Three's a charm and for our third year, we got three for the price of one! When we were assigned Vladi, he spoke no English and Russian was completely out of the question for us! Vladi's roommate, Dmitri Sergeev, helped with translations and for that reason, the two were inseparable. When Vladi's wife, Elena, and daughter, Daria (Dasha) came to this country around Christmas time, we soon found that not only did Vladi get his family, but they were one of the best Christmas presents we've ever gotten.
Before Elena's arrival, my mother and I went to a "teacher's store" in Wheeling and purchased a Russian/English picture dictionary. We were able to point to pictures to make each other understood and soon Vladi was speaking fairly well, not perfect, but understandable. With Elena's help (who knew more English than her husband) we were soon going shopping together, having dinners together, and genuinely enjoying each other's company. We sat at a table in the Club room at the Civic Center after games and laughed like we had all known each other for years!
The highlight of our time together was little Daria, called "Dasha" by her family. She was the cutest little girl and the best-behaved 2-year-old I've ever been around. I think in all the time they were here, I only saw Dasha cry once, and it only lasted for a second. She was always smiling and she melted the hearts of many people in Wheeling, especially ours.
The day the Gratchevs left to return to Moscow was a sad day, indeed, for the Burge family. I don't know who of us got more choked up! We took them to the airport and had the hardest time saying "goodbye." It was very hard on all of us and we knew chances were we wouldn't see them again. Pittburgh Penguin player Alexei Kovalev's wife and mother-in-law, who were all great friends with the Gratchevs, were there to see them off, too, so it made it a little easier to be distracted from the sad farewell. Mrs. Kovalev (whose name I can't spell) was wonderful to us and told us we need to make a trip to Moscow someday. She thanked us for taking such good care of her friends and it made us feel that we did a good job.
Now that they are back in Russia and not speaking or hearing English every day, I'm sure the Gratchevs are a bit rusty on their English. We send them cards but to call would probably be very difficult. We hear that Vladi has been playing for a team close to Moscow, so we're sure he's happy and doing well. We miss them all terribly and hate to think that we won't get to see how little Dasha turns out! Life is strange, though, so you never know when our paths may cross again. That would be wonderful!

2004 Update: Unfortunately for us, we lost contact with the Gratchev family when they left to return to Moscow. We have seen that Vladi has been playing hockey for the local Moscow team, but we have been unable to find statistics or word on how he and his family are doing. I would imagine that our little Dasha is quite a big girl now, and I'm sure that his lovely wife Elena is just as beautiful as she was when she was here. We would love to hear from them, but the language barrier is probably even bigger now than it was when we first met. We miss the Gratchevs and hope their lives are happy ones filled with health and success.