Odysseys: Immigrant offers help to recent newcomers

Odysseys: Immigrant offers help to recent newcomers

Mila Kogos (middle) at a Penguins game with her granddaughter Anna (left) and daughter, Alona (right).

By Madeline Conway

When Lyudmila Kogos arrived in Pittsburgh on July 4, 1993, a set table was waiting for her in Squirrel Hill. She had traveled for hours with her husband, mother, father-in-law and 14-year-old daughter, as the family moved to Pittsburgh from Chisinau, Moldova’s capital city. Independence Day was her first day in the United States, and “Mila,” as she’s known to friends, spent it with the neighborhood that welcomed her and would become her home.

Victor Pelakh of Squirrel Hill, a former colleague of Mila’s late husband, Simon, had a refrigerator stocked with the multiple-course meal that he planned to serve them upon their arrival. He greeted the family at Pittsburgh International Airport. He arrived late, and they were exhausted after about 20 hours of travel, Mr. Pelakh remembers. Mila’s daughter, Alona, fell asleep on his couch.

Mila, now 55, has extended a similar hand to Moldovan immigrants in the years since she moved to Pittsburgh, a city she loves and unequivocally calls home. Born in Ukraine and having attended college in Moscow after moving to Moldova at age 4, she has helped seven families immigrate here, going so far as to play host to friends in her home upon their arrival.

“It was just a constant flow of people,” Alona recalled. “Quite a few families from Moldova or the former Soviet Union lived at our house at some point.”

Mila is part of a community of Russian-speaking immigrants living in the city, many in Squirrel Hill, that she credits for her success here.

“I had a very good experience with people all around,” Mila said. “They’re from different countries, but [in] this country, helping each other — that ‘what it’ all about.”

Problems facing the Moldovan economy in the years after the Soviet Union’1991 collapse prompted Mila, a trained engineer and teacher, to move to the U.S. with her family. They could have moved to New York City, where she has relatives, but Mila wanted to raise her daughter in a smaller city, she said. Mr. Pelakh, a U.S. resident since 1986, invited them to Pittsburgh, and although she had “no clue” what the city had to offer, Mila did some research and ended up bringing her family here.

She’s lived in Squirrel Hill since her arrival.

The neighborhood is central to the story behind Mila’s identity as a Pittsburgher. When they arrived, Mila and her extended family lived under one roof, an arrangement she said was in some ways challenging but provided them with support as they learned English. Friends throughout the neighborhood, too, were key in transitioning. Mila made friends in her English classes, and Mr. Pelakh introduced her family to others. Squirrel Hill has a sizable Russian-speaking population, and Alona said her mother and family have developed “such a great circle of friends.”

“We had so many friends, right away,” said Mila, who taught gymnastics in Moldova and had a gymnastics school in Pittsburgh.

When she talks about her love for Pittsburgh, from its skyline and bridges to its sports teams, Mila quickly returns to its people. She has seen Pittsburgh change physically over the past two decades, but its people “are not changing a lot,” she said. Mr. Pelakh, a retired engineer, years ago introduced Mila’s family to the lifestyle in Pittsburgh and taught them “basic things” such as how to pay their bills, but Mila ended up helping him make friends later on, he said.

“She introduced me to a lot of people, after a while,” Mr. Pelakh said. “I knew through them many more people than I knew before that.”

1 Comment

Jake SurtesNEW23 hours ago Why allow more people into the United States to compete for the too few jobs there are here? Doesn't sound like they are political refugees.

1. 
   According to the article, what was the first welcoming act Mila experienced in America?
   
   1. 
      A home-cooked meal b. A warm embrace c. A party d. None of these
      
2. 
   Based on this sentence in the reading, “Squirrel Hill has a sizable Russian-speaking population, and Alona said her mother and family have developed ‘such a great circle of friends’” you know that Squirrel Hill is similar to what?
   
   1. 
      Benevolent society b. ethnic neighborhood c. tenement d. business
      
3. 
   Based on information from the reading, why does Mila do what she does for immigrants?
   
   1. 
      She believes it is the right thing to do c. She wants a better life for her family
      
   2. 
      Others did the same for her d. She is proud to live in Pittsburgh
      

4. 
   What would be a synonym for unequivocally?
   
   1. 
      Hesitantly b. Regretfully c. Proudly d. Rightfully
      
      
5. 
   The comment typed by Jake Surtes would be similar to that typed by a what?
   
   1. 
      Nativist b. Social Darwinist c. Benevolent Society member d. Politician
      

6. 
   City Life
   
   1. 
      By 1900, 40% of Americans lived in urban areas (dramatic shift)
      
      1. 
         Immigrants responsible for much of the growth
         
      2. 
         Chicago, Il: 30,000 residents in 1850, up to 1.7 million by 1900
         
         1. 
            Location along RR + job opportunities for blacks and immigrants
            
   2. 
      Changing Cities
      
      1. 
         Cities not prepared for rapid growth; New technologies developed b/c of this
         
         1. 
            Skyscrapers – build buildings up and not out
            
            1. 
               Steel industry grew b/c of Bessemer Process, steel used to build skyscrapers, and modern elevator invented/modified in 1850
               
         2. 
            Mass transit
            
            1. 
               Elevated trains (1860s), subways (1897), cable cars, trolleys
               
            2. 
               Many moved to suburbs if wealthy enough & took transit to cities
               
         3. 
            New ideas – Mass culture = new entertainment options
            
            1. 
               Newspapers – 1896, Joseph Pulitzer added comics to his New York World newspaper; caught on nationwide
               
            2. 
               Department stores late 1800s
               
               1. 
                  Marshall Field – First large scale department store; restaurant inside, newspaper ads & window displays
                  
            3. 
               World Fairs – first ice cream cone in 1904
               
            4. 
               Central Park in NY – Frederick Law Olmsted
               
            5. 
               Amusement Parks – Kennywood Park in 1898
               

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