Leonid Karlinsky's family

Here I am with my wife, Elina Karlinskaya (maiden name: Ferdman), with our daughter, Elena. I was a student of the Academy in Leningrad when this photo was taken in 1956. In 1957 while studying at the Academy, I became a party member. Party membership was necessary for any young man aspiring to a career in the army. I came to Leningrad and became a cadet at the Academy. My brother Victor studied at the Military School of Frontier Units in Leningrad. He introduced me to Elina Ferdman, a student at the medical school. We fell in love and got married in 1954. We have been together ever since. Elina came from Leningrad. Her father was a Jew, and her mother, a Russian. Her father was a teacher at the school for factory workers. Elina's mother was a homemaker. During the war Elina's father was sent to the front, and Elina and her mother were evacuated to the Urals. Elina was raised as a Jew and wanted to marry a Jew. Life was not easy for a cadet and a student. My stipend was 200 rubles and Elina earned only 30 rubles. We couldn't afford to buy a coat, but we often went to the theaters because tickets were very cheap. After graduating from the Academy, I was assiged a job in the vicinity of Osha and began my military service as a First Lieutenant. Then I moved to Kaunas, Chita, and many other towns. Finally, we settled down in Cheliabinsk where I was a lecturer at the Military School. I retired from the Soviet Army in 1981 with the rank of Colonel.