One of the genealogical treasures that’s been passed down to me over the years is a small stack of letters written in what I’ve been told is Serbo-Croatian, addressed to my great-great-great uncle Ivan Salaj. Most of the letters were translated about 30 years ago with the exception of three. two of which are from Sremska Mitrovica and one from Canada.

When Nikola and his family came to America, they were joined by Ivan. About 20 years later, they were joined by their sister-in-law Tereza and her two children Franjo and Maria Salaj. Tereza’s husband Hajnrik was presumed to have died while serving with the Croatian army in World War II. Tereza and her children would soon move to Canada, where her son Franjo would meet his wife, Matilda.

The families stayed in touch with Ivan over the years and would sometimes visit. One of the untranslated letters is from Matilda to Ivan. I’ve tried to to get it translated multiple time in the seven years I’ve owned it. Most have been through connections I’ve made with the Canadian side of the family.

I have sent this letter to four Canadian relatives who know the language or know someone who does. I have never heard back from any of them. I gave it to an acquaintance who grew up in Serbia. She said it was essentially Ye Olde English so she couldn’t read it but she would give it to her father to translate.  Again, my follow up messages were not answered. I have sent this letter to 4 separate strangers I came across while tracing my family line who were very responsive and willing to translate it, all who stopped contact after I sent the letter.

It sounds like it’s cursed, but I still want to know.

I’ve gotten several quotes from different university departments to have the letter translated but they wanted several hundred dollars to do it—hundreds of dollars that I, as a college student, did not have. The most I ever learned about its contents is that they are deeply personal. This, after the translator double checked that I wanted it translated.

What I admire most about my distant Canadian relatives; after all these years, they’ve held on to where their families came from. They pass down the names, speak the language, and visit the country. I’m jealous of them, and I wish I could read this letter now.

But, I can’t.

If you can, please reach out to me through this website. You would have my undying gratitude.