Another story was told to us by Tatyana, a Ukrainian immigrant living in the Czech Republic. She thought of giving a
male portrait or an unusual
royal portrait for the 70th birthday of her high school mathematics teacher Aaron Yakovlevich. Tatyana and her husband, Pavlo, went to school in Ukraine in the 90s. This was a very difficult period for all post-Soviet countries. After the collapse of the USSR there were hunger, unemployment and banditry. In this situation, the youth felt hopeless and lost. The world that their parents knew was breaking up before their eyes. Every day brought new problems and unpleasant
surprises.
The future of schoolchildren was uncertain. Tatyana and Pavlo say that Aaron Yakovlevich was the only ray of light and an outlet for the students of their small school. He kept them from being sad, skipping classes, and hanging out with bad company.
Tatyana says: “It was a hopeless
time, we didn’t even know if we would have food tomorrow. But Aaron Yakovlevich made us forget about it and believe that the future of outstanding mathematicians awaits us. He prepared us at the level necessary for applicants to the most prestigious universities in the world.” Every day,
schoolchildren studied mathematics at an advanced level. If they wanted to, they stayed at school after the lessons, and on weekends they came to the teacher's house, where he and his wife, Dina Samuilovna, conducted classes for everyone.
A lot of students came to their home, because there
were simply no other entertainment and educational activities for children and youth in their town. Tatyana and Pavlo went to study at the most prestigious Ukrainian university in Kyiv, then they won scholarships at a US university and continued their education there.
Then they got a job as
programmers, traveled a lot around Europe and settled in the Czech Republic, where they founded their own company. They say that they owe all their success, opportunities and wealth to the school teacher who gave them an excellent education.
Until now, they kept in touch with him, and when the
war broke out in Ukraine, they helped Aaron and Dina with their grandchildren (their father and mother stayed to defend their homeland in the army) move to the Czech Republic. They plan to celebrate the upcoming anniversary together, like a big family.