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Immigration to the USA After Communism took hold in Eastern Europe, preventing the displaced from returning home, their eyes turned toward the West for some sort of promises of resettlement. My parents were at Wildflecken for several years recovering from their time spent in forced labor. The UNRRA provided for all their needs; food, clothing, shelter, and training for a new vocation. They were eventually moved to other camps: Bad Richenhall; Schongau; and Munich. On June 25, 1948 the Congress of the U.S. passed a resolution to admit 200,000 displaced people over the next two years. While President Truman faulted the congress for the bill's numerous bad points, finally the doors to America were opening a bit. On June 16, 1950, President Truman signed H.R. 4567, which amended the D.P. Act of 1948, authorizing a total of 400,744 visas to be issued. *)
*) Source: Truman Library - Public Papers of the President |
On
September 24, 1951 the IRO issued five visas to our family. The port
of embarkation - Bremerhaven; port of entry - New York; the sponsor
was The National Catholic Welfare Conference, Resettlement Division,
New York. Visas were only good for a 4 month period. 
On
January 2, 1952, The Flying Tiger Line issued three Passenger Landing
Cards: for my father, mother, and brother, the other two would be lap-children,
aboard Plane #N-67548. After arriving in the United States our family
was settled in with a cousin, and my father took a job in a smelting
factory as a laborer. 
A
couple of years later this studio picture was taken showing my parents
with their children, Adam, Janie and Sofia. The transformation from
displaced persons to productive members of an American community completed!