Valentina Vilde
However she persevered and was eventually able to get out of the refugee camp and find a job as a pharmacist’s assistant, in a suburb of Stockholm. She lived and worked there until 1951, when she and my grandfather, an engineer and fellow Estonian refugee who she had married the year previous, decided to come to Canada. They arrived at Pier 21 in Halifax where they were processed by immigration officials and screened to be able to enter the country.
After arriving in Canada they were forced to once again start over, first moving to Montreal and later to Toronto. Once here my grandfather was forced to go back to university to become an engineer again as his Swedish degree was not recognized in Canada, while my grandmother started work as a clerk at the Manufacturers Life Insurance Company to support her family. The first few years proved very hard both financially and emotionally as they were still unable to communicate with their loved ones back home (the only contact she had with her father before he died was through two letters sent later on in which she went by a pseudonym … “vana sõber” or old friend).
She would go on to be a happily married stay-at-home mother to 2 children, raising a family and maintaining a home where she would spend most of her life. Together with my grandfather a cottage was built near Orillia from the ground up with 2 young children in toe even though neither had any construction experience prior to the project. Later on she looked after five grandchildren including myself, teaching us about our Estonian heritage and ensuring we would have a better life than she did. Now at almost 95 years of age she continues to be someone who inspires me and who I will always remember. Happy International Women’s Day to you, Vanaema!
Robyn Vilde, March 8, 2018
