The Berlin Airlift, the Candy Bomber and I

When WWII broke out in 1939 Gisela Zebroski’s privileged childhood came to an abrupt end. The Soviet Union took over Latvia, the country of her birth.  Her parents, destined for deportation, fled to Germany and settled in Poland.

In 1945, the family fled again from the approaching Red Army. Her father had been drafted and was missing in action. Her mother and four siblings survived air raids and found safety in Austria.

In 1954, she immigrated to California where she married an American scientist who inspired her to go to college. She graduated with a degree in psychology and minors in creative writing, history and philosophy.  Her two novels, THE BARONESS and MEPHISTO WALTZ, recount the world of her past.

Her own story is a work in progress under the title of SELFIE SIDEWAYS.

In 1948 Stalin challenged the West to a showdown between communism and democracy. Berlin set the stage. By blocking all land access routes to the Western Zones of Berlin, Stalin took 2.3 million Berliners hostage - doomed to starve to death unless the West surrendered their territory to the Soviets. A massive blackmail.

Over the following 11 months the Allies airlifted 4.6 billion pounds of supplies to Berlin, thus sparing West Berlin from Soviet occupation. By treating the hungry children of West Berlin to candy, Lt. Hal Halverson, turned former enemies to friends and the airlift to a joint venture. He is known as the CANDY BOMBER.