Svetlana Cole

 My Dearest wife (Svetlana or simply Lana or Sveta)

My dear wife Svetlasha (Diminutive Spelling) was born in Moscow, Russia on March 12, 1963. Her father and mother were veterans of World War II. She was her daddy’s little girl and grieved terribly when he passed away at only 57 years old. She revered her dad and often told me, “my dad sent you to me and God put us together”. Sadly her mom passed away a few years ago as well. She wanted her parents to be proud of her, so she honored their lives and memory by living to the fullest. 

She graduated from People’s Friendship University in Moscow in the waning days of the Soviet Union with a graduate degree in linguistics. With the new freedoms in Russia, she saw an opportunity and started her own language school called Interlana Schools of Moscow. From her small apartment, she directed her business and successfully opened language classes all over Moscow, teaching English, German, and French to Russians and Russian to foreign visitors. 

When I arrived in Moscow as an adventurous entrepreneur in 1994, I found her and Interlana Schools of Moscow. She was an amazing woman–radiant with energy and determination, driven by the excitement of the change in Russia, and destined to travel the world and impact the lives of so many with her love and endless optimism. 

She immigrated to the United States in 1995 to spend her life with me. We were married in Hollywood, California on February 26, 1995, and began what seemed an endless adventure. Her energy never stopped until sickness took her from me. We not only traveled the world but Sveta went back to school and became a licensed marriage and family therapist. She started her own family practice in 2010 and successfully practiced for over 10 years in Orange, California. Her endless desire to do more led her to write a novel, One Fateful Summer, using the pen name Vanessa Star in 2016 followed by a short story, Joker in 2019. She chose a pen name fearing “moonlighting” as a writer would negatively impact her image as a therapist. She was always a professional and wanted each business venture to be presented in a specific way.

Most importantly, she was a giving person and never forgot about those she cared about. She gave much of her life to me and helped me become the person I am today. She was the cornerstone of my life. May God help me carry on.

Rest in eternal peace, my love. My lady in red. I love you.

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