GermanAmericanPioneers.org
Preserving the history of German Pioneers in Silicon Valley, USA.
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Bellieve it or not, I wrote a book
At age 20 she immigrated to the United States. During her ocean crossing to New York she had her appendix removed. At age 24 she moved to Hawaii where she met her husband, also from Westphalia. Together they raised two sons in the San Francisco Bay Area. They were a good team, worked hard, and succeeded by accumulating some real estate.
In 1985, the world celebrated the 40th anniversary of the ending of World War II. The American press was extremely harsh in presenting the German side of the war. This event had an enormous impact on the author, and she began to view the world more skeptically. She wondered why the war crimes committed by the allies remained hidden. She compared her German family, friends and neighbors to the American people she met in her community. The author concluded that most Germans were at least as good, and at times, a cut above many Americans she had met. She also wondered why her sons never learned anything about the contributions German-Americans had made to this country. To keep her sanity, she researched and compiled many ot the contributions the Germans had made in America. She and her husband, promoted and educated the public on German American heritage at many events throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. People of all kinds of backgrounds can benefit from reading this story. It is uplifting and encouraging.
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The web site GermanAmericanPioneers.org has been developed by Maria and Walter Brand. Maria has gathered an extensive history of the activities of German American Pioneers in the region now known as Silicon Valley (the City of San Jose, CA and the surrounding Santa Clara Valley). Saturdays at 8:30pm,on channel 32 you can watch a progam of interest to Germans in theEnglish language. My husband of 45 years passed away on Oct. 21, 2005. He suffered a cardiac arrest. |
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Thought of the Month: Don't believe it if people tell you you can't do it.
About the Book I believe many immigrants can identify with this book, because we all share the experience of being uprooted, having to learn a new language and losing our children to a culture we can never fully embrace. This, we all share, regardless of what continent we call home. In addition, if you come from a country that America is or has been at war with, it is difficult to endure the constant propaganda against your country of origin, where many of your relatives may still reside. I have written about the pain I felt every time I heard the word “Nazi” applied to all of my people. To relieve my frustration I tried to document the way I grew up in the Westmuensterland, neare theDutch border, how I met and married my husband in Hawaii, and our life together including raising our two sons. I have written about our successes and failures, our anxieties and joys, and growing old together. I have included letters to senators and congressmen regarding current issues and their replies. You will also read how my husband and I promoted the contributions Germans in America have made for more than 350 years. For all this effort, we were honored by the “German American Heritage Foundation of the USA” in 2003, as well as by the German Government in the year 2000. I lost my partner and best friend of 45 years in 2005. I continue my efforts and research via the internet. My web-site is listed on the back cover of the book. I am grateful to America for broadening my horizons and opening paths I would not have dared to walk on in Germany. I also believe America was blessed by having so many Germans come to these shores. Maria Brand
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