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One hundred years ago today, June 23, 1910, my great grandfather Josef arrived in the United States from Poland, which at the time had been absorbed into the Austria-Hungarian Empire, aboard the steamship Deutschland, pictured above. He was 25 years old.
A few months later he sent for my great-grandmother and my 10 month old grandfather.
Like most immigrants of that period, they passed through Ellis Island. In fact, much of what I know about my great-grandparents' arrival came from the Ellis Island website www.ellisisland.org a few years ago.
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My wife and I were at a conference in New York City earlier this year and were able to take some extra time to see Ellis Island. It's been beautifully restored to a museum and historic monument as part of the National Park Service.
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The decisions and sacrifices of my ancestors one hundred years ago made this visit especially meaningful to me.
As I've posted previously on this blog, I wonder how the decisions and sacrifices I am making today are going to affect my great-grandchildren?
As a Christian, I'm reminded of the Psalms and the concept of impacting "the next generation, even children yet to be born." (Psalm 78:6).
Even children yet to be born. One hundred years from now, I hope that my "someday" grandchildren and great-grandchildren will celebrate the bi-centennial of the arrival of our ancestors to this country . . . and maybe even a decision or two their grandfather/great-grandfather (me) made.
Here's to celebrating "arrival day" - and continuing to make decisions and sacrifices that influence the next generation.
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