germany in 1942. Yushchenko's mother, Sofia Chumachenko, was born in Litky, Kyiv Oblast, in 1927, died 30 September 2012 in Kyiv. Along with many girls in her village, Sofia Chumachenko was taken to Germany at the age of 14 to serve as a slave laborer. Kateryna Yushchenko’s parents met in Germany, married, and gave birth to her sister Lydia in 1945. Mykhailo Chumachenko became seriously ill with tuberculosis in 1945 and spent eight years in a tuberculosis sanatorium. In 1956, the Chumachenko family immigrated to the United States on an invitation from the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Chicago. Mykhailo Chumachenko worked as an electrician in Chicago until his retirement in 1984. The Chumachenkos moved to Florida in 1987. Chumachenko visited his native Ukraine three times, in 1991, 1994 and 1995. His dream was to return to his village and start a small farm. He died in 1998 and is buried in Kyiv.
Read more about this topic: Kateryna Yushchenko
Famous quotes containing the word parents:
“It helps parents to feel better if we remind them of our failures with them! And how they turned out just fine despite our imperfections.... We never get over needing nurturing parents. The more we comfort our own adult children, the more they can comfort our grandchildren.”
—Eda Le Shan (20th century)
“The middle years of parenthood are characterized by ambiguity. Our kids are no longer helpless, but neither are they independent. We are still active parents but we have more time now to concentrate on our personal needs. Our children’s world has expanded. It is not enclosed within a kind of magic dotted line drawn by us. Although we are still the most important adults in their lives, we are no longer the only significant adults.”
—Ruth Davidson Bell. Ourselves and Our Children, by Boston Women’s Health Book Collective, ch. 3 (1978)
“Families need families. Parents need to be parented. Grandparents, aunts, and uncles are back in fashion because they are necessary. Stresses on many families are out of proportion to anything two parents can handle.”
—T. Berry Brazelton (20th century)