Plauen, the 27th of April, 1979 Dear Nephi!
I thank you very much for your Christmas and New Years' wishes and was happy to hear from you again. Meanwhile I learned from Aunt Mia in Gelsenkirchen what the birth and death dates of Aunt Emilie were. As I no doubt wrote you earlier, our common grandfather, after our grandmother died, married a second time, and Aunt Emilie comes from this marriage. So the mother of this aunt Emilie was born as a Retkowski, while our grandmother, that is, the mother of your mother and also my own, was a born Zakobielski. Enclosed please find a notarized copy of the data about Aunt Emilie. Likewise, I enclose another photo of my mother [note: photo unfortunately lost]. She was approximately 79 years old at the time. This is an extra photo and so I'm sending it to you. When you were young you met her yourself. I hope things are going well for you, for Leola, and for your youngest daughter, a thing I cannot claim for myself. I've had shingles, a very painful illness that lasts for a long time. Heartfelt greetings, dear Nephi, to you as well as Leola and your daughter Carolina [i.e., Carolyn], with wishes for all good things imaginable for you. Cousin Ella 2 enclosuresEnvelope front:
Mr.
Nephi Hacken,
2700 Northrop Avenue
CA Sacramento 95825
[letter made it without mention of "USA"]Envelope back:
Ella Klauss - DDR 99 Plauen in Vogtland
Dr. Knut Fischerstrasse 25