America is home for woman of the world

By ERIKA KIRSCH Western News Editor

By age 6, Charlotte Woods could speak three languages.

Born to German parents in Angola, West Africa in the 1930s, Charlotte (Gretzschel) Woods grew up in the Belgian Congo, which is the present-day area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Her father was a manufacturing representative, which sent the family to various exotic locales.

In May 1940, Germany invaded Norway, Denmark, Belgium, Luxembourg and France. Because Woods and her family were living in the Belgian Congo they were detained and sent to an internment camp when she was six years old.

"The camp was very primative," she explained. "It was totally in the bush. We had no school or post office and food was delivered twice a week."

Charlotte was together with her family the entire time they were detained. They were not abused in the camp and she saw the experience as an adventure, she added. However, all of their possessions were taken during their time in camp. Her father taught Charlotte and her siblings the basic subjects while they were in the camp and her mother taught the social subjects.

It was March 1948 and Charlotte was 14 years old when she and her family were finally able to leave the camp and they traveled to Germany. The teachers at the school she attended were afraid she would be behind her peers due the experience she had in the detainment camp. However, because of her father and mother's teachings, Charlotte was academically equal to her fellow students.

Charlotte only stayed in Germany for one year and in April 1949, the family took a boat from Germany to Brazil. She turned 15 on the boat over the Atlantic Ocean. Her father continued working in the manufacturing industry in Brazil and the family lived there for seven years. Charlotte added Portuguese to her list of languages, which included German, French and Swahili.

In 1956, Charlotte's sister visited the United States and made the decision to move to the country. She wanted Charlotte and the rest of the family to also come to the U.S. However, before that occurred, proper procedure would have to be followed in order to be allowed into the country, Charlotte explained. Charlotte and her parents had to travel back to Germany and file the correct documents with the American Consulate in Germany.

Because Charlotte was a German citizen she had to travel to Hamburg and go through an array of qualifications before she would be considered for passage to the U.S. She began her paperwork in May 1957. She was required to go through a physical exam, have a job or a sponsor in the U.S. and she had to have references, Charlotte explained.

"I wanted to do it right," she said. "You should be able to become a productive member of society."

Because Charlotte was unsure how long the procedure to get immigration papers would take she began working for the Lufthansa Offices in Hamburg. In November 1957, Charlotte received her immigration papers and she traveled on the Holland American Line, a large ship, to Hoboken, N.J.

One of the first American memories she has from that voyage was seeing the Statue of Liberty upon reaching the American shores. From New Jersey, Charlotte traveled on Continental Railways across the country.

"I was dumbfounded with the beauty of this country," she exuded.

Charlotte's sister and half-sister both lived in Los Angeles, Calif. and she lived with them when she arrived in California. Charlotte immediately looked for a job and began improving her English. When she arrived, she began working for Atlantic Richfield Co. On Jan.1, 1958, she began working for R.J. Eiche, a company that exported oil equipment around the world.

Both of Charlotte's parents were still awaiting immigration papers in Germany during this time. Once Charlotte got established, she sponsored her parents in 1958 and they made the trip to Los Angeles. Charlotte saw America as a wonderful country and wanted her parents to be a part of it.

"It is amazing," she said. "I've been treated so well here. People are so accepting and non-judgmental."

In 1959, Charlotte met her first husband Joe. They were married in 1960 and had two boys who currently live in Lodi, Calif. and Las Vegas, Nev. The family lived in Los Angeles until 1968 when they moved to Fresno, Calif. Charlotte began working for American Forest Products and was transferred to Stockton, Calif. in 1976.

In 1980, the buying office of American Forest Products was eliminated and Charlotte lost her job. In 1981 she began selling real estate. In 1989, Charlotte and Joe, a building contractor, retired in Libby. Joe was diagnosed with cancer in 1992 and died in March 1994. Charlotte and Joe would have been married for 34 years that year.

While attending a grief support group in Libby, Charlotte met Chuck Woods in July 1995. The two were married by minister Cal Noble in 1997.

On Aug. 11, Charlotte celebrated living in the United States for 50 years at her home in Libby. She and Chuck renewed their wedding vows, as well.

"This is the greatest country in the world. I don't care what anybody says," Charlotte said. "I've had the privilege to live in other countries and I know what it's like."

Charlotte, Chuck and friends celebrated Charlotte's golden anniversary in the country with a red, white and blue-themed party. Charlotte and Chuck even have a replica of the Statue of Liberty in their yard.

Although Charlotte is definitely a well-traveled woman, she prefers to stick around home these days.

"There are so many places to see here. I don't feel the need to travel out of the country. I've done it so much already," she explained. "I've been made very aware of how good America is."