Roland Kulhanek (1936-2016) of Illinois

[briankaess]

Roland Kulhanek was born Aug 2 1936 in Germany, and died abt Feb 17 2016 in SW Suburban Chicago in Illinois, USA. He was the son of Willy Assenheimer (d. 1944)  and Berta Freida Kaess (1915-1992). Roland was raised as a child in Nazi Germany. He talked about picking the grapes near Benningen am Neckar, Germany. He took the name Kulhanek from his adoptive Father Vaslav/Vaclav Kulhanek (d. bef 1992).
  Within a few years after the war, Roland and his parents moved to Venezuela for six years.
They then relocated to the Midwest in America, in Illinois and Ohio. Roland settled down in Oak Lawn, Illinois and Orland Park, Illinois. He worked construction for many years. He used to poke fun at people and say, ‘Are you going to get there’?

[briankaess]

Vaclav Kulhanek, Berta K Kulhanek, Roland Kulhanek, and Willi Kulhanek all arrived to the USA via the city of Miami before 1964. It is not clear whether they flew in or traveled by boat.
There are also naturalization records for Willy Kulhanek and Elsa Frieda Barmus, aka Elsa Kulhanek.

[Erato]

Is there a specific question about these people?

[briankaess]

looking for arrival records, or naturalization records.

[knort33]

From ancestry.com

https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/8842/42792_DC000545-00835?pid=7674765&backurl=https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv%3D1%26dbid%3D8842%26h%3D7674765%26tid%3D%26pid%3D%26usePUB%3Dtrue%26_phsrc%3DPZG1618%26_phstart%3DsuccessSource&treeid=&personid=&hintid=&usePUB=true&_phsrc=PZG1618&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true

[briankaess]

Roland Kulhanek's sister, Elsa F Assenheimer Barmus, aka Elsa Kulhanek, was born Oct 17 1937 in Benningen am Neckar, Germany, and died Feb 10 2019 in Illinois. She stated she married 'Ron' Barmus in 1954 in Venezuela. Their adoptive dad, Vaclav Kulhanek (1918-1984) traveled with Elsa and her Mom Berta Kaess in 1951 from Germany to Venezuela. The Kulhanek's were displaced persons after WWII and  may have been stateless. Roland and his brother Willy Kulhanek, traveled from Genoa, Italy, to Venezuela in 1951. The Kulhanek's stated they lived in Venezuela for six years. Afterwards, they emigrated to the USA, settling in Illinois and Ohio and establishing families there.
   The Kulhanek's always stated that Vaclav Kulhanek was from the Czech Republic.

[briankaess]

Elsa Frieda Kulhanek married Romualdas 'Ron' Barmus in 1954 in Venezuela, per family sources. In 1956, Ron Barmus, Elsa F Barmus, and their daughter Daria Barmus (and perhaps a Ron Barmus sibling) traveled from Venezuela via passenger ship to Baltimore, before settling in the Chicago area.  Daria was born in Venezuela in 1955, Ron in Lithuania in 1933, and Elsa in Germany in 1937.
  So it appears Elsa F Barmus lived in Venezuela from 1951 to 1956.
  In 1966, it appears both Elsa F Barmus and her husband Ron Barmus naturalized in Chicago.

[briankaess]

Roland Kulhanek (1936-2016) told the Kaess Family in Chicago that he was a 'Godfather' to the twins of Gerd Edwin Paul Kaess (1947-1972). The Kulhanek's migrated to America almost a decade before their 1st Cousin Gerd Kaess, and this may have been an example of 'chain' or 'pull' migration.

[briankaess]

    The Kulhanek Family (Vaclav Kulhanek, Berta Frieda Kulhanek, Elsa Kulhanek, Roland Kulhanek, & Willy Kulhanek) shows up in online documents of the Arolsen Archives. The link is:
https://arolsen-archives.org/en/search-explore/search-online-archive/
In one Document in 1951, Vaclav, Berta & Elsa Kulhanek are mentioned as having traveled from a resettlement camp in/near Munich, Germany, and then traveling to Bremen/Bremerhaven to Venezuela via ship. Elsa Kulhanek’s dob is 17.10.37. Born in Germany. She is Rom. Cath and a pupil. Berta Frieda Kulhanek (Maiden name Kaess) dob is 6.3.15, born in Germany. She is Rom. Cath.and a housewife. Vaclav Kulhanek’s dob  is 3.2.1918, born in CSR or Czechoslovakia- he is Rom. Cath. And mentioned as a Mach. Oper. All three of their Citizenship appears to be CSR or Czechoslovakia, likely due to the marriage of Berta Kaess Assenheimer, a German Citizen, to Vaclav Kulhanek, a Czech citizen. He also adopted her three kids and gave them his last name and Czech Citizenship, it appears.
    In another document, Willy Kulhanek and Roland Kulhanek show up on a list of passengers on the Vespucci on 22.11.1951  from Genoa, Italy, to Venezuela. They are sponsored by Vaclav Kulhanek, their adoptive father. Their zone of origin is mentioned as Frankfurt, Germany. Roland Kulhanek’s dob  is 2.8.1936, from Germany/Ludwigsburg. He and Willy are both mentioned as students. Willy Kulhanek’s dob  is 24.1.1935, from Germany/Benningen. Vaclav Kulhanek’s address in Venezuela mentions Caracas and Ap 4 Calle Urbaneta.