Jack: An Immigration Tale

Fact mixed with fiction, Jack tells the tale of what it is like to leave one’s homeland, take a chance, and start over again in a completely new world. A zany character full of life and good fun, join Jack as he leaves Croatia and travels to America.

I was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Queens. My family was very diverse. Dad’s family came to America in the 1600’s and fought in the Revolutionary War, among a few things. As such, I am a member of the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution. However, my maternal grandparents were immigrants from Croatia, which is in eastern Europe. My own Baca (grandmother) used to tell me beautiful stories about Croatia. Being such an American girl, it intrigued me tremendously that my own grandparents came from a faraway land so different from mine. I invented Jack one day through storytelling when my children were small. Over time, Jack stories evolved, and my children got into the act, each imagining their own monsters. Each of these “monsters” lived with us, and at times, we had some very fun-filled moments.