My father worked for HVA and our family lived on Shoa estate from 1964 till 1971. My sister has the brittle teeth  - we were always warned not to drink the water from the tap but she was too young to understand; and my father died of mesothelioma at age 65. We are Dutch. Reading the letter by Almaz Mequanint shed a very different light on my happy childhood memories of living on the estate.

I do remember also though, that my mother�s closest friend was an Ethiopian lady living on the Wonji estate and our families socialized together frequently. My father had many good relationships - personal and work related -with Ethiopian employees of HVA, both on the estate itself and outside. I have wonderful memories of being invited to their home for dinner. I also remember Gallahs with their donkeys, coming to fill their jerry cans with water from the communal tap near the swimming pool.

Of course these are memories of a young child. As an adult however, I watched my father die because HVA did not look after us that well either. My father often came home caked with asbestos dust (he was an electrical engineer) and I remember playing with asbestos tiles myself.

I am sorry for your suffering.

 

Cora Romano (van Leeuwen)