BROKHE STOLOVI

BROKHE STOLOVI (March 15, 1904-December 16, 1983)

            She was born in Shedlets (Siedlce), Poland, into a devout family.  She studied in a Russian school and with private tutors, and she also attended Hebrew classes.  In 1916 she made her way to the United States.  In 1942 she debuted in print with poems in Der tog (The day) in New York, and from that point she published poetry also in: Nyu yorker vokhnblat (New York weekly newspaper), Di prese (The press) in Buenos Aires, Heymish (Familiar) in Tel Aviv, and Forverts (Forward) in New York—in all of which from 1955 she also published short stories and articles, mainly on the women’s page of Sunday issues.  In book form: Mayn velt, lider (My world, poetry) (New York, 1942), 144 pp., with a preface by Y. Zilberberg; Verter un verterlekh fun yidishn folklor (Words and aphorisms in Jewish folklore) (New York, 1976), 36 pp.; Fun fargangene teg (Of days gone by) (White Plains, New York, 1978), 104 pp.  She was active for many years in the schools of the Sholem Aleichem Folk Institute and the Workmen’s Circle, as well as in the pioneer women’s organization.  Vladimir Khafets and other musicians composed music to accompany Stolovi’s poems.  She died in White Plains, New York.

Sources: Sh. Z. Rubin, in Der tog (New York) (October 1942); M. Dantsis, in Der tog (January 5, 1951); L. Goldberg, in Nyu yorker vokhnblat (New York) (September 26, 1952).

Benyomen Elis

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 402.]