Vuka

Vuka's elopement in 1928 caused a major scandal in a small Adriatic port. Wise Mike, a mature sourdough, organized her 'voluntary kidnapping' and took her on a venturesome journey to Alaska, where he had struck gold. In defying local customs and in breaking a taboo, she chose personal happiness over family constraints. She fell in love with the adventurer, endured the frigid nights and freezing winds, and fully apprehended the majestic beauty of a distant frontier. The text traces the life story of this Southern Slav woman without formal education but far ahead of her time. The real test came when she was widowed with four young children. With uncanny strength of character, she selflessly pursued nurturing education, hard work, and generosity. She spoke English with a heavy accent, but everyone understood her because no one spoke so eloquently with the eyes. Independent and wealthy, she was most at ease at her Fairbanks Creek, in the midst of astonishing nature and at peace with the essential. She personified the best of both worlds, her old place and the American dream, and she demonstrated to her family, friends, and community how migration enriches both the port of departure and the port of entry. There is an endowment in her name at a university in California entitled the Power of Good.