First Jewish Kindergarten Class established in 1919

I found my picture in the first kindergarten class dated 1919. I am the little blond girl with the bow in her hair standing in front of our teacher, Jeanette Axelrod.

I attended the first class in the day school. The teachers at that time were Rowena Pearlman, teaching the English class and later Ann Landi. The Yiddish classes were taught by Chana Glass and Henye Podolsky.

I attended the classes in the evening, i.e., after public school, through to "Hekhere Kursen." A total of 16 years. Yankev Zipper was the teacher that made the greatest impact on my life as a student as well as my life in later years.

I went on to teach kindergarten in Edmonton, Calgary and then in Winnipeg during the year 1936 to 1937. Freda Kushnerov and I shared the classes and trained several rhythm bands, one of which won the shield at the Manitoba Music Festival in 1937. Our kindergarten classes had 60 children enrolled and we had to prepare the music for all the assemblies as well as concerts and graduations. At that time the shule had over 500 children in the school. Dr. Isaac Fein was the principal.

I married Elly Margolis in 1936. Later, we moved to Toronto and I taught in the Farband Folk Shul kindergarten there. After my son was born in 1941, we moved to St. Louis. We organized a Yiddish cultural group and conducted all our activities in Yiddish. Presented lectures, musical programs and celebrated holidays.

After moving to Los Angeles, we helped organize a Yiddish group, called "Yunger Yivo Kreiz," with American and Canadians who had attended Yiddish Secular Schools. We continued to create programs for each meeting with the participation of our members as well as lectures by visiting Yiddish poets, authors and other dignitaries. We also prepared special texts for our celebrations for all the holidays.

Both of our children (a daughter born in 1948) spoke Yiddish fluently and attended the Farband Folk Shul. Our son graduated from the Yiddish Mitl Shul, I taught Music classes in the shule and prepared all the programs for the concerts and graduations in the shule.

We now live in Hayward, CA. We have two grandchildren and have celebrated our 65th wedding anniversary in 2001.

I appeared in concert, singing Yiddish folk and art songs, in the various cities in which we have lived. My Mother (who helped organize the first kindergarten) and my subsequent years in the Peretz Shul were dominant factors in developing my life style. I cherish the wonderful memories I have as I grew up in Winnipeg, the friends I have made throughout the years with whom I shared my love for our language, our history and our culture.

I regret that I will be unable to attend the reunion in 2003. My best wishes for great success in the gathering of the alumni.

I will be happy to hear from anyone who remembers me as a classmate or teacher.

Chassie Margolis (Winocur)