Tag #153011 - Interview #78263 (Michael Kotliar)

I finished the 6th grade in 1950 when I turned 16 and could no longer stay at school. My older brother was a shoemaker and my father was a tailor, but they couldn't provide well for the family. Life was pretty expensive after the war. A loaf of bread cost almost half of my brother's monthly salary. I went to the 7th grade of an evening school and worked as a shoemaker during the day. Most of the shoemakers in Chernovtsy were Jews. I didn't really like this work. It was hard work, and I didn't feel like fixing other people's worn shoes for the rest of my life. I joined a crew of electricians at the Selenergo association. I was an apprentice there. We were responsible for power supply to the surrounding villages. Our crew leader was an older Jewish man. He treated me kindly and taught me everything he knew. Later he went to work at the motor plant and I was appointed crew leader.