“From our street lots of people were deported. All local residents, who were Ukrainians, were deported. Usually people were deported to Siberia at night. Almost all Ukrainians lived on the ground floor or in cellar (in the house of witness – Auth.), second and third floors were occupied by militaries. It was 1947-48. Every night we had packed bags. Mother was in the hospital, she was ill. And I with my brother had ready bags with things in case of deportation. We went sleeping only when the car rode away.”
“What I remember from our house # 10 it was cleanness (it is about Bohomol’cya str. – auth.). There were cuspidors on each floor and everyday everything was washed and trash was put out into yard – the car came and took this trash from the yard. But everyday everything was cleaned. Then, when “liberators” came, they went to buy milk with these cuspidors because they were made from porcelain. And night shirts were dresses for them. Here major’s wife lived on upper floor, Mrs. Chernenko, so she went to Opera house in night dress – it’s true.”
“They didn’t touch us, treated us very well. At least in that house – all this people were on high positions but respected us. We lived on the down floor but they treated us as higher caste. In general my mother was very interesting woman and father worked not at a simple work. My mother always brought to neighbors some cakes, pies, as it was before in villages and here now. When mother baked honey cake on holidays he brought it to neighbor from upper floor. He later came and told that this dark bread was tastier than a white one. Mother explained that it was a cake, not bread. But he told: “I don’t know how you call it but we call it bread”. My parents died early. I remember, when mother died they all came to me and wanted to help, exactly from all floors. They didn’t have some anger, hostility. On the contrary, they said that we were happy because we could have icons at home.”
Mykhaylyna Ocherklevych was born on the 21st of November 1938 in Lviv. Her maiden name was Mylianyk. Together with parents and brother she lived on Bohomol’cya Street. It was there, where she was born - accouchement was taken by nun. Father worked in technical college, mother didn’t work. After war finished the family lived with a fear of deportation to Siberia. In 1955 she finished school, later high school. She worked as a doctor. Later on she married Bohdan Ocherklevych. Mykhaylyna has a daughter. She never left Lviv and now lives here with the family.
