News of the Kotlas Connection

• Natalia Alexeevna Kempers (1923-2004)
• Kotlas Couple Visits Local Pen Pal
• Petrozavodsk Family Visits Madison

As those of you who live in the Waterville area know, we all lost a dear friend and active member with the passing of Natalia Alexeeevna Kempers on September 22. She passed away peacefully at the Lakewood Manor Nursing Home in Waterville.

She was born in Zemun, Yugoslavia, on October 7, 1923, the daughter of Alexei Borisevich and Lydia von Ranchner, White Russian émigrés. She married Frank Michael Reilly in 1946 in Regensburg, Germany, and they came to the United States the same year. They made their home in the Washington, D.C., are where they raised their four children. While in Washington, D.C., Natalia was a Russian language teacher for the federal government.

In 1973 she married John Kempers and moved to Waterville. She worked at the Colby library and was a wonderful friend and tutor to generations of students of her beloved Russian language.

Natalia was a founding member of the Kotlas Connection. It was largely a result of her research that Kotlas was chosen as a match for the Waterville Area Sister City Connection. It was she who addressed a post card to the office of the mayor of Kotlas. Ironically, it was the colorful stamps on the post card that caught the attention of someone in the mayor's office that resulted in a personal correspondence with Natalia.

Five years later, in 1989, Natalia was one of three Waterville area residents who visited Kotlas, until then a closed city. She would again visit Kotlas in 1991 and 1993, and for many years acted as translator for the many correspondences that arose through the connection. In 2001, the Kotlas Connection honored Natalia as its volunteer of the year at the REM Community Awards Ceremony for her role in forging the sister city relationship.

She is survived by her four children from her first marriage: Adrian, Vladimir, and Mark Reilly; and Erika Esche. She is also survived by three stepchildren and a twin sister Marina Alexeevna Tate of New York City.

Natalia was buried on September 24 in Pine Grove Cemetery in Waterville. One of the family's favorite pictures of Natalia was that of her with children from the Kotlas Baby Orphanage. They therefore requested that donations be made in her name to that organization. They may be channeled through us at P.O. Box 1747, Waterville, ME 04903

The preceding article was adapted from Natalia's obituary. Below are condolences from three members of the Waterville Committee, all of whom are current or retired English teachers who have visited Waterville. We begin with Inna Tushina:

Unfortunately, we learned that Natalia Kempers had died, discussed that sad news and shared our reminiscences of this wonderful person, who had been at the roots of arranging friendly relations between our nations, setting sister-city connections between Kotlas and Waterville. It was Natalia Kempers who opened America for the Russians and Russia for the Americans. We present our condolences to her son Mark, her other relatives and [those] near her. We share this grief and sadness with you. Natalia Kempers will stay in our memory for good as a great optimist with a big loving heart, as an honest peace-maker. I thank my lucky stars to have met this wonderful lady and received her heartfelt letters.

And now, Zinaida Yegorova:

Yesterday we received the news of Natalia Alexeevna. So sad! We will always remember this . . . woman with her positive and creative personality and her kindness to all humans. I hope she really will be in paradise and pray for all of us as she said at her last meeting with you. And we shall pray for her.

Lyubov Zinovkina wrote:

I was saddened to hear of the death on Natalia Alexeevna. Please accept my deepest sympathy in this time of sorrow. She was a wonderful woman, and all members of our Committee (the Waterville Committee in Kotlas) and all of our citizens will miss her.

Finally, we offer this slightly abridged memorial notice that appeared in Dvinskaya Pravda, the daily newspaper in Kotlas. Ellen Corey provided the translation.

Members of the Waterville Committee had tears in their eyes when the mournful news about her death arrived. She had not attained the age of 81 years, that would have come in a few weeks, . . .

She burst into Kotlas life as a messenger of good will, having punched a breach in a wall of alienation, misunderstandings, and ignorance about the real America and its people. She opened America to us. Hundreds, probably thousands, of townspeople had grown fond of Natalia — cheerful, active, inquisitive. While her strength allowed, Natalia Alexeevna strove for her adored Kotlas — for its people whom she immensely respected and appreciated.

At one time, Mayor of Waterville David Bernier delivered to Victor Zverev a message which contained these words: "We are as long lost cousins to each other. We have found you and are glad." [This text was part of a proclamation written by Peter Garret, who, with Natalia Kempers, cofounded the Kotlas Connection. David Bernier presented a calligraphered version of the proclamation to to Victor Zverev in June 1991, when Bernier and eight others visited Kotlas.] And so, Natalia Kempers was first in line to bring Waterville and Kotlas together. Her name will go down forever in the history of our sister-cities. Both committees, in Kotlas and in Waterville, called her grandmother, the custodian of the fire of our friendship.

They say that Natalia Alexeevna mentioned: "I want my ashes to be dispersed above the Neva [in St. Petersburg], the Kennebec and the Dvina." She was a geunine people's diplomat, a messenger to the world — with a sympathetic Russian soul.

By Ellen Corey

Zinaida Alexandrovna Zelyanina and her husband, Yuri Mikhailovich Zelyanin, visited me from September 8 to 19. This was their first trip outside of Russia.

Zina and Yuri Zelyanin with Natalia Kempers. Photo by Ellen Corey

I began corresponding with Zina fourteen years ago when Mayor David Bernier brought back a list of Kotlas residents who were interested in exchanging letters. I enjoyed the Zelyanins' wonderful hospitality during the committee's trip to Kotlas in 2002. Their older daughter and two grandchildren also live in Kotlas. Their younger daughter and one grandchild live in St. Petersburg. Zina and Yuri worked on the Northern Dvina as hydrologists, but along with thousands of other technical people, lost their jobs when the Soviet Union broke up. They found work on the railroad and both retired from there a few years ago.

Accompanied by Artyom Cizrin, a bilingual high school exchange student who is staying with Mark Fisher, we had a picnic on Mt. Battie. The Zelyanins were enchanted with the spectacular view of the harbor, and we spent two hours just sitting in the sun and admiring the scenery. We toured Camden later in the afternoon.

We also attended a music festival at Lake George Park in Canaan. It was beautiful weather, beautiful location, and beautiful music. Zina looked around and remarked on the difference between the crime-ridden image of America on television and the laid-back peaceful scene at the park. Yuri expressed surprise that everyone just sat and listened to the music and no one got up and danced. Yuri loves maps, so of course we visited the DeLorme Company in Yarmouth. Yuri took home a map of Maine on which he plotted all the towns they visited.

Colby College figured prominently in their visit. Sheila McCarthy arranged for them to visit two Russian classes, a fourth-year seminar with students who had spent last spring in St. Petersburg, and a first-year class. Zina and Yuri loved both classes. In addition to the classes, the Zelyanins had dinner at the weekly Russian Table and had a long tour of the Colby Art Museum. Zina said that she will tell her grandson Vanya to study English well so that he can get into Colby.

Thanks to Martha Patterson for hosting the Zelyanins and the committee at her camp and to all the committee members who brought food to the potluck. Zina was so overwhelmed by the hospitality at the meeting that she literally didn't sleep a wink that night. She said, "Why go to sleep when you're living in a dream?" Thanks also to Julie Stowe for having us to her house for dinner on their last night here.

Besides the special events noted above, we had a good time just hanging out. My guests were so interested in everything that I didn't have to worry about boring them. Warm sunshine in September was a novelty, so they were happy to sit outside sunbathing. We took a long walk with the dog. The Zelyanins noticed every kind of tree and whether or not it grows in northern Russia. Yuri fell in love with American houses. He said that he would love to build a small American house of his own, but unfortunately many of the materials (like roof shingles) are not available in Russia. Of course, we went to Home Depot.

One of the best times was the evening we just sat on the porch and looked at the stars, and were lucky enough to see two shooting stars. They said that the stars look much closer here. They each got up before dawn so that they could see Venus, which isn't visible from their home.

The Russian words for "30 minutes" became our private ongoing joke. Every time they asked how long it would take to get somewhere, my usual reply was "30 minutes," except on the occasions when the trip was much longer, like 2 hours and 30 minutes for a visit to our son in Calais. For them, 30 minutes by car is a very long trip.

The Zelyanins really had enjoyed their time here. Many thanks to the members of the Kotlas Connection who helped make their visit such a success.

Zina wrote a poem in farewell. Here is my translation, which unfortunately does not reflect her rhyme and meter.

Seven years ago a group of Russian high school students visited Skowhegan and Madison through the auspices of Project Harmony and the efforts of Skowhegan Area High School teachers Stuart and Alice Jump. Little did anyone know what would bloom from the little seed of friendship planted then.

The families of John Poland, of Madison, and Irina Kozlova, of Petrozavodsk, Russia, have stayed in contact by e-mail and telephone. Various members of the Poland family have visited Russia.

However, this year was different and special. Irina graduated from the State University in Petrozavodsk and the Poland's celebrated her achievement with the gift of a trip to Maine.

With the assistance of Representative Susanne Ketterer, Irina's whole family was able to travel here as well. A whirlwind ten days included visits to the State House and a meeting with Governor Baldacci, trips to Popham Beach and the Skowhegan State Fair, and, of course, a lobster dinner.

Bingham Area Health Center, Redington-Fairview Hospital, and Eastern Maine Medical Center all graciously offered tours to Dr. Kozlov, Irina's father. Walter Hight showed them some of his antique cars. Mini-golf and ice cream at Gifford's were also on the agenda. Visiting Lakewood Inn and Theater on Igor's birthday was also a part of the visit.

A gathering at the Poland's home brought some of the old Project Harmony group back together for a reunion. Right now, both John and his dad, Mike, are studying Russian in anticipation of a return to Russia in 2005 or 2006; and Tanya, Irina's sister, is working on her English in hopes that she may come back here some day!

John Poland is a member of the Kotlas Connection.

The preceding articles were taken from the Bulletin From The Kotlas Connection Chairs, Issue #17, November 2004, by Phil Gonyar and Herb Foster.

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