STATE LIBRARY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA
J. D. SOMERVILLE ORAL HISTORY
COLLECTION
OH 753/7
Full transcript of an interview with
BRUNO KRUMINS
on 10 November 2005
By Mara Kolomitsev
Recording available on CD
Access for research: Unrestricted
Right to photocopy: Copies may be made for research and study
Right to quote or publish: Publication only with written permission from the
State Library
OH 753/7
BRUNO KRUMINS
NOTES TO THE TRANSCRIPT
This transcript was created by the J. D. Somerville Oral History Collection of the State Library.
It conforms to the Somerville Collection's policies for transcription which are explained below.
Readers of this oral history transcript should bear in mind that it is a record of the spoken word
and reflects the informal, conversational style that is inherent in such historical sources. The
State Library is not responsible for the factual accuracy of the interview, nor for the views
expressed therein. As with any historical source, these are for the reader to judge.
It is the Somerville Collection's policy to produce a transcript that is, so far as possible, a
verbatim transcript that preserves the interviewee's manner of speaking and the conversational
style of the interview. Certain conventions of transcription have been applied (ie. the omission
of meaningless noises, false starts and a percentage of the interviewee's crutch words). Where
the interviewee has had the opportunity to read the transcript, their suggested alterations have
been incorporated in the text (see below). On the whole, the document can be regarded as a raw
transcript.
Abbreviations: The interviewee’s alterations may be identified by their initials in insertions in
the transcript.
Punctuation: Square bracket [ ] indicate material in the transcript that does not occur on the
original tape recording. This is usually words, phrases or sentences which the interviewee has
inserted to clarify or correct meaning. These are not necessarily differentiated from insertions
the interviewer or by Somerville Collection staff which are either minor (a linking word for
clarification) or clearly editorial. Relatively insignificant word substitutions or additions by the
interviewee as well as minor deletions of words or phrases are often not indicated in the
interest of readability. Extensive additional material supplied by the interviewee is usually
placed in footnotes at the bottom of the relevant page rather than in square brackets within the
text.
A series of dots, .... .... .... .... indicates an untranscribable word or phrase.
Sentences that were left unfinished in the normal manner of conversation are shown ending in
three dashes, - - -.
Spelling: Wherever possible the spelling of proper names and unusual terms has been verified.
A parenthesised question mark (?) indicates a word that it has not been possible to verify to
date.
Typeface: The interviewer's questions are shown in bold print.
Discrepancies between transcript and tape: This proofread transcript represents the
authoritative version of this oral history interview. Researchers using the original tape
recording of this interview are cautioned to check this transcript for corrections, additions or
deletions which have been made by the interviewer or the interviewee but which will not occur
on the tape. See the Punctuation section above.) Minor discrepancies of grammar and sentence
structure made in the interest of readability can be ignored but significant changes such as
deletion of information or correction of fact should be, respectively, duplicated or
acknowledged when the tape recorded version of this interview is used for broadcast or any
other form of audio publication.
2
J.D. SOMERVILLE ORAL HISTORY COLLECTION, STATE
LIBRARY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA: INTERVIEW NO. OH 753/7
Interview with Bruno Krumins recorded by Mara Kolomitsev on the 10 th
November 2005 for the Latvian School Oral History Project.
TAPE 1 SIDE A
Good morning, it’s the 10th November in the year 2005, my name is Mara
Kolomitsev and I’m going to interview Bruno Krumins. Good morning, Bruno.
–
Good morning.
Would you like to first tell me where you were born and how you came to
Australia? Just in short.
–
I thank you, Mara, for having me on this interview. I was born in Latvia, 1924,
and I – well, not migrated, but I was a refugee from Latvia to Germany in 1944 and
migrated to Australia in 1949. That was in 1949, 24th January we started from
Napoli with the ship Nea Hellas, in Italy, to Australia and the ship was carrying
some 1,500 passengers – migrants and refugees – and there were something like 260
Latvians on the ship.
The ship arrived in Australia in February, 23 rd, Port
Melbourne, and there we were unloaded there the following day and we had a train
journey to the famous transit camp, Bonegilla, where we stayed for one and a half
months. And then myself, I was sent to work in South Australia, in Adelaide, and
my wife and daughter – we had a nine months-old daughter – and they were sent to
Uranquinty, another transit camp, to wait until we, the so-called ‘workers’, found
accommodation for them in Adelaide.
So this was in 1949, late 1949 by this time, was it?
–
We came to Adelaide in March, 1949, and it took me some – well, at least four
months to get accommodation for my family and then my wife and my daughter
arrived and a good lady in Cowandilla offered us accommodation for some service
that my wife was going to do, like house cleaning and washing, et cetera. So
myself, I was working with the South Australian Railways and attending the socalled SA Railways Institute teaching us to be porters, shunters, guards, et cetera.
So yes, I had this training at the Institute. And so that’s how our life started here in
Adelaide.
3
And were you immediately involved with the Latvian community when you
arrived?
–
I think the answer to that question is yes, because I can remember in November
we had a concert, commemorating concert, so there were – organised a meeting to
commemorate the deportations from Latvia in 1941, and I was the first speaker, I
was speaking at that meeting, and there were from artists from the Estonian
community, Lithuanian community, Latvian community, they were doing the
singing, the concert part of the meeting.
So can you remember which hall or church that was held at?
–
That was held somewhere in one of the church halls in North Adelaide, I’m not
quite sure which one, could be in Brougham Place Church, there’s a Brougham Place
Church in North Adelaide.
So that was a combined, the Baltic communities that was .....
–
That was combined, similar to what we have here, the Baltic Council organised
commemoration of the deportation of Baltic people to Siberia.
And did you have – you were working, and did you have time to join the Latvian
community once it was organised?
–
Yes, initially I did join. I was involved in the choir, I was involved in the male
choir and the mixed choir, and I also was involved in organising the church
activities, that is the Lutheran Church activities, I’m representing people who were
working at the railways at that time, therefore I was a representative at the Islington
Camp, which was a camp where we slept in tents, and I was a representative for that
for the Lutheran Church.
Were you in one of these tents as well at that time?
–
Yes, yes, I was sleeping there with somebody else, we were two in a tent, and
that’s how we started. Every morning we joined the train from Islington to Adelaide
and when the instructions at the Institute finished we travelled back again. But of
course that all changed when we got the accommodation, and so I was riding my
pushbike from Cowandilla to Adelaide Railway Station every morning and afternoon
back again –
Goodness.
4
–
– to Cowandilla.
Now, you stayed with the Railways for a while, or did you change jobs?
–
Well, there was a contract for two years. All of use, those who came out, who
were capable young persons, they were all on contract. And I had a two-year
contract with the railways, which actually – that contract was longer than, I remained
longer than two years in the railways, I think it was four years, because of the
uncertainty what I am going to do in future. Later I changed my vocation and I
worked with different companies, but yes, I stayed for some four years.
Four years, okay. I’d like to ask you now how you were involved, you said you
were involved with the Lutheran Church here, and how were you involved with
the Latvian Saturday School as we know it?
–
Well, I was involved, in 1955 I was asked to be headmaster of the Adelaide
Latvian Lutheran Church Saturday School, to which I agreed, and I remember that
we started the Brougham Place – again, it was a church building, in North Adelaide
– and that’s where we started with some one hundred and ten students or pupils or
children.
But later, when the Latvian community purchased its own property,
building, at 4 Clark Street, Wayville, the school was transferred to that building and I
remember that we moved in that building late 1955, and all the rooms were occupied
completely. There was no room left, because there were so many students and there
was only so many rooms, and even the kitchen and the bathroom we had classes in
them! (laughs)
Just before we go on talking about the School, can you tell me the period of when
the community bought the property in Clark Street, Wayville? How did the
community make a decision to, and how did they manage to collect enough funds
to buy property? Have you got any recollections of their efforts?
–
Well, I have some recollection to that because it was a community project and
everybody that time was very interested to have our own property. And this decision
was made very easy because everybody agreed and everybody agreed to donate,
everybody agreed do collections, go out and collect some money, and so there was a
great deal of enthusiasm for buying this property. And, well, I think it was a very
good decision at that time and also a good location in Wayville, corner of Clark
Street and Rose Terrace, and that building still stands here but of course the big hall
has been built next to it. But the original house is still used for functions and there is
5
a café. And so I think this corner, on Clark Street and Rose Terrace, is a very
valuable property to the Latvian community.
You were saying that you raised funds: how did they raise funds? Did they have
barbecues or other – – –?
–
Yes, they had barbecues, all sorts of organised concerts. And also I remember
collections going out to various people: we’d identify where our people lived, which
areas, and each had an area to go round and collect some money, and some people
were very generous, others were not so generous, and that’s how we collected the
money to buy the property.
And the church was also – they bought the property for the church as well, across
the road?
–
Well, that came at a later stage.
Okay. All right, now we’ll go back to the School: now, you were asked – before
you were asked to be the principal of the School were you involved with the
School at all at that time?
–
Well, I was involved with the Latvian School in Germany: when we were
staying in Germany in the displaced persons’ camp, I was also headmaster of that
school. It was a smaller school, but yes – I was very young but I (laughs) attended
the – – –. At that time I had a secondary school education and I attended, I think in
Liedberg it was, special courses for teachers.
And I always was interested in
teaching and I attended that, so I became headmaster in the ..... displaced persons’
camp, which was in North Germany, I was headmaster of that school. When I
arrived here and I had this offer, 1955 – that is some eleven years after my arrival – I
was interested and I accepted that appointment with a great deal of pleasure. But I
stayed only for one year because I had other commitments and I was studying myself
and so I didn’t have time to carry on with that appointment.
Can I ask you what you were studying at that time?
–
Well, I started to study engineering, I started studying mechanical engineering
then I switched to civil engineering and finally then I switched to chemical
engineering, so I graduated as Bachelor of Chemical Technology, which is a
university degree, and that was the first studies. And then after that I finished also
the Diploma of Education and the Diploma of Management.
6
Did you work as a teacher in the mainstream society?
–
No, I didn’t work. The only teaching I did was at the Regency Park. I believe
it was the TAFE 1 college, and I was teaching Material Science – it’s a professional
subject which – I was senior materials technologist at the Simpson–Pope company at
Dudley Park and that was my speciality and I was teaching at the Regency Park
Technical College.
So you worked for Simpson’s for a long time?
–
I worked for Simpson’s many years.
Many years.
–
Something like – well, from 1959 to 1976.
Okay. Can you tell me the other companies you worked for?
–
Well, after that I worked for ..... company, which is a glass manufacturer – it’s
not manufacturers, actually, glass processors. They produced oven doors and oven
tops and that sort of thing, and it was glass technology that I was more or less
learning, that type of science – toughening the glass and particularly in ovens, which
was a very interesting process – and painting and spraying and painting glass and
decorating glass.
So were you there for any lengthy period?
–
I wasn’t there for a very long time. I was only for two or three years there, and
then I accepted a position with the government.
What position was that?
–
Well, that was the chairmanship of the Ethnic Affairs Commission in 1981.
And you were there until you retired?
–
No, I was there until 1986, I had a five-year contract with the Commission.
Did you have any other work before you retired?
–
Well, after that I worked with the South Australian Courts, I was one of the
members of the Equal Opportunity Tribunal, Administrative Tribunal and also
7
commercial tribunals, so I worked with the tribunals and also worked as interpreter,
Ethnic Affairs Commission.
Just the Latvian language?
–
Latvian language, yes.
Okay. We’ll go back to the School now. You were invited to be the headmaster of
the School for one year.
–
Yes.
Would you like to give us an impression of that period that you were at the
School?
–
Yes, in 1955, yes. I had sixteen teachers on my staff, they were all qualified
teachers, qualified teachers in Latvia. I don’t know whether you wish to have the
names of those teachers, I have it. But as far as the classes are concerned, there were
one kindergarten class and eight other classes with an enrolment of 110 children at
school at that particular time. The teachers, well, there was the Reverend Werners
Woitkus, Father Ornitzans, Robert Zweitolins, Aulsa Widoma, Fritz Leavins, Ilona
Kurkura, Irma Reinfeld, Alma Worzwoller, Elga Worzwoller, Laimos Mozinskis,
Arweids Luks, Maria Matweia, Helene Sulan, Mit Ziurerich, Margaret Bierseit and
Dace Artrim. Those were the sixteen teachers. The major subjects that we were
teaching at the School at that time was Latvian Language, History of Latvia and
Latvian Geography and Religion, Singing and Music and Latvian Art, and those
subjects were taught to the two supplementary classes, what we called. And the
teachers were paid at that time, each was paid four shillings per hour: it wasn’t
much but it was something to give an incentive to the teachers that were so devoted.
School, we organised some – well, as far as celebrations we organised there were
two celebrations I remember: there was St John’s Day celebrations the School had
and also the Latvian Independence Day commemorative concert that we staged at
school, those were that particular year, and I think those celebrations have continued
during the next years of the Latvian School.
1
TAFE – Technical and Further Education.
8
The program of teaching was actually the responsibility of the teacher in charge of
the class, or the program was worked out by the teacher who was in charge of the
class.
If the teacher was in charge, was she given some kind of guidelines, was there a
set, a curriculum that you followed?
–
Yes, we had teachers’ meetings on a regular basis and the guidelines were
worked out by sort of collectivity, where all teachers actually did decide what to
teach and what not to teach. But no, there were some programs printed on paper and
we stuck to those religiously. We had the kindergarten, eighteen children in the
kindergarten, and the first class I remember was twenty-one, second class we had
twenty-seven, third class was a large one, thirty, and fifth class twenty-two. The
other classes, I have no record of the other classes at all. There was a certain method
of teaching Latvian language which we discussed at the teachers’ meetings that the
Latvian
language – – –.
Actually, the children were speaking reasonably well Latvian
language because they were taught by the family, by Mother and Father, they were
speaking Latvian at home. And therefore we had no problems the children wouldn’t
understand the language. But we still had to introduce the pupils or the children with
the Latvian language, in particular introduce to them the particular sounds and
pronunciation and peculiarities of the language, and we had to emphasise short and
long vowels and the pronunciation of the Latvian language ‘au’ as against English
‘oh’, ours is ‘au’; and pronunciation of the short ‘e’ and the broad ‘ee’, which is a
peculiarity of Latvian language; short consonants, we had to take care of that, and
also emphasis the accent on the first syllables when we speak Latvian. So these
were sort of things that we tried to emphasise generally.
Can I ask you now, Latvia is only a small country but were there any children
that came with a fairly broad, different accent because their parents had come
from a different region of Latvia?
–
No, not that I remember. I think they all spoke – well, they might have an
accent but I really hadn’t noticed that.
Okay. Now, we’re talking about the methods of teaching, the pronunciation of the
words: was there any other methods that you can recall that – – –?
9
–
Not really. Well, we were teaching, basically we were teaching grammar,
Latvian grammar, and also Latvian literature. And so the two supplementary classes
that we had we went further than that: the main emphasis was the Latvian literature,
art and also of course traditions, in particular, very important – culture, traditions, et
cetera. But no, I don’t remember much from our programs that we were teaching at
that time.
What subject did you take?
–
I did take Latvian Language and Grammar, and also History of Latvia, those
were the three subjects I was teaching.
The children, were they set homework?
–
Oh yes, they had homework. That was a difficulty for the children because they
had to do the homework and I guess that they hated to do the homework and the
parents had to force them to do the homework, and of course those children whose
parents were interested in what their children were doing were doing well at the
Latvian School, and those parents who were not interested of course the children
were not doing so well. We had homework, we had classwork and yes, we had all
that. And also verbal conversations in the class on different subjects.
At that period, did the teachers reprimand the children if they hadn’t done their
homework? Or did you sort of turn a blind eye to it?
–
No, we allocated marks to their homework and it was entered in the homework
book, so they had to take home and their parents had to sign the homework or the
book, and that way parents were notified how the children were doing in school.
Okay, so you’re talking about the traditions, by the traditions you meant the
singing and some of the folklore, the stories and plays. Were you involved that
year with any particular play that was put on by the School?
–
Not that I remember, I don’t think I was involved. If somebody was involved it
was Mrs Reinfelds, I think she was involved. There were special teachers that were
interested in producing plays and producing different –
The entertainment?
–
– entertainment, yes, for different occasions, but I was not involved with that.
But that year there was a play that they were having – – –.
10
–
Oh yes, yes, certainly there was, something was certainly done in that area, and
I’m quite sure – I can’t remember what it was exactly. (laughs)
That’s okay. Now, as far as the relig – you said that there was the Father
Onezans, was that right?
–
Yes, yes.
And the Lutheran pastor, what was his name again?
–
Woitkus.
Woitkus.
–
Werners Woitkus.
Now, did the children actually have religious instructions?
–
Yes, they had religious instructions. And those children who were Lutherans,
they had separate religious instructions and those who were Catholic faith, they had
separate instructions, and there were religious, classes where religion was taught.
At the beginning of the school morning, the Saturday morning, was there a
combined church – not a church, combined sort of prayer or song that the School
actually joined in?
–
Yes, it was, and that was the most memorable occasion in the mornings: all
students, the children, line up, the kindergarten in front row and the supplementary
class students in the back rows, and we had a sort of religious introduction of the
Saturday morning.
And did that include raising the flag and singing the National Anthem?
–
No, we didn’t have the raising a flag, National Anthem. We had just a religious
song and with Father Onezans or Reverend Woitkus would say something in the
morning, and that was the order of the Saturday morning.
Now, this would have been at the Clark Street here, before the Hall was built:
where did all the children – did you all stand outside, or did you all squeeze into
the old home?
–
I believe that was discontinued here, I’m not sure, because of the restrictions to
the space that we had here. And it was nowhere you could combine all the children,
it was only one room. And that time I think the room was even smaller, the ‘small
hall’ we call it today, therefore I can’t remember whether it was – – –. I believe, I
11
have suspicion that it was done by Reverend Woitkus in the mornings, I have
suspicion that it was done. Whether it was outside or indoors I’m not quite sure.
But when you were teaching it was at North Adelaide, wasn’t it, therefore you
would have had the room in the hall to line up.
–
Oh yes, we had a very big hall and it’s very impressive opening of the Saturday
morning.
And what about the end of the morning, the school morning?
–
I don’t think there was anything at the end, I think the children were just
leaving school and the parents picking them up.
Were you involved in any other manner with the School or holiday camps or
things like that?
–
Yes, Mara, I was involved, I was teaching at the secondary school here and late
1970s and early ’80s taking Latvian language classes, or I was teaching Latvian
language and Latvian history. I don’t know whether it was three, four or five years.
And I certainly remember teaching matriculation class in 1980 and the history
subject, for instance, we covered Ice Age and then we talked about the Iron Age, the
Stone Age and also the – those sort of centuries, 7000 before Christ, and started from
there, and where the Baltic peoples were living at that time and where Finns and
Hungarians and what relations we had to Finns and Hungarians, and what sort of
group the Baltic people belong to, and we went right back to that. And we talked
about the Baltic language and to which language branch the Baltic language belongs,
and we reconstructed where our people came from. And yes, we had that sort of
introduction I remember. And then we talked about history, what is history, what is
civilisation, what is culture, and the peculiarities of Latvian culture we talked about.
And yes, we talked about the occupation of Latvian territory by Germans, by Polish,
by Swedes, by Russians, right to the Renaissance of the Latvian people, and then
gaining independence after the First World War. That was part of the history that we
discussed, the curriculum, at the matriculation class.
Also the revolution, ’95
revolution, 1918 revolution, ’17 revolution. And then the period of independence
between 1918 and 1940. And we talked about traditions, song festivals, then the
traditions that we discussed and the various festivals et cetera.
12
Can I ask you, with the matriculation subject, were the students actually asked
questions on those subjects that you talked about? Was it fairly broad or was it
just purely language?
–
Well, we are using history book by Ulde Jaimanis and also Zans – there were
two history books that we used – and all students had those history books that they
could take home, and we discussed that particular chapter in class and then they had
to go home and do some homework on that and read about that and I would ask
some questions, or we have classwork to make sure that the students have studied the
chapter that they were supposed to study.
So they were tested –
–
They were tested.
– on their knowledge. That was during the year, but what about at the end-ofyear matriculation exam: were they tested on that knowledge?
–
Oh well, they were tested, yes, of course. They were sitting for the exam, they
were sitting for the Australian matriculation level, and they of course were allocated
marks for that and that was a subject, additional subject to other matriculation
subjects.
And it was important that the teaching they received at the Latvian
secondary school was a proper teaching and the subject was covered, and certainly
the students’ responsibility was that they are prepared, and the teachers’
responsibilities were that they prepared for the subject to sit for the exam.
Can you recall the results of some of the students that you taught at
matriculation? Did they pass?
–
I think from memory most students passed the subject. It just depended, I think
it depended, whether they passed with distinction or they just passed. I don’t think –
there was a very low failure rate, if any, from our school.
So the teachers’ efforts were rewarded by the children’s passing.
–
Absolutely, yes.
That’s wonderful.
–
I think that was great encouragement to the teacher as well, that he is on the
right path teaching the right substance and the right method.
13
Now, were there any other areas that you were teaching? Well, you’re talking
about the high school –
–
Yes.
– were you involved with the summer school as well?
–
Yes, I was involved with summer school – only for, I think it was only one year
that I was involved with summer school. And, well, teaching there was slightly
different because it was a summer school and the children were sort of on holidays
and not so much taking an interest in what the teacher was saying and sometimes we
had a difficulty to start. And when I walked in – again, I was teaching History and
Latvian Language – and when I walked in they, the students, stage all sorts of
naughty exhibitions there and I had to try to negotiate with them, had to overcome
that and get their attention to what I was saying.
Can you just tell me what were they up to, to get so that you had to get their
[attention]?
–
Oh, they were up to all sorts of tricks. Somebody was sleeping under the table
and claiming that he hasn’t slept all night and he’s very tired and he can’t take part in
discussions, and they had to drag him out. But anyway, my sort of method of
handling these sort of naughty episodes was to get friendly with the people who are
naughty and I pulled him out and I made him my assistant for the class so that he
assists me in teaching, so from that day of course he took a lot of interest in what
was taught in the class and he certainly turned out one of the better students. But
initially it was very, very difficult just to handle him.
So the idea of the camp was –
–
It was ‘him’ and not ‘her’, the girls.
– ah. Did you teach girls as well, or –
–
Oh yes, there were girls –
– there was mixed – – –?
–
– they were mixed class, yes.
I taught again Latvian Language, mainly
grammar and literature, and History again was an element, and the programs were
set by the principal of the School.
14
So the idea was that they all spoke Latvian?
–
That’s right. Speaking language was very important and that, to speak the
language of course, you need to understand, need to know some grammar, speak
properly Latvian language, and as a consequence you had to learn grammar and do
some readings from the literature.
Were there students from interstate at these summer schools as well?
–
Yes, they are a mixed bag, they are from all states, even from Tasmania, some
from New Zealand. And yes, there were all states. I think the majority of students
were from the local, South Australia, state of South Australia.
Now, you said earlier that you have a daughter, and did your daughter go to the
Latvian Saturday School?
–
Yes, I think she was in Class 2, second class, when I was the headmaster or
principal of the Latvian Saturday School, and she was in the second or third class –
second class, I think she was. Yes, and she was exactly what all the others probably
were: she was not so willing (laughs) to go to the School and had to be convinced
that she had to do it. And I think that she suffered a little bit and specially because I
was so strict with the homework that she had to do, et cetera, she had some
resistance. But I think she will appreciate, now that she’s speaking reasonably fluent
Latvian and reasonably good grammar, that I was so strict (laughs) at that time and
had to make her do what she perhaps didn’t want to do so willingly.
Did she finish her matriculation as well?
–
Yes, she finished – no, she finished just the primary school. At that time it
didn’t have it.
Okay, so the high school started in the – was it the ’70s, was it?
–
Yes.
Now, how was this experience part of your life, and what effect has it had? Your
experience of being a teacher at the School and being part of the community?
–
Well, teaching, because I like teaching and this is why I devoted some time to
teaching in the Latvian School, but I was busy with other activities in the Latvian
community and I had enough to do. I was involved with the Latvian Association, I
15
was involved in the Lutheran Church, so there was plenty of involvement. I was
involved, I was the President of the National Federation of Latvian Organisations in
Australia, I was President of the Association of Latvian Organisations in South
Australia and I was involved with the World Association of Latvian Organisations,
so I had many involvements in the different areas.
So when you were involved with the various associations was it every so many
years you were very involved, or did you just share your time amongst all of these
little groups?
–
Well, what do you mean?
Well, you were President of – I can’t remember all the various associations you
were – – –. Did you just take up the positions when you were nominated for a
certain period, or were you continually involved?
–
No, no, no. You see, we have four-year term, the associations have a four-year
term, and so obviously once you’ve finished your four years of your presidency then
somebody else comes in. So I served only one term as a president of organizations,
of the Latvian organizations in South Australia and also one term as Federal
President of the Latvian Federation.
Are you President of any association at the moment?
–
I’m President of the – – –.
END OF TAPE 1 SIDE A: TAPE 1 SIDE B
–
Well, Latvian Associations is a cultural organization and what we do is actually
we want to establish or we want to make sure that the Latvian culture is being
continued in the new generations, from generation to generation and that it’s not
forgotten, because, after all, our roots are in Latvia and we are all descendants from
Latvian, and I think Latvia has – well, Latvia has gained independence now. I think
it would be good if the ..... new generations continue the ....., understand our culture
and continue our traditions, and that’s what we’re doing at the Latvian Association.
The other thing we do very seriously now, of course we have established the
Museum, which is well-established now and Mara, yourself are in charge of the
Museum, and full credit to you that it is a place where the local people can visit, the
Australian people can visit and learn about the Latvian culture and traditions and the
national costumes in particular, and also the members of the Latvian community as
16
well come in and occasionally have an exhibition here and reminisce about the past
experiences and how we established our organization, how we established our –
well, whatever. (laughs) So it’s good that the Latvians come in the Museum and
find out about that. It’s exhibition about the schools, exhibition of migration or
whatever, and it’s all good information and certainly it will remain for posterity.
And we have our bookshop here, also we have a library where people can come and
read Latvian books.
And the other thing that we do, very much involved [in] at the moment, is looking
after the elderly. Those people who came out in the 1950s and 1949, ’50, ’51, they
are certainly elderly people today and senior people today and they need some help
from the government, and we have established a very active group called L..... that
looks after the elderly people of the Latvian community.
It’s quite an active community, then.
–
Yes, it has been active since we put our foot on South Australian soil, the
community has been very, very active with various organizations, umbrella
organizations and the activities that these organizations have, right through –it’s a
very active life.
Bruno, can I ask you – you’re retired now: besides being very active with the
Latvian community, do you do any other, outside work, voluntary work or
involvement?
–
Well, yes I do. I have honorary appointments, if you like, or honorary positions
with different organizations, I am patron of different organizations: I am patron of
the Ethnic Schools Association, I am patron of the Latvian Chamber of Commerce,
I’m also patron of the L..... group of people who look after the elderly. But also I
have honorary position now, the Lieutenant Governor of South Australia, which I
have been carrying on for the last five years.
How long is the term for?
–
There is no term, it’s just open-ended appointment, so I’m still doing it.
And that keeps you fairly busy?
–
That keeps me busy as well, yes.
It doesn’t seem that you’ve got any spare moments at all.
17
–
Not really, yes. Oh, I have a spare moment for doing my garden, in my
swimming pool, and the only regret I have is that I haven’t played my golf. And my
wife reminded me the other day that ‘What about the golf sticks you have in the
garage and when are you going to restart playing golf?’ And I hope that this summer
perhaps I will restart my golf.
It’s very relaxing.
–
Yes.
Is there anything else that you’d like to add to what we’ve been talking about:
your involvement with the community or the School? Have we covered
everything?
–
I think we’ve covered very well, and I thank you, Mara, for having this
interview, giving me this interview, and I would appreciate that many other people
would be interviewed along similar lines I have been interviewed, so that the
interviews remain on the tape for the young generations to hear or as part of the
history of South Australia, migration of Latvian people to South Australia.
Thank you very much for participating.
–
Thank you.
END OF INTERVIEW.
18