One hundred years ago to the week of this writing, my great-grandfather Abraham Ber Tabachnick, still a teenager, was detained on Ellis Island outside of New York City, held as a ‘likely public charge.’ Immigration officials were unsure that he could provide for himself if he entered the country. Perhaps he seemed to them too young and desperate, traveling alone and penniless, and speaking only Russian. He was served breakfast, lunch and dinner as he awaited the decision of the officials. I close my eyes and imagine those days of uncertainty. I can feel his heartsickness, the ache of separation from family left behind, along with a wild mix of determination and doubt at the monumental decision he had made at such a young age to immigrate to America. Would he be denied the dream of a new life? After two days the officials became convinced of his fitness for admission, and on January 25th, 1921 at 11:02 AM, he was released and entered a brand new world. To walk the streets of New York a ...