From Fellow Suzie Eisfelder (Class XIII)

This is one in a series of books published by Makor Jewish Community Library in Melbourne. They are autobiographical in nature and written by members of the Melbourne Jewish Community. It was fascinating to read partly as I know several of the authors personally (I should, one of them is my mother, but I'm not biased) and partly for the insight it gave me into other people's lives.

The 'Write Your Story' Program is a cultural activity of Makor Jewish Community Library. Developed and co-ordinated by Julie Meadows, the program offers support, through classes and editorial advice, for people to write their autobiographies. The memoirs that have resulted were written primarily for the children and grandchildren of the authors but it soon became apparent that they were attracting a wider audience. Therefore they are now part of a growing archive, housed at Makor, that will furnish future readers and scholares with primary-source material on the social history of the Melbourne Jewish Community. Some of our writers are third-generation Australians but the majority are migrants or children of migrants. Whether the stories start in the 1880s, the 1930s or post-1945, they will offer valuable information to future generations about the first-comers and the structures they built.