Naomi Herson
Naomi Herson's family roots trace to Lithuania. Her father left in the early twentieth century, around 1910 to 1915, fleeing conscription by walking through forests to reach England before sailing in steerage to South Africa, where his parents and sisters eventually joined him. Her mother's father had left Lithuania in the late 1890s and worked for years before bringing his wife and eldest daughter over. Her mother was born in Johannesburg in 1912, one of seven children. Both of Naomi's grandmothers spoke Yiddish, and from them she absorbed more of the language than she realized. She was the eldest of her siblings, with a younger brother and sister.
Raised in Johannesburg, Naomi grew up in a traditional Jewish home. Her father was somewhat observant and did not work on the Sabbath or Jewish holidays, and the family kept kosher. Her mother, a wonderful cook, made traditional Jewish dishes and was the central figure who gathered the family for holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Passover. Support for Israel was a constant part of family life, with fundraising a familiar activity, especially around the time Israel became a state. These traditions shaped Naomi deeply, and she has continued them, watching her children and grandchildren carry them forward.
In 1985 Naomi's son and his future wife left South Africa, feeling it held little future, and eventually settled in Dallas. Her daughter, a Hebrew teacher, followed a few years later. Missing her children and grandchildren, Naomi and her husband made the difficult decision to emigrate, arriving in 1994 when she was in her fifties and her husband in his sixties. Her husband ran a pharmacy, and Naomi worked forty hours a week for fifteen years while still keeping Shabbat and cooking Friday dinners for the family. She and her husband became citizens and rejoined a synagogue. She left behind her mother, who died in 2008 at age 96, and later welcomed her own sisters to Dallas as well. Above all, she is proud of her children and grandchildren and their continued Jewish life.
Full Transcript
okay okay good afternoon my name is Naomi Hudson today is Monday the 18th of May 2015 and I'm sitting in my sitting room in my condo on a venture in South Africa my life index how about how long have you been here first of all this years 21 years okay which ended 1992 and think back for just a minute what possessed you and your husband if I assume you're married at the time to come here and why you chose Dallas we didn't choose this our children before I chose this our son and our daughter our son came here originally and then our daughter followed and
two children and I was yearning for my children and so was my husband and so we made the decision eventually after much much much thought because we were at lovebirds he put on in years to make such a move and we really had to think about it knowing full well that we were both going to have to work and twenty-one years ago we were 80 and it was a difficult decision but we just felt whatever jobs we would get and we would come here we need to be where and our grandchildren and at that point we already had one grandchild here in another one of
the ways we felt we were missing out so now I'm going to take you way back before all of this and tell us how your family originally got to South Africa well my father's family came from a small town anything on the border I mentioned the border of Russia he lived he left Lithuania possibly in the early 20th century between 1910 and 1915 as I recall him telling me that the child was collecting young Jewish boys for his army for his war and he and his brother and some other members of the family they they paradis thought it was time for them to leave and
they left on their own I used to ask him how did you get from there to England ha ha he said we walked through the forest you know what did you eat he said anything we could find anything anything potato peels from the trashman's anything got arrived here and there but he never wanted to really really talk about it was always difficult for him he I I think he came to South Africa in advance 1915 just 60 and 70 I don't know exactly the year unfortunately his papers got lost but came of course I couldn't speak English and this was but his parents and his
sisters eventually came to my mother on the other hand was born in South Africa her father came from me only 2 and her mother but my grandfather on my mother's side had left Luther a Nia in 1897 or 98 around there he came on his own and quite honestly what he did here I continued but it took something like seven or eight years until he managed to bring his wife and my mother's eldest sister to South Africa my father I know went to London and he told me that that was the first ship that left for South Africa and so they got on it and
obviously they were steerage they had no money and I don't know whether they came the decks or what they did but that's how they got there my grandfather my mother's father he he wasn't quite as open as how he came but it took many years until they settle down my mother was born in 1912 1912 and there was a brother before her and they'd lost two children before that according to my mother so I imagine that if her mother got there at around nineteen seven eight my mother was one of seven children father was one neither of my Baba's spoke English they both spoke Yiddish
so the bit of Yiddish that I had which are discovered in recent times it's more than what I thought I had I got from them where where did they settle do you know what city in my where were you raised and tell them oh we were raised in jettisoned but both my parents lived in Johannesburg my mother was born in Johannesburg and my father's family eventually all came to Johannesburg it was in those days with most of the Jews found themselves I suppose it was because City Lee was at that time I mean I know they were lots of Jews that settled in Cape Town
and small towns around the country but they so tell us a few of your very early memories of growing up there well they also may be memories one hair down much of what you mean but I remember the day my brother came home from the hospital and arrived in our house and there was this little baby screaming it sucks I suppose I felt opposed but you were the older sister and they hug I know I'm the eldest what they call promise school break one my mother took me about the hand I can remember that very chilly it's going back a long time you know what
about Jewishly what are your some of your memories of Jewish observances etc with your family our family observed were very traditional Jews my father was a little on the from Saudi never he really didn't go out on shoppers we never wrote on Jewish holidays Rosh Hashanah Yom Kippur place I didn't work but we weren't really from but custom it was part of our lives we've never every family they were all kept cash at homes but my mother was particularly a great mother Boston she made all the Jewish origin from sumus and Crippler and that saw and things that you don't even hear about today she
was very good have you carried on some of the here some of us I do do I certainly do my children are children Levites are continuing it come and see how to make it because becomes kind of a stuff in these nets in this - I often ask people if they feel is that when they came here from another country do you feel that your children are going to carry on some of the traditions that you felt you brought with you from South Africa I do because we live very traditional Jewish land in South Africa we never must we everybody belong to sure everybody had
seats in chauffeur young to even growing up as kids we always had a seat and sure my brother my sister now everybody came to my mother's house for young - growing up I have cousins still in South Africa he sometimes email to me when it's a pacer or Rosh Hashanah and say I remember your methods matzo balls and chickens do you know and we had the hot mama that was luck she was the central figure in her family even though she was child number three she was still the Bella ghost of the wall sounds like my mom what about Israel how did that play in
a role in your family and your upbringing growing up my parents were very proud Israel NASA that reproduce our program it's just something we pull up with heads honest - feeling there was always women who collected money for Israel and did all kinds of fundraisers for Israel and everybody participated and and and gave money always so Israel was always on the forefront especially by the tongue Israel was declared state we were you know it was already a nineteen years old and you know it was part of your life you know was a very exciting time has that carried on here in the United States that
feeling it's a different feeling now because each one's a different placement and so unfortunately since we've been we've lived here we've actually been back to Israel because all that years my mother my mother passed away at the age of 96 in 2008 so when I lived in 94 I left my mother behind with my sister and my brother and so I always had to go back to see my mother with it was once a year or twice a year whenever which every year it was said there was no their time or thankful to go anywhere else unfortunately the last time we went to Israel was
on route to interpret to it to Dallas where we came to see our kids which was a lot better so tell me now how did you get here and why we get yes well well in 1985 my son and his girlfriend at the time decided them in South Africa wasn't didn't held any future for them he had been in the military which was mandatory at the time he was in the military reluctantly he'd been to this University he got his degree he was like I'm leaving we are going well you know you have to find some way to go to UConn just pick a case
under so they took a trip around the United States and visited what I imagine every person that they knew in in how many cities around the country from Chicago to Detroit to New York to Los Angeles do wherever and they landed up in Dennis and thankfully somebody sponsored my daughter Eno and they came back and they got married and they came back here I think between them at their time they would have settled anyway that's a you know that they could put piggy down they they just knew they were staying at something return and I remember when he left and he said mom one day
you will come too and I said no I don't think so I read everything but so he lived and had a very hard time sitting you know putting his feet down they struggled for quite a while and then my daughter got married and they'd already been to visit Dennis and they said we're going to but not just yet so they stayed for a box but married in 89 and then it's 91 two years they were there for two years two and a half years and she got the same sponsorship and she was a Hebrew teacher she'd been teaching at them at an Orthodox School in
Johannesburg so she got sponsored as a teacher and so they both came here and so we were live on our own and it's of course over the years we were visiting every year every cell phone and the kids can say my son particularly kept saying the day I gave my citizenship and sponsoring you and you're coming well you know it was not sure about that not sure about that anyway he got his citizenship but he call he said I'm going to put your papers in that's it hmm wait a minute let us let us just my job breathe and anything about and after my daughter
left one day announcements the pharmacist tea and a pharmacy and the telephone rang and they said mr. Gerson would you not to sell you a pharmacy and he handed over the fantasy tells me and I said well he said well come and see me let's talk about it and somehow we felt that was the Bichette was here we were we had a pharmacy we had a her who we so they negotiated it took six months to get to to do it that somehow we knew that was the first step towards to moving to America and then off to eat solids and we down a little we came here for four months and it was should we do it should we've not should we
do it should we not where did you live at that time when we stayed him we lived a month with each child I moved from place to table days so you didn't have to like rent a place to ever say you're welcome anyway and when we winter they say you need to do it you need to do it and we decided you know what maybe we ready to serve we sold an asset of us awhile which are finishing storage we waited for the papers to come because illegally there was their way if we were coming yeah and so they came in August mantle for and
we had a big farewell party it was actually Rosh Hashanah when it came and I said we're waiting for Russia shown on Yom Kippur and then we'll have a party to say goodbye to here before we do at that point I like to ask people did others from your family or friends also start thinking hmm if they're considering it incoming maybe we should consider it as well well a lot about food thought we were crazy then treated to be charged why because at the age we were at that point in time wasn't exactly conducive to starting a new life but when you make a decision
that you're gonna do it you're gonna do it and so we came yeah he like okay I was 55 and my husband was 62 which isn't exactly prom time to get a job but I did get a job I got I actually got a job and realized I had the wrong one and then I got another one Macy's and I stayed for 15 years you must have loved enjoyed it well I must say I enjoyed all of it you have to remember I was the boss's wife enjoy his food and I worked for you but worked 40 hours a week and I didn't clock in
and I didn't clock out so it was a little a little difficult to say the least it was wasn't what I thought it was going to be but it was what I committed myself to and I was determined to do that how did your family your immediate family grow once you got here well when we got here we already had a little grandchild of three and the next one was born a month before we came and then after that I go turn heads a little boy in 1396 in another one in 98 so we have four grandchildren two granddaughters and two grandsons and then one
of my sisters daughters meets the young man who lived here which is a story she would possibly tell you herself and eventually she got married and came here and then another sister came and three four years ago my sister came Oh wonderful was part of that besides you being here was part of that the fact that your mom had died and maybe she felt her sister it's my sister came after we lost my mother she would never have come for that but your children were really settled with educators I think it's wonderful that you had people around that you knew I mean family and friends
that's terrific well you know I still have a brother who lives in Johannesburg and he has two sons who live in New York so they come to New York often but this living Jane Smith when you arrived here you had been here before visiting but what was it like to finally say that you're living here what was the community like how did they welcome you what was it what was that feeling I wouldn't say it was the greatest welcome anybody could even hear we really knew and children and natural rules of you phrase you know it's very difficult to break into a society especially when
you're older for the youngsters they meet people when they take the kids to school to Hebrew school to day school for other people and especially at we were I wasn't around I wasn't available and I one of the things when out at work was I needed Friday off and so you get two days a week off I had and why not sometimes a Sunday sometimes a weekday and for me Friday was shoppers we had to cook we had to make the children had to come for dinner the grandchildren whoever was here to come and so it wasn't that easy to to meet too many people
but we did meet some and we did form some maths relationships with some people there were a lot of older parents yeah not so much our age but older group of parents here we went after Dennis with amenities and when when we could you know it wasn't it wasn't easy we rejoined Tavares when we first came you know was did you have other activities and things to be involved in Jewishly besides the synagogue were you able to do that I work 40 hours a week it was enough to get Justin ago we're not good and make showers for the family and don't offend not a
lot of time retail doesn't give you time for Jewish life I've made up for it now but did you work on or do you have your US citizenship yes what was that like that experience they take a while and you get it - we get it - then you learn the Pledge of Allegiance and the pledge of allegiance and you did 100 questions about the history of United States and then they'll ask you for then they asked you to write I live in a house to make sure that you can write English or you speak English whatever it may be and you get it so
that wasn't a difficulty is there anything that you would change if you could about the whole process of coming here being here no no you personally your your experience with it all coming here from South Africa is there anything you can think of that you would have done differently if you could I think we did pretty well when we've been here on the last visit to add interview to a few places for a job and I had a good idea of what kind of a job in fact I had a job offer before I even had a green card and I daughter day my daughter
still a fair number and I kept holding that waste your mother when is she coming raise your mother and eventually I came I got the job but I realized it wasn't the ranch I had the child within three days of stepping off the plane that's pretty good yeah some people would say that it was remote island but my son made sure we did out ever yeah that's he simply made sure that we knew age you know we were gonna be and how we gonna find ourselves and of course they were the restrictions in South Africa with money in it it was it wasn't easy as
the wrap up can you tell us something that you're very very proud of that you've done in your lifetime me I'm very proud of my children I'm proud of the fact that that turned out to be two wonderful judicial children who brought it they educated their children and Jewish their schools and Galvan Jewish laughs and show them the way and we're very proud of them and our grandchildren as well that's that's our pride and joy for me I don't have any be happy that we did a good job and to the educators and and brought up two wonderful children who treats us very well we're
happy that all of you ended up here I must say thank you thank you very much you