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Warren Commission Hearings: Vol. IX - Page 5« Previous | Next »

(Testimony of Paul M. Raigorodsky)

Mr. Raigorodsky.
so they go to the Tolstoy Foundation and therefore the Tolstoy Foundation is able to place many, many Russians in this country, not only in this country but--I am on the Board of Directors of the Tolstoy Foundation--but also in European countries. Sometimes they cannot bring them to the United States, not enough money perhaps. Now, anybody who comes to the Tolstoy Foundation, you know right off of the bat they have been checked, rechecked and double checked. There is no question about them. I mean, that's the No. 1 stamp.
Mr. Jenner.
That's the No. 1 stamp of an approval or of their genuineness?

Mr. RAIGORODSKY. Of approval--in fact, the U.S. Government recognized that and has been up until about a year or two ago giving the Tolstoy Foundation as much as $400,000 a year subsidy for this kind of work.
Now, of the other Russians that come here, as I said, they come in through acquaintanceship--most of them.
Mr. Jenner.
They come because of prior acquaintanceship?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
With some.
Mr. Jenner.
With some people who are here?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
That's right---correspondence you see. Like we have in Houston--we had a bunch of people coming from Serbia, you know, Yugoslavia--the few we have that left Russia and went to Yugoslavia and then they had to escape Yugoslavia, and there was quite a Russian colony there and some of them drifted to the United States and settled in Houston, and of course they start correspondence and working and lots of other people came to Houston and to Dallas through that channel.
Mr. Jenner.
They followed?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Then, there is a small bunch of Russians that appear from nowhere. I mean, they don't come with any approval from Tolstoy Foundation or do they come through the acquaintanceship of people here. They just drift and there's no place, believe me, in the world where you cannot find one Russian. Now, I would like this off the record.
Mr. Jenner.
All right. Off the record.
(Discussion between Counsel Jenner and the witness off the record at this point.)
Mr. Jenner.
All right. Now, let's have this on the record.
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Now, because of my--I always believe that even though I am, myself, not much of a churchgoing man, but I believe that the only way to unite Russians, and I think they should be united in this country, was through a church, so, for many years we had a church in Texas--at Galveston--but that church--we didn't like because the Serbian priest, they were coming over there. We couldn't figure it out, whether they were one side of the fence or the other.
Mr. Jenner.
One side of what fence or the other?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Well, the only fence I know of is between the communism and the anticommunism.
Mr. Jenner.
All right. You are on the anticommunistic side of the fence?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Oh; of course.
Mr. Jenner.
I want that to appear on record is why I asked.
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Oh, yes; I have been all my life. So, let's see, maybe in 1949 or thereabouts--I have donated quite a bit of money to the Russian colony in Houston there with the understanding that if they would secure at least 50 percent of additional money from the rest of the people of the Russian colony, that they buy or build a church there, which they did.
Mr. Jenner.
What religion is that--the name of the church?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Russian---Greek Orthodox. You may call it also Eastern Greek Orthodox. It's the same religion as Greek Catholics have with two main differences--one is the language in which the service is performed is the old Slavic languages against Greek, and then, of course, we have our own Patriarch at the head of our own church.
Mr. Jenner.
In Houston?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Oh, no, no; we have in New York--it's Metropolitan Anastasia, who is the head of our church of this country.
Mr. Jenner.
Who was the pastor over in Houston?
Mr. Raigorodsky.
Well, I will come to that.
Mr. Jenner.
All right.
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