You should meet Oleg

Everyone loves a success story; it means a lot when a family member is the person you're hearing about.
If you met Oleg, you would find him a shy, unassuming young man, with a ready grin and a mop of jet-black hair. There is no way by just looking at him to know what he has been through. And he'd never offer to tell you his story. But it's a remarkable one.
When Oleg was about age 12, his family was becoming more and more uncomfortable living in the Russian Crimea. Anti-Semitism had always been present but it was getting worse. They had to leave. There were few options; they would have preferred the United States but it was not taking Russian citizens. When Oleg came home in tears from school after being bullied for being a Jew, his mother made the decision: the family—Oleg, mother, stepfather, stepbrother, grandfather (my cousin), grandmother, and great-grandmother—was going to Israel as quickly as possible.
With a few household and personal belongings they flew to Vienna and then on to Israel. After the family settled, Oleg was hospitalized for a circumcision; the Russians would not permit that and Oleg's grandfather felt that action had to be done to initiate Oleg's becoming a true Jew, a descendant of Abraham. When asked about it, Oleg, now 26, says, "It hurt."
Then at age 13, he joined several other refugee teens to become a bar mitzvah. He adjusted to Israel—went to school, learned English and Hebrew. He went to college, became interested in computer science, served his expected time in the army, all the while continuing his studies. He scuba dived, learned parasailing, traveled to Europe and South America.
Recently he completed a M.Sc., probably in computer science.
Pictures of him show a tall, handsome guy with a gorgeous body and a look of pleasure in life.
Today I received an email from him; he is planning a trip back to the Crimea to visit his Aunt Dora (my cousin), give her some money, and visit "nostalgic places."
Quite a guy, quite a story.