Kholiava, Sydor (Sydir)

Sydor Kholiava was a child of about 8 during the famine. His extended family consisted of 13 people, and he was the only survivor. He describes how a search brigade came to their home and took away their barrel of flour: one of the “activists” took it to his own home.

Kholiava worked for food ever since he was a child. He survived the famine because he worked in a collective farm whose workers were given a better ration that included bread and even some horsemeat sausage. He was also a WWII veteran. He briefly describes how he fought as a soldier in the war, was wounded multiple times, and still suffers from his wounds.

Ukrainian transcription available.

• Vyshchyy Bulatets’
  Poltava, Ukraine
  

  Latitude: 50.02997 Longitude: 32.90031