Memory of Vera

Wednesday, August 27, 2025

portrait

On January 31, 2023, after a lengthy battle with a serious illness, Vera Ilyinchina Sushkevich-Gorfinkel passed away. It is difficult to write about the death of a person near and dear to you, and it is especially difficult when this is the closest, most beloved person, as Vera had been to me for 54 years, and will remain so forever.

Our son Gregory is taking his mother’s death very hard. He is a skilled programmer, who dedicated much time and energy to supporting his mother during her hospital stays, chemotherapy appointments, and at-home treatments over the course of almost 5 years.

Vera was born on February 19, 1938, to a well-educated family in Moscow. At the time her father, Ilya Grigorievich Sushkevich, worked as a director of a publishing house. Her mother, Vera Markova Shur, tragically died on the day of Vera’s birth. Vera was raised by the family of her uncle, Grigory Markovich Shur, and his wife, Lyudmila Alexandrovna Semina, along with their son Misha, who was just a month and a half older than Vera.

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Vera and Misha (5 years old)

Throughout their lives they considered themselves brother and sister. Grigory Markovich was the principal engineer of the Moscow crystal factory. The family lived in a private 3-bedroom apartment, which was uncommon at the time when many people shared communal housing. Grigory Markovich passed away in 1948.

One of the first graders at school told Vera that her mother died when she was born, and her father did not want to take her home. And although Vera was transferred to another school, this wound stayed with her for the rest of her life.

When Vera was 13 years old, Lyudmila Alexandrovna turned to her father with a request for financial support in raising his daughter. Ilya Grigoryevich apparently decided that it was cheaper for him to take Vera into his house, and by decision of the court, Vera began to live with her father’s family. Her father’s wife and housekeeper were especially unfriendly to her.

After she graduated from school, her father bought Vera a small (7 square meters) wooden two-story house with stove heating, re-equipped to heat the stove bricks with gas. The room had a plywood partition, behind which was a “kitchen” about a meter wide with a two-burner gas stove. The advantage of the house was that it was located in the center of Moscow, had a bathroom with a shower and, most importantly, a telephone.

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Vera in the 10th grade of school (18 years old)

At the same time, her father got Vera a job at a printing house. Vera continued her studies in the evening after work. Having received the diploma of “Artistic and technical editor of books and magazines”, she worked in large publishing houses: “Iskusstvo”, “Sovetskiy Hudozhnik” (translated:” Art”, "Soviet Artist”) and others.

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Vera, 1957

Vera loved classical music and could identify pieces and their authors by the first sounds. She often attended concerts at the conservatory. She had a pleasant, clear voice. She sang in an amateur choir with a classical repertoire. This choir was led by Vadim Sudakov, artistic director and chief conductor of the Moscow State Capella. Vera attended classes at the film lovers club, which were conducted by the famous film director Grigory Roshal.

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Vera, 1962

She was independent of the judgements and assessments of others. She had her own opinions about movies. She did not like Charlie Chaplin in scenes with surprise kicks in the rear or with pie to the face. She highly praised the film “Penal Battalion” starring A.V. Serebryakov. She did not tolerate dirty humor. Sometimes she was impulsive. In disputes she did not concede even on minor details, but this never grew into stubbornness - Vera could admit her mistakes. She was always dressed inexpensively, but tastefully. She wore small earrings with diamonds and a thin gold chain given to her by Lyudmila Alexandrovna. She did not tolerate tattoos. She did not enjoy the kitchen but could wonderfully set a festive table.

Once, on a ski trip, I asked Vera where she learned to ski so well. “Do you know who my teacher was?” she asked. “Dmitriy Shparo, a graduate student of my brother Misha.” In 1979, seven people under the leadership of D.I. Shparo made a ski trip to the North Pole.

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Vera, 1967

In 1973, at the age of two years and seven months, our son died. Eye cancer. Treatment brought the child only suffering. For the final six months he was blind.

Vera was a woman of action. Having made a decision, she brought the matter to its end. She learned the Polish language on her own from a textbook, magazines and Polish films so well that she took week-long vacations from work and traveled as a translator with delegations of artists, film actors and soloists of the Warsaw Opera House to different cities: Riga, Tbilisi, Yerevan …

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Vera in Crimea, 1968

When in 1980 we got a VAZ car, Vera entered the Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy. After completing the driving course and passing the exam, she received a driver’s license.

Vera was a kind, sympathetic person. She had many acquaintances and friends at work and was on good terms with my friends and colleagues. She was friends with the lawyer Geralina Vladimirovna Lyubarskaya, who was awarded one of the most prestigious lawyer awards - the N.F. Plevako Gold Medal.

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Vera with her son Grisha (Grigory) in the country

Vera’s attitude to work is evidenced by the books gifted by the authors with gratitude for her help in preparing the books for publication and their design…

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During work. Publishing house “Soviet Artist” (1970s)

In 1994, the International Exhibition of Automotive Equipment was held in Moscow. ZIL, among other designs, presented a design developed by me, which was of interest to representatives of a large American automobile company. I was invited to come to the US for a week for an interview. After the interview, I was offered a job in the company as a design engineer with direct reporting to the chief designer. In 1995 we moved to the US on a work visa. Vera quickly learned English and passed her driving test. She drove our son to and from school that was far away (private school). She learned to work on the computer. She corresponded in Russian and English with friends in Russia and other countries.

The design engineers with whom I worked invited us to family celebrations and New Year’s Eve parties.

But I have to stop somewhere, although more and more new memories arise from the corners of memory.

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