brubacher poetry project

The Brubacher Poetry Project began when Jakob-Michael Stephan and I were the 2022-23 Artists-in-Residence at the Brubacher House Museum. There, we set off to translate unpublished German-language Mennonite poetry. Many of the poems we received through our open call were written in the first half of the twentieth century by Mennonite men and women from the Chortitza and Molotschna colonies. Their poetry, which spoke of war, oppression, persecution, immigration, and living in the diaspora, had a tragic relevance to the time we worked in. After the illegal Russian invasion, Eastern Ukraine, where many of the poets had lived, had once again become a battleground.

We selected and translated these poems, honouring the poets' words which call attention to the inescapable effects that war and political injustices both past and present have on the lives of the people who endure them. We were grateful to have had a chance to share our translations during a poetry reading at the Brubacher House (attended by descendants of some of the poets), as well as on a community radio program, in the Russlaender 100 Train Tour, and finally, as a chapbook published by Pandora Press in 2025.

"The experience of immeasurable loss and endless longing expressed in these poems is as deep and profound for many displaced people today as it was when they were written. Thanks to Hannah and Jakob, they not only retell that long ago experience but also continue to speak powerfully today. Their translation captures the message, meaning and mood of these poems in crisp and clear language. Anna Rempel's "At the Station in Lichtenau" brought to life the unimaginable tragedy and terror, the heartrendering loss and endless longing of the Mennonites fleeing the Soviet Union in the 1920s for participats on the Memories of Migration: Russlaender 100 train tour in 2023 in a way that lectures alone could not."

Henry Paetkau, former President of the Conrad Grebel University College and Chair of the Russlaender Centenary Committee

"These translated poems add compelling voices to the increasing number of personal memoirs that depict the lives of Mennonites in Russia and Ukraine, and their migrations to North and South America, during the tragic years that followed the onset of communism in the 1920s. This rare collection demonstrates that poetry, like no other genre of writing, can expressively hold together emotions of joy and sorrow, and notions of faith and doubt."

Marlene Epp, Professor Emeritus, Conrad Grebel University College

"Gardiner and Stephan have deeply honoured these poets' lived experiences, lovingly piecing together new patterns from scraps of the past, and knotted together layers of present and future, giving new life to the words and stories of our Ukrainian Mennonite ancestors for today's generation."

Laura Enns, Host of the Brubacher House, University of Waterloo

This residency would not have been possible without the support of the Brubacher House Museum, Conrad Grebel University College, the Mennonite Historical Society of Ontario, and the University of Waterloo. We acknowledge additional support for our chapbook publication from the Mennonite Historical Society of Ontario through J. Winfield Fretz Special Projects Fund in Ontario Mennonite Studies. We would also like to thank Laura and Josh Enns, Dr. Waldemar Scholtes, and Dr. Maxwell Kennel of Pandora Press for all their counsel and support and the families who submitted their relatives' poetry,

PRESS/MEDIA

“Poetry reading by Hannah Gardiner and Jakob-Michael Stephan.” Promenade Community Radio Magazine, June 19, 2023. https://marinus.substack.com/p/june-19-2023-promenade-community-486

"2022-23 Artists-in-Residence." Brubacher House Museum, November 25, 2022. https://uwaterloo.ca/brubacher-house/news/2022-23-artists-residence