Hear Author Share Mother's Soviet Labor Camp Survival In Macomb County

WARREN, MI — Author Imogene Salva will share the true-life story of her mother's survival from a Siberian labor camp during World War II at a Macomb County library.

Salva will speak at the Warren Civic Center Library, located at 1 City Square, on Mar. 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. in an event hosted by the Piast Institute, a Polish-American research center located in Hamtramck.

Salva's appearance will be the first of a two-part lecture series sponsored by the institute to mark its 20th anniversary year. Anyone interested in the event can register here. Walk-ins will be allowed.

"I am honored to tell my mother’s story," Salva said. "Growing up in New York City, I realized that my mother’s wartime experiences were shared by thousands and remain relatively unknown to the rest of the world."

In the Soviet labor camp, the Nowicki family suffered near starvation, disease, separation and arctic temperatures, until the father Konstanty (Kostek) was further emboldened to secure the escape of his wife Teodora (Tola) and six children from the camp.

Eventually, Ziuta, with her older sister, Jadwiga (Jadzia) and their brother, Jozef (Jozek) found a second homeland during the years of 1942-1947 in an unlikely part of the world – India. This major accomplishment was due to the efforts of Polish General Sikorski who reached out to other countries to take in 500 Polish refugee children.

Throughout her childhood, author Imogene Salva, traveled yearly to Poland. She studied in France and earned an M.A. in TESOL or Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. As a resident of Colorado, she has taught Spanish, Polish and French, K-12, in New York City and Colorado.