Judith Lowe
Judith Lowe and her family emigrated from Romania in 1971. Shortly after World War II, in 1947, Romania became a communist ruled country. At the time her family left, she was not allowed to bring any written material, neither handwritten nor typed notes, nor letters. Books printed prior to the communist regime were also disallowed.
Thirty-six years ago, on the 8th of July of 1971, after many years of waiting for a passport, Judith and her family took off from Bucharest airport, coming to the US with virtually nothing, as they were not allowed to bring anything of value from Romania. She vividly recalls that hot day where with anguish she could not buy her son a thirst quenching drink on their flight to freedom.
A practicing physician for 13 years prior to coming to the US, Judith's first 3 years after medical school were spent providing mandatory service in a rural Romanian community. She was to provide medical care to 7200 people comprising 7 villages scattered throughout a 20 mile radius. Conditions and work were hard, with no paved roads or electrical power; medical equipment and medications were in short supply, and transportation by horse and buggy was slow. In spite of difficult working conditions, whenever she was able to help, it gave her great satisfaction, and this time became one of the most rewarding times in her professional life.
After 40 years in medicine including 24 in private practice in California, Judith retired from the profession she dearly loved on May 1st 1999. Upon retirement she was faced with the question of what to do with her free time. First came home improvement, then reading books she did not have time to read while working. Then, she traveled, and afterward began taking art classes. Eventually she started writing.
Over the years, Judith has written several short stories and essays about events of the distant and more recent past, including her life and childhood in Romania during World War II. She has written about life as a physician in a communist country, where freedom was nonexistent and personal rights were abused. She has also written essays about her cultural shock when first coming to America, and about her work as an established physician in the USA. In her book “My Journey to Freedom”, people and events are portrayed as recollected by me. The book has no autobiographical intent.