The Congress of Russian Americans (CRA) — a national non-profit organization headquartered in San Francisco — continues a project started by one of its founders, Colonel Oleg Pantyukhov. Whenever possible, the organization adds new names to the Golden List of Russian Americans who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces. If you have relatives who served, or if you would like to share the biographies of friends or acquaintances, please send their names with brief biographical information to CRA. You can email to: crahq.sf@gmail.com

Today, the United States observes Memorial Day — a day dedicated to honoring the memory of members of the armed forces who lost their lives in service. On this day, it is especially important to remember and pay tribute to all who gave their lives defending the country — and in particular, to our compatriots of Russian descent. Attached are few biographies of the Russian Americans killed in combat. Memory eternal!  

Eugene R. Luri (Евгений Лури)

Eugene was born to Maria K. Luri, a well-known figure in San Francisco’s Russian community who was several times chosen as the Queen of the Russian Invalids Ball. Eugene served as a medic in the U.S. Army during World War II. He was killed in action in Germany on March 2, 1945, at the age of 20. Initially buried in a U.S. military cemetery in Belgium, his remains were brought home to San Francisco in 1948 at his mother’s request.

Vladimir Boldyreff (Владимир Болдырев)
Vladimir was born into a Russian Don Cossack family in Yugoslavia. His father, Colonel Sergej Vladimirovich Boldyrev (1890–1957), was a noted writer and professor at the Don Cadet Corps. The family immigrated to the United States and settled in Ohio in 1950. Vladimir enlisted in the U.S. Army and was killed in action during the Korean War on October 18, 1952.

Valentine N. Barsoukoff (1928–1953) (Валентин Барсуков)

Valentine served in the Korean War with the 1st Marine Division and held the rank of Private First Class. He was killed in combat in 1953. He was awarded the Purple Heart and a Gold Star. His final resting place is the Serbian Cemetery in Colma, California.

Alexander Fedoroff (Александр Федоров)

Alexander was born in 1944 in California. He served in the Vietnam War as a Staff Sergeant with the 17th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Squadron. He was killed in combat in 1968 and was awarded the Purple Heart. He is buried at the Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, California. See photo taken from the Wall of faces.

Paul Kassatkin (Павел Касаткин)
Born in 1947, Paul enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps on October 21, 1966, in New York City. He served in Vietnam with Company A, 3rd Platoon, 3rd Engineer Battalion, attached to H&S Company, BLT 3/1, 9th MAB, FMFPac. In early April 1968, during Operation LANCASTER II near Camp J.J. Carroll in Cam Lo District, Quang Tri Province, he was wounded by a hostile explosive device. He died from his injuries aboard the U.S. Naval Hospital Ship USS Sanctuary on April 9, 1968. See photo taken from the Wall of faces.

175th Anniversary of the Birth of Peter Demens — Founder of St. Petersburg, Florida.

This May marks the 175th anniversary of the birth of Peter Alexeyevich Demens (Dementieff) (1850–1919), a Russian émigré who made his mark on the history of the United States as the founder of the city of St. Petersburg in Florida.

In the final years of his life, Peter Demens lived in Los Angeles, where he managed an orange plantation in the Rancho Cucamonga area. He was laid to rest at the historic Angelus Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles. Just recently, representatives of the Congress of Russian Americans (CRA) visited his gravesite to honor his memory.

Descendants of Peter Demens now live on the West Coast of the United States and in Canada.

We are pleased to share several archival photographs from “The Russian American” magazine, which was published by the CRA. The images depict the 1979 unveiling of a memorial plaque in honor of Peter Demens. The ceremony was attended by his grandson Pyotr Tolstoy, CRA representatives, and the mayor of the city of St. Petersburg, Florida.

In 1994, another commemorative plaque was installed in Rancho Cucamonga, California, to honor Peter Demens’ legacy. The estate where his daughter and her husband lived was affectionately known among Americans as “Yasnaya Polyana in California” — in reference to Leo Tolstoy’s famous family estate in Russia.

Radonitsa in the Russian Orthodox Church is a commemoration of the departed, observed on the second Tuesday of Pascha (Easter) or, in some places (in south-west Russia), on the second Monday of Pascha.

The Slavs, like many ancient peoples, had a tradition of visiting family members’ graves during the springtime and feasting together with them. After their conversion to Christianity, this custom transferred into the Russian Orthodox Church as the festival of Radonitsa, the name of which comes from the Slavic word “radost'”, meaning “joy.” In Russia, a local name is “Krasnaya Gorka” (Красная горка, “Beautiful Hill”), and has the same meaning.

This year, 2025, Radonitsa fell on the 29^th of April.However, eachyear, for those who work during the week and cannot attend Radonitsa on the Tuesday, 9 days after Easter, the community comes together at the Serbian Cemetery in Colma on the prior Sunday and priests from different parishes serve at the grave sites of the many Orthodox Christians buried there.

A large panihida is served annually at the Cossack Monument with a potluck pominki at the Cossack tent. Orthodox faithful send in their “In Memoriam” slips in advance (up to 10 people) with their donations, and the attending priest reads the names of the reposed at the panihida. This is not necessarily limited to Cossacks or local people, many are sent from other cities or states to commemorate and pray for their departed family members and friends. The panihida was performed by Father Gyorgyi Kaplanov of the Holy Virgin Cathedral in San Francisco and sung by the cathedral choir, under the direction of Vladimir Krassovsky.

Each year, Congress of Russian Americans sends 10 names of the deceased CRA past presidents and active directors, including Alexandrov, Pribytkin, Budzilovich, Avisov, Cytowicz, Anissimov, Foster with a few of the newly departed, such as George Lavrov, Yura Korobkov (St.Petersburg representative) and Sergey Timashev (one of the CRA founders) added this year.

This year was an exceptional turnout at the Cossack tent. Nearly 100 people came together and celebrated Radonitsa with Cossack members and friends. With a large assortment of appetizers, salads, meats, cheeses, desserts and fruit, prepared by the Cossack directors, there were vodka shots and wines to spread Paschal cheer, as well as commemorate family and friends who were remembered at the panihida and pominki.

This year, especially, marks the 100^th anniversary of the Cossack Union, founded in Shanghai in 1925, as well as in San Francisco (initially as the All-Russian Cossack Unit, then renamed and registered as the All Cossacks Union of San Francisco). While a big Gala Banquet is being planned for October 17 by the All Cossack Union of San Francisco at the Russian Center (www.allcossacksunionsf.org), the Cossack Board members laid a red carnation with a Russian flag ribbon on the grave sites of each of the Ataman that headed the ACU in the past.Many of the Atamans (Presidents of the Cossack Union), familiar and active community leaders, such as Kolchev, Bologoff, Mamontoff, Ponomarenko, Protopopoff, Shikaloff, Metlenko and others are buried at the Serbian cemetery. Their contribution to preserving the Cossack Union, the traditions and lasting legacy remain invaluable, as witnessed by so many children, grandchildren and great grandchildren that remain dedicated to the history of their Cossack ancestors.

CRA is one of the sponsors of this year’s 100^th anniversary commemorative event and wishes the All Cossacks’ Union of SF great success for the Gala Banquet and for the future of their organization.

Congratulations to all our friends and fellow Orthodox Christians on the feast of Easter. Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

One of the objectives of the Congress of Russian Americans (CRA) is to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of Russian Americans.  Through CRA headquarters in San Francisco, the chapters in New York and Los Angeles and other CRA members, CRA receives archival documents, photographs, newspaper articles, concert brochures, books and other material from the local diaspora that are passed on to either the Russian History Museum in Jordanville, the Hoover Institution at Stanford University or the Museum of Russian Culture in San Francisco (as well as other museums and archives).   The collaboration between these museums and the Congress of Russian Americans has lasted many years.

Various collections of books, photos and other documents of prominent Russian Americans have been received for past years, through the CRA headquarters and passed on to the Museum of Russian Culture in San Francisco (MRCSF), located in the Russian Center, where CRA is headquartered.    Most recently, with the assistance of the CRA Los Angeles Chapter, the museum will be receiving documents and pre-revolutionary edition books, as well as family archival documents from a family whose journey to the United States passed through China and Brazil and will also be donated to the Museum (MRCSF).

CRA encourages families to pass on their family archives and collections to CRA, so that they can coordinate distribution to these museums and archives (or contact each of the organizations directly).  Too often, these priceless collections are tossed, thinking that they could not be of any value to others.  However, family and individual collections hold valuable insights into our ancestors’ lives, traditions, and experiences.   These collections, facilitate research, knowledge sharing, and storytelling.  Don’t let these stories fade away. The dedicated archivists provide end-to-end collection care to ensure these stories won’t be lost or forgotten.   Each story brings a piece of the puzzle to the big picture of the cultural and historical heritage of Russian Americans in the U.S.

CRA New York representative, Ludmila Selinsky worked with CRA headquarters in obtaining archives, including photos, concert brochures, documents, sheet music and other material  of Dmitry Avramenko.  Dmitry Avramenko, born in Russia and immigrated from Argentina to the United States, organized a choir in Argentina with a magnificent collection of costumes, including boyar, gypsy, Russian, Ukrainian and others, which he brought to the U.S. and started a Folk Choir that performed all over the SF Bay Area and Southern California.  The costumes were later left to Natasha Borissova’s Russian Collection and now are at the Russian Center used by Vladimir Riazantsev dancers.

The NY Chapter had also orchestrated organizing numerous collections of containers for humanitarian aid support to Russian and Ukrainian families throughout the years.  This included clothes, medicine, canned and home goods.   This continued even after the SF headquarters discontinued sending containers in the early 2000’s due to difficulty with shipments and payments. (Front page: picture from the cover of the magazine with an actor and founder of the Los Angeles Ballet – Theodor Kozloff playing balalaika, circa 1928.)

The Congress of Russian Americans wishes our members, friends, patrons, and their families a Merry Christmas and a joyful, prosperous New Year 2025! May this festive season bring warmth, happiness, and success to all.

CRA was one of the sponsors of the Slavic Children’s Holiday Faire, annual pre-Christmas event, held on December 7 at the Russian Center of San Francisco (where CRA office is headquartered).  The event was organized by Alexandra (Sasha) Sabelnik-Whooley, Russian Center’s Executive Director and a long-time member of CRA.  In addition to a wonderful program of music, singing and dancing from various slavic countries, MC’d by Sasha, the event featured games for children of all ages, authentic ethnic food and desserts and vendors selling arts & crafts, jewelry, books, collectibles and other items.  Traditional Cossack and Russian costumes were provided by the All Cossack Union for photo opportunities with Santa.   CRA 1st Vice President, Marina Soboleva and President, Natalie Sabelnik organized and staffed a CRA table with information, member applications etc. for visibility and sold various books donated by CRA members.  Participation in these events, not only supports our community organizations, raises awareness of CRA’s work, but also helps promote and preserve Russian culture to our children and youth.

His Eminence Archbishop Peter of Chicago and Mid-America, a revered figure within the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR), entered eternal rest unexpectedly on Friday, November 8, 2024, the feast day of the Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica.

Born on August 9, 1948, in San Francisco, Archbishop Peter had a deep connection to the Church from a young age. He served as an altar boy for the renowned Saint John of Shanghai and San Francisco. He later attended Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville, NY, where he pursued his theological studies.

Throughout his life, Archbishop Peter held various significant positions within the ROCOR. He served as head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem and as administrator of the Diocese of Chicago and Detroit. In 2016, he was elevated to the rank of archbishop and appointed as the Ruling Bishop of the Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America.Known for his profound theological knowledge and his unwavering dedication to the Church, Archbishop Peter will be deeply missed by the clergy, monastics, and faithful of the Diocese of Chicago and Mid-America, as well as the broader Orthodox community.Memorial service at the coffin of Archbishop Peter, was held on Friday, November 15, 2024,  at the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral in Des Plaines, IL. Divine Liturgy and funeral was on Saturday, November 16, 2024 at the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral. The casket was then transported to the Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY, where he will be buried. His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas, First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, officiated at the Divine Liturgy at the Holy Virgin Protection Cathedral on November 16-17, after which he departed for the Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville.

We extend our sincere condolences to his family, the faithful of his diocese, friends, and all who were touched by his life and work.  Archbishop Peter was a staunch supporter of the Congress of Russian Americans, the national board, as well as the Chicago Chapter.  May the Lord grant His servant, the newly-reposed Archbishop Peter, rest with the saints in the Kingdom of Heaven and memory eternal!