The love of life: the secret of longevity 100-year-old Russian-speaking immigrant in New York

A truly amazing woman is entering the numerous and motley Russian-speaking diaspora of New York. 19 in March Lydia Girinstein will be 100 years old, which does not prevent her from leading a way of life that can be envied by people younger than her two or even three times.

Lydia Girstein Photo: Julia Levit and Marina Eibelman for the Speak Memory Project

Since 2002, Lydia has been visiting the so-called “kindergarten” (day care center for the elderly at the King David Center) and has already managed to fall in love with all of its visitors and staff. Her activity, willingness to help, support and prompt led to the election as president of a local club of long-livers, which includes people older than 90 years.

In addition to her active social life, Lydia can boast of a very vibrant leisure time: she loves to receive guests, the most desirable of which for her are always her grandson and three great-grandchildren, she loves classical music, stories about interesting people and events. She can be found at concerts at Carnegie Hall, which she attends with her daughter. Each such trip is an additional reason for Lydia to show her elegance and sense of style, which she demonstrates when choosing outfits and in everyday life. She loves beauty in everything: in nature, in clothes, in poetry, in music. She is interested in many things, and, most importantly, she is interested in life itself. Lydia loves life, and she reciprocates - this, the woman believes, is the secret of her longevity.

Despite the difficult fate, Lydia remains a very positive person, able to energize and positive emotions of all who are familiar with her.

She was born on March 19, 1919 in the city of Elisavetgrad (formerly Kirovograd, and now Kropyvnytskyi, located in central Ukraine) into the Gerinstein family. Lydia's mother was a pediatrician, and her father was a successful lawyer. While the parents were working, the girl was raised by a nanny who was of noble origin and very fond of music and literature. It was she who instilled in Lydia a love of beauty in everything: in life, clothing and art.

After finishing school, Lida, at the insistence of her father, entered the medical institute in Odessa. She herself wanted to be a lawyer, but later she fell in love with her profession and did not regret that she followed her parents' advice.

Photos from the personal archive of the heroine

In the spring of 1941, Lida and a group of students came to Kirovograd for externship. The group also included Efim Leikekhman, who eventually became the husband of the girl. When the 22 of June 1941 began, the war began, Lida’s parents were evacuated to Kazan, and Lida and her friends decided to get to Stalingrad, where there was a medical institute, to receive diplomas. Having received the documents, young people even managed to find work in the city. In the summer of 1942, the front was approaching Stalingrad, Lida’s husband was drafted into the army, and she needed to be evacuated because she did not want to risk the child she was waiting for.

She still recalls this road to evacuation to Kazan with horror: an old ship with an oil barge attached to it, which had already begun bombing the ship.

Then she thought, “Well, okay, if they get into the ship, I swim well, maybe I’ll save myself, and if I’m in the oil barge, then everything’s the end.”

But everything worked out - Lida made it to Kazan, began working as a doctor at a military plant, and gave birth to a daughter, Natasha. And when the war finally ended, the unit where Lida’s husband Efim was a military doctor was relocated from Germany to the Gorokhovets camps, and Lida and her daughter moved there. Then, after her husband completed special courses in Moscow, the family moved to Tula, where their second child, son Gleb, was born.

Lidia Rafailovna in Tula worked for many years as a doctor in the therapeutic department of the Semashko City Hospital, as well as as the head of the emergency department and still remembers many of her patients and their medical histories, and they probably remember her - she put so much mind and heart into her work. After that, Lydia successfully taught therapy at a medical school and retired a few years later.

Lydia Girstein Photo: Julia Levit and Marina Eibelman for the Speak Memory Project

But life became more and more difficult, and Lida’s brother and his family decided to leave for the USA. They emigrated and soon sent a call for Lydia's family. Paperwork and red tape began. When everything was ready, an unexpected disaster occurred. After an unsuccessful operation, Efim died in December 1993, and in January the whole family received permission to emigrate. But then Lydia faced another terrible test - her beloved son Gleb died in a car accident, leaving behind a wife and two children.

As a result, the woman gathered all her will into a fist, and decided to go with the family to the United States. 9 May 1994, at the airport in New York, they were met by Lydia’s brother, and in 1995, a sister-in-law with her grandchildren flew to the US. Now everyone was together, and Lydia quickly made new friends, fell in love with Carnegie Hall and many other aspects of life in New York.

ForumDaily congratulates Lydia Girinstein Happy 100 anniversary and wish you long and happy years!

Read also on ForumDaily:

Secrets of longevity of Americans: how to accustom themselves to physical activity

How to live to see the 100 years: tips from centenarians

Five good habits that can extend life by decades

Israel has identified seven commandments of longevity: what you need to live to 100+ years

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