While
travelling as Romanian tourists in Turkey, 1969, Sanduand Elena Dumitrescu
applied for and were granted political asylum, leaving behind their 18-month-old,
Romanian-born son in the care of grandparents. Some three months later,
the Dumitrescus were sent to a refugee centre in Italy, not knowing the
true whereabouts of their son. Almost one year later, Sandu and Elena entered
Canada as landed immigrants, settling in British Columbia. It was also
inevitable that Sandu, in order to practice dentistry in Canada, would
be required to upgrade his earlier dental qualifications. Enrolling as
a second-year student, 1972, University of British Columbia, Sandu excelled
as a dental student, graduating, 1974, approximately five months after
both he and Elena were reunited with their son. Setting up his own practice
in Burnaby, British Columbia, Sandu now employs a staff of eight, including
Elena, who despite being a Chemist with a Master’s Degree, has found life
easier managing her husband’s business than working for free in order to
gain employment experience or working a long 40-hour week at half pay in
order to give her resume appealing credentials, at the expense, of course,
her family. In this contemporary view, Dr. Dumitrescu prepares to treat
a patient in his office. [Photo, courtesy Dr. Sandu Dumitrescu]
