Dora Grafova
They were ordinary workers.
My husband’s father, my husband – they were ordinary workers.
His father was an ordinary worker.
And my husband’s grandfather was a tin man, he was an ordinary worker too.
My husband’s father and mother worked in Kreenholm.
They were Russian, but my husband’s mother was Estonian.
The grandfather began working in 1896 and he stopped working in 1952.
It has already been 32 years that my son Grafov has been working in Kreenholm.
Sasha, my grandson, also works at Kreenholm.
During the war they were evacuated to Russia, they did not stay here.
When the war was over in 1944, or in 1945, they came back to Narva. When they arrived at the station there was an overwhelming silence. After the liberation of Narva/When Narva was liberated, there was only one old woman alive.
Almost all of Kreenholm was in ruins.
Even the machines had to be cut; they had melted due to high temperatures.
The old weaving factory had suffered the least and it was slowly being repaired.
The hydraulic turbines that rotated by water pressure were in a better state, they were repaired, and they resumed producing electricity.
There was a waterfall nearby - Narva is famous for its waterfall – The water falls from a height of 5 or 9 meters.
Little by little Narva came back to life. Former residents began returning to the city.
After the war, when Kreenholm was restored, there were 12 000 workers.
Today, there are 3 000 workers and at the end of May [2008] a thousand will be dismissed.
This is all written in the newspapers.
Vassia, my son, will also lose his job and Sasha will take his paternity leave.
Vassia has already been offered three or four new jobs. He doesn't drink, he would never shirk work, he is responsible!
How we all feel about it?
My brother’s daughter-in-law always says: “Kreenholm was my breadwinner”
And everybody thinks the same.
And now our breadwinner will be closed.