FAMILY ADJUSTS TO FREEDOMES, CHOICES OF NEW LIFE; ROMANIA FAMILY LEAVES HOMELAND BEHIND

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- Something that most people take for granted, the Western way of life, provides a comfortable lifestyle with warm homes, sufficient food and educational opportunities.

But perhaps the plentiful advantages of the system can be best measured by someone not used to it. "We can find what we need here," said John Onofrei, 35, as he, his wife Elena, and his family talked of the disparities they have found since leaving their native country of Romania.

"There is such a big difference. It just can't compare," he declared, gesturing with his hands, spreading them widely apart.

"Life in Romania was stressful," added Elena Onofrei. "People here smile often. You would not see a smiling face in Romania."

The family includes the couple and their five children Bobby 6, Talida 10, Christian 19, and Madalina Capra, 20, and her baby Silvia. They emigrated from the country late last year, and are settling into a new lifestyle here. They are among the first Romanian families relocating to the U.S. sponsored by the Lutheran Social Services of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

"The congregation had been discussing the idea for a year," said Rev. Craig Nessan, pastor of St. Mark Lutheran Church, the local sponsor. "We weren't quite ready when we were notified, so we shifted gears. We had three weeks notice and it was around Christmas time, to boot."

An ad hoc committee and the rest of the 303-member church made many phone calls and personal contacts which resulted in having a furnished apartment ready when the new emigrants arrived here from their temporary living quarters with a Lutheran minister in Wichita, Kan.

In the move to the U.S. from Bucharest, the family left few tangibles behind. But they did leave immediate family members, some of whom also hope to emigrate.

John speaks hesitantly of his experience in Romania, which is undergoing many transitions since the anti-communist revolution. He fears his comments could cause problems for family members who remain behind.

Violent demonstrations led to the ouster and execution of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaucescu. The current government was democratically elected but is dominated by former Communists.

While the rest of world only heard about the revolution, Madelina was in the midst of the turmoil. "I saw a lot of blood," she recounted. "The hospital doctors treated many people shot by Ceaucescu's forces. They fired indiscriminately at the crowds to intimidate them.

"The young people started the protest demonstrations. It was very dangerous for them." Capra joined the movement, which lasted for about five days. After Ceaucescu and his wife were executed, the new government was voted in May 20. She said more freedoms have evolved in the process for the Romanians but many more are needed.

John Onofrei attests the family left the country for the U.S. for a subsequent better life, freedom, and liberty. He emphasizes his point, holding up his forefinger, saying the U.S. is number one for these qualities.

Capra, holding her year-old baby Silvia on her lap, explained she had made plans over the years to emigrate. "It's a dream I have had since being a little girl," she said. "Instead of watching TV, I listened to Radio Free Europe and taught myself English. I would have come if the rest had not. I have been wanting to come here a long time."

The process took 11 years.

Elena had applied in 1980 for the paperwork and received notice of approval for a U.S. visa in 1986. Since Ceaucescu did not allow people to leave Romania, the family was able to procure an exit visa only after the revolution. They said goodbye to their homeland Dec. 9.

Since then, they have been keeping busy with the transition process and settling in. John is now working at Schnuck's Foods, Madalina at Chateau Girardeau, and Christian at the university, where he is taking two classes. John and Elena are taking English classes and Madalina is studying for her high school equivalency exam at the Cape Girardeau Vo-Tech School. Talida and Bobby are enrolled at Hawthorne Elementary School.

The family said they would enjoy contact with anyone else from Romania to share conversations with others from their homeland.

"The Lutheran Church in America has been actively involved in refugee settlement since World War II," Nessan pointed out. "At that time, families from Germany were being served."

In the 1970s, the church aided families from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Currently, most of the families involved in the program come from the Soviet Union and other Eastern European countries.