Interview with Ruth Burke, 2001

Summary of an oral history interview conducted with Ruth Burke (1922-) on July 12, 2007. The interview was part of the Louisville Jewish Family and Career Services's project to document the lives of Jewish seniors in Louisville, Kentucky.

Ruth S. Burke grew up in Nashville, Tennessee, to Austrian immigrant parents, in a household that spoke English, Yiddish, and German on occasion. She lived in a middle class town with all necessary amenities and traveled north occasionally to see extended family members. Growing up Jewish, she observed all major feasts with her family, her father being most influential as he assisted in founding a synagogue, while she had a Christian elementary education and was eventually confirmed. Her latter education consisted of attending Vanderbilt and Peabody universities, earning her degrees in both English and Education. Upon moving to Louisville for her husband’s employment as a government engineer she joined the Jewish Community Center. She grew up with a special personal connection with Mezuzahs. Her father returned to Europe in 1934 in an attempt to convince other family members to leave, but nobody returned. Ruth’s family was generally unaffected by Middle Eastern conflicts in later years. She enjoys reading, art, music, and passing on her Jewish customs and values to her children and grandchildren.

024x6 Jewish Family and Career Services interviews, The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky

The Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky

Jewish Family and Career Services (Louisville, Ky.)

024x6_burker