Letter from the Editor: Raising the Next Generation During a War
I had the opportunity to attend a demonstration in support of Ukraine at Washington Square Park, Manhattan yesterday. I'm attaching photos of yesterday's demonstration and a letter I published in this past Saturday's "Saturday Morning Review." This is not my story to tell, but after several supportive emails from readers - I'm sharing my perspective. I feel helpless against the violence and hatred striking Ukraine and its people, but I know I can amplify the love and support I witnessed for our Ukrainian neighbors. Letter from the Editor
Jaime Bairaktaris
February 26, 2022
I find myself picking my phone up more often to flip through the images of communities and lives being destroyed in Ukraine. I can’t seem to avoid it. Each time I look, I decide I don’t want to look anymore. Then I look again. And then again. And again. I can’t seem to avoid it. The images of destruction, of bravery, of war. I can’t seem to avoid it.
And at the same time: I need to see it. We need to see it. Because it’s not normal.
I’m not the only one being inundated with the details of war. While at work, one of my school’s 7th graders ran up to me after learning about the Selective Service, asking me if I would be drafted. I reassured him that the Selective Service was not being activated.
Then he asked if I was afraid of the war.
I couldn’t answer him.
It’s 2:00 AM now as I try to write down how I would have answered his question. There aren’t many soft ways to describe that yes, I am afraid of the war.
However, I’m not just afraid of the destruction and human loss - I’m afraid that we may raise another generation of children who will think that watching TikToks and Instagram reels of bombings is normal - that killing other humans is normal.
I’m afraid that we’re raising another generation of children who will grow to remember that an entire military was sent to destroy them and their families - that their childhoods were taken away from them by other humans with whom they share a planet with.
I’m afraid that we may raise another generation of children who think that war is normal.
My paternal grandparents both survived war torn countries - their stories sit in my mind as I pick up my phone another time. And then another time. Their stories formed my belief that war is not normal, and it cannot be normal.
My grandmother, Oma, escaped at a young age from a formerly occupied region as her family lived through World War II Germany.
She describes a vivid memory of being thrown down stairs into their cellar one night. She - as a small child - was not moving fast enough as her family raced the war looming outside.
1,500 miles away on a small Greek island, my grandfather, Papou, sought refuge in a church basement as bomb explosions pierced silence over the Aegean Sea that surrounded Syros. He - as a small child - would faint every time he heard a bomb drop.
A photo I took of Agios Dimitrios Church in June 2018, with the basement bunker beneath the building and the Aegean Sea surrounding it. In 2018, decades after that childhood memory, I had the opportunity to visit this same church with him. We walked the grounds that overlooked the sea until we came to an opened doorway. He pointed to the floor where he and his siblings had hidden during the attacks and explained how the strong stone of “Dimitrios” saved him and his family - a name that both he and I share.
From those two childhoods suffering from violence and famine - they found each other and then traveled until they settled in Larchmont, taking all of their memories and history with them. Each time my brothers and I walk into their house we’re reminded of the stories they’ve told us of their childhoods - childhoods very different than our own. The pictures on the walls, artifacts on the tabletops, the small piece of the Berlin wall on the shelf - as if a small cornerstone of my family’s journey. A reminder that war is not normal.
I hope that as you go through this week, you will help stop the normalization of war and start normalizing kindness for those around you. This will be the first war that we experience through social mediums that keep us hyper-engaged, while also keeping us desensitized. May it also be our last.
Monitor the media your youngest family members are seeing - because they are seeing it. Connect their minds to the communities and people on the ground, educate them on the culture and beauty that comes from these regions, tell them on the facts while trying to sift through the fiction, and remind them that humans must love their fellow humans.
In difficult times, we look for ways to help. So be kind. And then be kind again, and again, and again. The world needs, and will always need, more kindness.
Washington Square Park Demonstration: Sunday, 02.27.22
all photos by Jaime Bairaktaris, Executive Editor. Click to enlarge gallery
Morning Weather Report
Today
Sunny, with a high near 31. Wind chill values between 5 and 15. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph.
Tonight
Increasing clouds, with a low around 18. Light and variable wind.
Tomorrow
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 44. Wind chill values between 10 and 20. South wind 5 to 13 mph.
Tomorrow Night
Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 31. South wind 7 to 9 mph becoming west after midnight.
Judy Brown Stroup, 78, Died; Former Westporter, World Traveler
Judy Brown Stroup passed away in Atlanta, GA on Wednesday, February 23, 2022. Judy was born on March 4, 1943, in Montgomery, Alabama to Doris Bailey Brown and Captain James Couch Brown while they were stationed at Maxwell Air Force Base. Judy attended Decatur City Schools and graduated from Druid Hills High School in 1961. While in high school, Judy was selected to the J.P. Allen Teen Board, which ignited her passion for sophisticated fashion. Following high school, Judy attended the University of Georgia where she was a member of the Tri Delta sorority and the Angel Flight Drill Squad.
After leaving the University of Georgia, Judy began working for Western Electric and then McCann Erickson. Following her time with McCann Erickson, she worked for Alitalia Airlines and organized numerous international trips for her fellow Atlantans. Her time at Alitalia is what sparked her love of travel. In 1966, Judy married Wesley Stroup, her high school sweetheart, and throughout their life together, they made numerous trips to all corners of the globe. Whether they were entertaining clients at Super Bowls and other sporting events or traveling with friends, they saw it all.
After the birth of their first child, Judy decided to leave the corporate world to focus on her most important role of being the best mom. In 1980, Wes' job moved the family to Pittsburgh, PA, where she formed a new circle of lifelong friends. Following several years in Pittsburgh, the family moved to Westport, CT and then to Manhattan, NY. Wes had always promised Judy that he would get her back to her beloved Atlanta, so when he retired, they moved back home in 2000.
Back in Atlanta, Judy remained active in the community as a member of the Tri Delta Sorority Alumni group, the Woman's Auxiliary of Piedmont Hospital, and the Auxiliary Volunteers at Northside Hospital. She enjoyed playing bridge, reading, going to new restaurants, and spending time with her family and friends.
In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her husband of 48 years.
Judy has left us with wonderful memories as a loving mother, grandmother, sister, and warmhearted friend. She will always be remembered for her beautiful smile. Surviving are her children, son James Stroup (Kathy) of Dunwoody, GA, daughter Virginia Carper (Jon) of Sandy Springs, GA, brother Dr. Samuel Brown (Linda) of Milton, GA, grandchildren James and Bailey Carper and Wesley Stroup, and loving companion Jim McLellan.
Funeral Services celebrating her life will be conducted on Tuesday, the 1st of March at two o'clock in the afternoon at H.M. Patterson & Son Arlington Chapel, 173 Allen Road, Sandy Springs. The Rite of Committal will follow at Arlington Memorial Park. The family will receive friends one hour prior to service. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be directed to the Atlanta Humane Society in memory of Judy Brown Stroup.