Émigrés celebrate Victory Day – 65 times over
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J Weekly

by Amanda Pazornik

Russian émigré Semion Melamud doesn’t know much English. But the three words the decorated World War II veteran can recite with clarity – “God Bless America” – bring a smile to his weathered face.

“I am thankful for the United States and the opportunity to live here,” Melamud, 89, said through a translator. “It’s because of America that my grandchildren and great-grandchildren can live, work and study here.”

Melamud was one of more than 200 guests – mostly elderly Russian émigrés – at a May 7 luncheon commemorating the 65th anniversary of Victory Day, which celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany by Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and other countries of the former Soviet Union.

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Posted by Admin on May 14, 2010