Help Provide Heat for Winter & Safe Drinking Water

(You’ve NEVER read a GoFundMe story like this; it’s a three-generation family saga~over 90 years in the making, clouded by a long Communist Occupation, but with your help, a Happy Ending is STILL possible!)            

I’m a retired schoolteacher 75 years young and stand in awe of my neighbor Misa (pronounced “Misha”) Birnie. Capturing her singular spirit is best told through our first meeting and my observations of her good works throughout the neighborhood since. Then, the even more amazing ordeal she and her family were put through (during 40 years of Soviet oppression) provides essential background for the current urgent needs of this fundraiser which include:

1) a complex new heating system 2) roof/insulation and 3) well repair.

She & I met quite by chance two and a half years ago, literally bumping into one another:

A tall red-headed woman with sparkling eyes led by 3 happy dogs of assorted sizes dancing on their leashes rounded the corner outside my home as I was returning with my own dog from a walk. While happily untangling leashes, she first introduced me to her dogs while simultaneously nearly charming the tail off my Zimba, then almost immediately struck up a lively conversation with me. I couldn’t quite identify her accent and though we talked delightedly about dogs, art and gardening, I didn’t learn in that first meeting from which country she had emigrated, or how I might contact her since she didn’t have a phone. Imagine, no phone!

“Not to worry. We will work out a way to communicate.” 

She lived only a few blocks away; she’d be by to see me again, she assured. And then Misa the Whirlwind was off!

I hadn’t learned a lot in our short visit, but one thing was certain:  in the few months since my move here to Portland from the Midwest, she had stood out as the most authentic, present, and alive of anyone I’d met up to that point! Even if I never bumped into her again, I knew enough about human nature to realize I’d been in the presence of a Free Spirit, and most importantly, a Pure Heart. A teacher for 40-some years before retiring, I’d learned early on to trust an ability to recognize potential and assess character strengths. Misa was a real deal kind of human. Zimba & I were both left light-hearted and smiling. I confess I wanted to know more of her story.

Of course we did see her again. Not often, but she would stop by, usually on her way to a landscaping job and almost always with a dog in tow (dog-walking being one of her employments as well as her loves). Occasionally we’d walk together, and over time I learned quite a lot: that she is a gifted artist with a small studio space provided her by a friend though she has little time to pursue her talent; that she lovingly propagates native plants; that she has reverence for all life—plants, animals, and humans—which colors her every action and informs her art; that she is an American citizen who has established deep connections in Portland but grew up in the Czech Republic and has a foot in each country; that she is mother to two wonderful adult sons; that she helps many in need with no expectation of anything in return; that she wears anything but designer clothes, carries no Smartphone, eats out at no restaurants, owns no car instead getting around by bike or walking, and works hard with endless good cheer yet scrambles to make ends meet. 

What I did NOT learn is the “why” of this until later, over a year after our first meeting. The details of her extraordinary life which have caused her almost constant financial hardship are what prompt me now to make this urgent GoFundMe request. Patience, please. This takes explaining some history replete with many injustices:  though Misa has been an American citizen since 2013 and committed to her life among friends in Portland, she spends 1/3 of each year and most of her earnings on attempting to restore a farm property in Dobronice, a small village in the Czech Republic.

Aerial photo of Village of Dobronice with arrow pointing to quadrangle which is the historic farmsite; parts of surrounding open land make up the total 70-hectacres property

Mixed media drawing of the farm buildings, a classic European compound with enclosed courtyard. This is Misa's vision after restoration. (A true historic property, its foundation is a fortress built on this site in the 15th Century)

This farm, a large historic site left to her by her beloved Grandfather Jaroslav just before he died in 1994 is property he bought in 1932 only to lose when the Communist Regime came to power in 1948. Deemed a wealthy farmer and also as part of the educated intelligentsia, Jaroslav was declared an “Enemy of the State” and publicly denounced. As such, he was immediately stripped of all property and also the ability to continue doing the agricultural work for which he’d been University-trained.

Portrait of Grandfather Jaroslav, one of many done by self-taught artist Misa

Living on this property with his family had lain at the very heart of Jaroslav’s being. Working the land; managing the forest, lakes and wildlife upon it; and performing practical magic with his own and others’ animals as well as for surrounding wildlife is where his true gifts lay, where he had the most to offer. No matter. He was forced to leave everything behind and reduced to the barest of subsistence living. Somehow all the volunteer work he had done throughout his life was forgotten, not only in how he would save injured or mistreated animals of the village or forests, but how he had throughout World War II freely given food and shelter to anyone in need, including hiding those from other countries.

Ironically, just a few short years after WWII, he found himself vilified and reduced to living in a single room without plumbing, having to provide for his wife Marie and young daughter Milushka (Misa’s mother) on what he could eke out performing the most menial tasks as a manual laborer. AND THIS CONTINUED FOR THE NEXT 4 DECADES! Imagine. Incredibly, because of her father’s much lowered status, Milushka was not even allowed to attend middle school. 

Throughout the nightmare of this long Communist rule, those caught in a complete social/economic reversal such as Jaraslov & his family were among the hardest hit; for them deprivations became a way of life. During these years Milushka married, Grandmother Marie died, Misa was born and came to young womanhood, denied the opportunity to attend college though her artistic gifts and intelligence were clearly evident from an early age. The one constant for her throughout the often cruel hardships of her first 23 years, was her adored and adoring grandfather Jaroslav, the kind, intelligent, patient man who never became bitter, who remained generous and loving in spirit, the man from whom she clearly has inherited so much of her own personality and character. 

Jaroslav her favorite model; she poses with a portrait of him she did at age 13

When at last the Communist regime ended with the Revolution in 1989, Jaroslav, after much bureaucratic struggle, did regain his property. The buildings and land, however, had been turned nearly to rubble throughout the occupation. Amazing that he’d got his farm back after 40 years, but what does a man in his 90’s do with a destroyed property?

So many repairs needed, from the ground up, inside & out!

For Misa, then in her early 20’s, not a single question arose. This was the grandfather who had never failed to lighten her days; she would work side by side with him to help restore a very few rooms so he might live out his last years in a place he had cherished. 

When he passed within a few years, she mourned deeply, but her conviction became even clearer:  Honoring him and keeping his goodness alive meant continuing to restore the land of this farm as well as trying to repair its crumbling historic buildings and someday, somehow opening them, in her grandfather’s memory, to benefit others.

The vision which began to form was to turn these potentially bountiful 70 hectares not into a fancy Airbnb or even hostel, but a South Bohemian Retreat Center, where both artists and non-artists, singles and families, might come to rest & restore for up to 2-week periods while pursuing structured Creative Activities & Natural Pursuits in a pristine setting which includes 5 hectares of forest; 3 lakes; and organic spring waters. Activities and studies such as Organic Gardening; Healthy Cooking Classes; Mushroom Hunting; Forest Walks; Bird & Tree Naming; Folk Music & Dance; Screen Printing, Sculpting & Ceramics classes; Outdoor Painting & Drawing; Creating Writing classes; Reiki & Massage; Tours of local caves; Bike tours of local historical sites; and Guided tours via train to Moravia & Prague are part of what Misa hopes to be able to offer once enough restoration has been completed to house guests.

Magical Forest~5 hectacres of woodland lie within the property; Bird&Tree Naming, Outdoor Art classes and Yoga/Movement classes are just a few activities Misa envisions in this forest once her Retreat is realized.

Many varieties of edible mushrooms grow in the forest; a class in identifying & hunting for them is another activity she’d offer

Basketful of edible mushrooms collected on one hunt; Healthy Cooking, including organic ingredients such as these, would also be a retreat class

Misa in farm’s current kitchen holding giant mushroom about to be used for a meal

On the way back home after a day of clearing paths in the forest

Landscaping & fencing Misa added to bring rustic natural beauty to part of the site.

Farm cats have been attracted and found the perfect home

Work toward this goal has never ceased. The part of the site which is farmland Misa has managed to get registered in an ecological program by using organic methods and getting it cleared (yes, she operates a chain saw and excavator with forklift!). That designation alone took 10 years! She has planted fruit trees. She has re-tiled part of various roofs and had eaves put on a portion of the small restored living area. This is work for many, not a lone woman living there 4 months a year! Her dedication is astounding to consider.

Working with a wheelbarrow while being tutored in handling an excavator which she then used for the next 5 months; this was part of clearing farmland for organic use

Part of the 50 hectares which are now ecologically registered and on which organic farming has begun.

With her chainsaw sitting comfortably high in excavator's forklift to remove dead branches from a walnut tree for her neighbor on an adjoining property

Back in courtyard sawing beams to repurpose for new roofing

Despite her devotion and the healing she has brought each time she returns to the farm, restoring its land and many buildings is a slow process. Also, typically it was unoccupied for the greater part of each year which left the site largely vulnerable allowing it to get trespassed upon. To finally address that situation, one of her sons, gentle Nikolas who has recently graduated from the University of Oregon (still paying back college loans!), began 4 years ago during COVID to live on the farm, to be a presence and guardian.  

This is where 3 matters of urgency enter in: Basic survival needs include heat in Winter, a daily source of safe drinking water, and making safe one’s property: 

1) The European Union does not now allow use of any heat sources except those which meet the strictest environmental standards for emissions, so Misa’s son Nikolas will not have heat this Winter since the farmhouse boiler is ancient. Solar panels combined with a geo-thermal heating system now need to be installed. 

2) Some re-roofing of the crumbling tile has been accomplished, but more needs to be completed as well as proper insulation so that heat, once acquired, does not escape. (The roof of the adjoining barn which connects to the restored area has collapsed posing a serious safety issue and also must be redone.)

3) A well exists, but was damaged and compromised during the Communist occupation. Misa has single-handedly rebuilt a large part of the area surrounding the well and its masonry, but the water needs to be tested, the masonry-rebuilding finished and then cleaned to provide safe drinking water again.

Slow work of fitting stone to stone, a vital part of bringing back the farm’s well to provide clean drinking water to the site; funds are requested to finish this project.

Nikolas, Misa’s son, who lives in restored part of property (without proper heat this coming winter or working well for water!)

Collapsing barn roof poses a safety risk; repair funds being requested for it.

I’m keenly aware this is not the typical GoFundMe story. If only I could ignite within thousands of potential readers an appreciation and understanding for the exceptionally selfless, honorable and, yes, noble person Misa happens to be, for the Vision she carries within to promote a kinder, healthier, more in-balance world. A Communist regime took something precious 75 years ago from her grandparents and then spent 40 years destroying it~as well the ability to thrive economically for the family who had lost it. Against many obstacles, Misa has dedicated the greater part of almost 35 years of her life in trying to bring it back. The time has come to ask for help.

Choosing to tell Misa & her family’s story isn’t intended as a Pity Party. It’s a Come Help Someone Deserving Who’s Been Going It Alone Party! Your financial help will make some urgent key essentials immediately possible and provide hope for her to continue on with the rest of her restoration plans. Her vision of opening in honor of her Grandfather a South Bohemian Retreat on the amazing site seen in the attached photos and video could yet become a reality!  

I know: there are many injustices in this world and none of us can address them all or rewrite the past. But I'm hoping many hearts will be opened by the grit, talent, determination, resourcefulness, sacrifice and goodness of this woman who has shouldered so much, yet remains strong and true in working toward realizing a Vision which would long ago have exhausted most of us. Any amount, small or large, will be appreciated and put to good use. Misa is resourceful which I hope is apparent from the story and pictures I've shared!! If you cannot help, consider passing along this request to others. Thank you! (Dekuji Vam!)

MORE PHOTOS:

Some More of the Work Accomplished

Exterior view of 2nd floor (4 upper windows) housing current restored rooms (some re-tiled roof seen); none of these rooms will have heat this Winter due to EU regulations prohibiting use of ancient boiler. Funds requested for Solar & Thermal installations.

Above: Study, part of the few restored rooms, which Misa uses when at farm

Kitchen of restored 2nd floor, obviously its use this Winter an issue without heat

2nd floor Bathroom use in question this Winter if heating/water problem not solved

Another roof Misa has succeeded in getting re-tiled~however, clearly much work remains in this section of buildings envisioned as part of the Retreat Center, to include a Summer Kitchen for classes such as Healthy Cooking and Food Preservation

MORE RETREAT PLANS

One of 4 impressive main floor vaulted rooms; initial work has begun. Entire Main Floor is earmarked for Retreat use as DiningHall, CommunityKitchen & Guestrooms.

VIDEO:

Finally, Misa created a video from family & historic chronicles and personal photos with help from a young woman in the Czech Republic. Background music is Czech, and she cleared its use. Video was then edited to a shorter version. If interested in viewing it, click the video thumbnail above.