Jenny De Mayer's Unshakable Faith: Letters from the Gulag

Presentation Type

Poster

Presentation Type

Submission

Keywords

Letters, Missionary, Religion, Russia, Soviet Union, Gulag

Department

History

Major

History

Abstract

The research project that is the subject of the poster at the symposium is related to a woman by the name of Jenny De Mayer. Jenny De Mayer was an ethnic German from Russia who dedicated her life to serving God by becoming a missionary. In the 1920s, Jenny De Mayer traveled to Turkestan, then part of the Soviet Union. While in Turkestan, she was caught by Soviet authorities amid Stalin’s consolidation of power and sent to a gulag. The digital transcriptions of letters Jenny De Mayer wrote to family and friends while in prison from 1927 until 1935 will be presented at this symposium. The main points that will be highlighted are Jenny’s faith in God (including how she uses that faith to cope with loss), her financial difficulties, and the devotion she shows toward her friends and family. That devotion helped her remain grounded during her imprisonment.

The research will be presented in the form of a poster, with a map being the main focus of the poster. Screenshots of some of the most important letters will be scattered throughout the map, with lines pointing to the cities in which the letters were written. The screenshots will include the original letters paired with the transcription done by a member of the research team. The graphics for the presentation will be created through Google Slides.

Matthew Weldon

Hannah AlNemri

Faculty Mentor

Sharyl Corrado

Funding Source or Research Program

Academic Year Undergraduate Research Initiative

Location

Waves Cafeteria

Start Date

24-3-2023 2:00 PM

End Date

24-3-2023 4:00 PM

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS
 
Mar 24th, 2:00 PM Mar 24th, 4:00 PM

Jenny De Mayer's Unshakable Faith: Letters from the Gulag

Waves Cafeteria

The research project that is the subject of the poster at the symposium is related to a woman by the name of Jenny De Mayer. Jenny De Mayer was an ethnic German from Russia who dedicated her life to serving God by becoming a missionary. In the 1920s, Jenny De Mayer traveled to Turkestan, then part of the Soviet Union. While in Turkestan, she was caught by Soviet authorities amid Stalin’s consolidation of power and sent to a gulag. The digital transcriptions of letters Jenny De Mayer wrote to family and friends while in prison from 1927 until 1935 will be presented at this symposium. The main points that will be highlighted are Jenny’s faith in God (including how she uses that faith to cope with loss), her financial difficulties, and the devotion she shows toward her friends and family. That devotion helped her remain grounded during her imprisonment.

The research will be presented in the form of a poster, with a map being the main focus of the poster. Screenshots of some of the most important letters will be scattered throughout the map, with lines pointing to the cities in which the letters were written. The screenshots will include the original letters paired with the transcription done by a member of the research team. The graphics for the presentation will be created through Google Slides.

Matthew Weldon

Hannah AlNemri