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Uzbekistan: Elena Klimenko
by Nikki Tundel, Minnesota Public Radio
May 15, 2005

Elena Klimenko grew up in the Soviet Union. She came to the United States in 1999 from Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. Today she works at Marshall Field's and lives in Burnsville. (MPR Photo/Nikki Tundel )

Burnsville, Minn. — Elena Klimenko, 40, was born in the Soviet Union. She is an ethnic Russian -- her parents were born in Russia, but were moved to Uzbekistan during World War II.

Klimenko says it was interesting being Russian in Uzbekistan, which is a Muslim culture. She says there were Russian schools for Russian society, and Uzbek schools for Uzbek society.

In Russia, when the Soviet Union fell, Klilmenko says it was hard to get food, and she worked for months without getting paid. Klimenko moved from Tashkent to the United States in 1999 with her two children, saying she came for a better life.

"I just brought my kids, boys 13 and 11, $400 in my pocket, and my boiling pot," she says.

Klimenko says she wanted to move to the U.S., in part because of the feeling that anyone can be successful if they work hard. She also recalls seeing her brother's citizenship ceremony.

"And the judge said, 'It's not the perfect country, but let's make it better.' I really liked that. To get something better, we have to work hard. And I really agree with that," says Klimenko.

Klimenko lives in Burnsville with her two sons, now aged 19 and 16. She is a sales associate at Marshall Field's.