An Appeal to Gregory Goska and Annie Johnston

An Appeal to Gregory Goska and Annie Johnston

Gregory Goska, Annie Johnston, please live up to your promise and allow me to make copies of my late mother's photographs.

In 2001, my mother, Pauline Goska, passed away. After she died, her children, including me, came across a batch of vintage photographs of her. We, the surviving children, briefly discussed who would take possession of the photographs. Gregory Goska and Annie Johnston took possession of the photos, promising to make copies and share them with all. They also promised to share a newspaper story about our late father's military service in World War Two.

In the intervening nine years, I have repeatedly begged my brother, Gregory Goska and his partner, Annie Johnston to allow me to take temporary possession of this batch of photos in order to make copies of them. Greg Goska has ignored my repeated letters. He has simply not replied, not in person, not by phone, not by mail. He's been completely silent in response to my repeated appeals. Annie Johnston sent me one e-mail vowing that she'd never let me have copies. She did not explain this position and then she, too, went silent.

I have always treated Gregory and Annie with respect. In fact, I interviewed our parents and recorded those interviews on audiocassette tapes. I made copies of the tapes and shared them with Gregory and Annie. I've never asked my brother Gregory for anything before. I've never done anything unkind to him to justify this behavior. In fact, I haven't even seen or spoken to him since my mother's death. We've always lived very separate lives.

Gregory and Annie know that I am physically handicapped, that I don't have a car, and that I don't have any money. They live in Pine Island, a remote, rural area of New York State. I cannot reach their home via public transportation. There is no way I can compel them to allow me to make copies of these photos except to attempt to urge them to do so by posting this message on the web. Perhaps fear of public censure will encourage them to live up to their promise and to allow me to make copies of the photos.

I don't want to keep the photos of my mother or the newspaper article about my father. I simply want to copy them, and then return them. For Gregory Goska and his partner, Annie Johnston, to refuse this, what they themselves promised, is simply wrong.

Gregory Goska, Annie Johnston, please live up to your promise and allow me to make copies of my late mother's photographs.