Blogfinger interviews Igor and Aaron at the OG Bake shoppe. 7/18/19 Paul Goldfinger photo ©
By Paul Goldfinger, Editor. Blogfinger.net. 2019 re-post
Igor Timkovsky is a Jewish immigrant from Russia. He believes his family was part of the great Diaspora of the Jewish people (as was my family) which brought them to western Europe, probably Italy, perhaps 2,500 years ago. Their lives were difficult through the Middle Ages. They experienced the Inquisition, forced conversions, Crusaders, black death, ghetto life, poverty, mass expulsions, invasions, and religious suppression.
The Diaspora Jews were forced eastward out of Western Europe in the 15th to 16th centuries, and Igor’s family settled in the country of Belarus, east of Poland. Igor was born in Belarus in 1962.
When Hitler invaded Russia, many peoples scattered, especially the Jews. Igor’s family escaped into the Ural Mountains for safety from the Nazis. There were some places that the Wehrmacht failed to reach. During WWII many of his male relatives were lost in the war as soldiers, and other relatives were swept up by the Holocaust.
After the war, small numbers survived, and some then migrated to Israel or the US.
In 1992, thanks to a family reunion program for immigrants sponsored by two US Senators, Igor, his wife, daughter and parents escaped Communism and emigrated to NYC, Washington Heights, where they live now.
He had been an engineer in Russia, but here he got a masters degree and became a social worker. His son Aaron was born in 2006 and will be entering public high school. He is a bright young man, personable, bilingual, and with a strong and obvious attachment to his Dad.
Igor discovered Ocean Grove a few years ago and “fell in love” with this “amazing town.” To see the Grove through the eyes of an immigrant is very special. He enjoys walking on the boardwalk at night. He loves the “friendly, polite, and cultured people.” He says that Ocean Grove feels “safe and comfortable” for his family.
Aaron, age 13, told me during our interview at the OG Bake Shoppe that he” loves” the way that they get here so easily: bus, train and the walk over. They are currently vacationing, staying in a hotel near the beach.
But during a July, 2017, afternoon, something happened to cement their feelings for the Grove. Igor and Aaron were swimming in the ocean. They were seemingly fine, but “suddenly” they were apart and had drifted farther out than they thought. Igor quickly discovered that he could not touch bottom and he managed to join up with Aaron. It seems they were caught in a rip tide. They had one boogie board to share.
Before they had a chance to panic, two OG lifeguards were at their side. One said to Igor, “Would you like to join me on a trip to the shore?” The other one gave Aaron a forceful shove with his board, and he quickly found himself on the shore.
Igor was overwhelmed with gratitude for the way the OG guards saved him and his son. He wrote letters of profound appreciation to the life guards at bench 3 and 4–OG Beach Patrol and he even wrote a book of poems (2018) dedicated to those guards, expressing how he feels about what happened and about his love of this town. Even now, two years later, he cannot stop talking about it.
Igor is a Blogfinger fan, so he contacted me about his book Ocean Betrayal. He is a social worker , a teacher, and a poet. His story and poems have been published in Blogfinger.net.
His book has 24 pages and 8 original and charming poems, punctuated by drawings and photographs. It is especially remarkable because English is Igor’s second language. Searching the Blogfinger.net archives, one can find some posts about Igor and the Grove; and his poetry.
If anyone is interested in contacting Igor about his book, just email Blogfinger and we will forward it.
ART GARFUNKEL “A Heart in New York.”
ADDENDUM. JULY 20, 2026. Once again poet Igor Timkovsky returns for his annual OG vacation. He lives in New York, but he has friends in the Grove including our family. Again he stays at the Majestic Hotel. We met him yesterday and enjoyed his updates including the fact that he is now retired from his life as a New York City social worker.
He returns now filled with joy in describing the tall ships which sailed by his home near the George Washington Bridge. Igor is a true American patriot, celebrating those tall ships as they came bye for the US 250th. H is someone who found freedom for himself and family, and now this is his tenth anniversary visit to OG.
Igor photographed this tall ship from near his home by the GW Bridge
He brought us up to date regarding his brilliant son Aaron, now a student at Baruch College, a college in the City University of NY. Baruch is highly regarded, and Aaron is excelling there, studying finance. He will be leaving for England to study for one semester.
Igor emailed me to say:
“Dedicated to the 10th anniversary of my arrival in Ocean Grove
“I opened the window to let in fresh air.
“I felt a/c air is not truly fair. I came all the way from New York for a breeze. I hoped a breeze put my breathing at ease. I am asking myself why I use a/c air. It seems it’s not me and myself I won’t dare.
“One thing that I heard and it took me right in. The blinds’ played tune sent me back to begin.”
Igor loves to catch the sun and the views on our OG beach.
He got up at 5 am to photograph our sunrise: (below)
Ocean Grove July sunrise by Igor from the 2nd floor porch of the Majestic Hotel. 5 am. He meets folks on the beach at that hour. 7/20/26
And here is Igor (below) on our Mt. Hermon Way OG porch. He is thrilled with his stay this July.
July 19, 2026. Paul Goldfinger portrait of poet Igor Timkovsky. Ocean Grove. He “loves” our town
Rufus Wainwright and Teddy Thompson. From the movie: “Brokeback Mountain.”
