Letters from Slovenia

 

Grandson of Teja and Alphonz Princic, Luka Komic, and Mary Lou Egan

 

Letter from May 5th, 1948 

“Dearest Brother Andrew,

Thank God we received your letter – we were so happy.” Apparently the families lost touch during the war and my grandpa had trouble locating them. This seems to have been their first contact since before World War II.  

Grandpa's sister was named Alojiza, (Louise) and she was married to Anton Korsic. The family's home was burned by the Nazis and they moved to the nearby town of Steverjan, which had been awarded to Italy. Each day, they had to cross a checkpoint and show their visas to work in their own vineyards in Gornje Cerovo. Two of her sons were killed during World War II.
“Dreya, I’m telling you that we are now the last of this family. I had six boys and one girl, and now I have four boys and one girl. My health is not good because of the war.”  

Two subsequent letters included photos of the family and talks about each person. Alojiza promised to write and hoped that he would too. She hoped to get her children to write also. The last letter dates from 1957.

That's the end of the correspondence, but not the end of the story. 

With hard work, the independence of Slovenia, and the European Union, the family was able to open a tavern, osteria gostilna korsic, now famous for its food, wine and hospitality. On the "History" tab on their website, is the photo of
Alojiza's family, and the answer to many questions about grandpa's family.

 

Extended family at the osteria gostilna korsic

 

Another visit with family

On Sunday, July 21, we again traveled to the church of St. Nicholas in Gornje Cerovo to attend Mass. Afterward, we went to the home of Aristeja and Alphonz Princic, and they prepared a meal for us. The meal was exquisite, with homemade soup, fresh greens and fruit, roast pork and potatoes and two kinds of pastry dessert. Anja and Petra had gone to Croatia for their scheduled vacation, so our driver, Ziga, was pressed into service to translate. He was also commanded to "Sit. Eat."

Then, out came the wine and the photos. Julie, Teresa and I were taking pictures of the photos with our iPhones, Ziga was translating and we were scribbling furiously. I was delighted to see that they had many of the same photos that were kept in the piano bench in the home in Globeville. 

Photo that hangs on the wall in Teja and Fonze's home

 

Our copy of the same photo 

 Fonze and cousins discussing the people in the photos

A grandson of Teja and Fonze, Luka, arrived. Luka is about twenty years old and can speak, read and write in English, so I asked if he could translate the letters I had brought with me. He graciously obliged and read three letters that were written in Slovenian: from 1948, 1949 and 1957.  More. . .

Lorraine Loreda Granado - Your Light Still Shines

Jim and Lorraine Granado enjoying the pancake breakfast
at Holy Rosary parish

But your light still shines
It's one small star to guide me
And it helps me to hold back the dark
Your light's still shining in my heart

A verse from "One Small Star" by John McDermott

The communities of Globeville, Elyria and Swansea have lost a shining star. Lorraine Granado passed away Sunday, December 8th at home surrounded by those who loved her. She was 71 years old.

Lorraine spent her entire life working at making this world a more loving, kind, respectful place for all people. Her many accomplishments include a successful class action lawsuit against Asarco, the creation of many youth and family serving organizations and non-profits, and the creation of a park for families in her community. Her efforts still shine throughout the neighborhoods she served.

A Rosary celebrating Lorraine’s life will be held at Romero’s Funeral home,
47th and Tejon, on Thursday, December 11th at 3:00 pm with a viewing
from 2:00 -3:00 pm.
Her funeral will be held at Our Lady of Grace Church, 48th and Clayton, on Friday, December 13th, at 10:00 am with her burial immediately following at Mount Olivet Cemetery.