Alla Poznyak

The Funeral Service for Dr. Alla Poznyak will be available for live-streaming (and after) at 12:00 noon on Thursday, March 9, 2023 via the following link: https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/7059399263 .

WORCESTER - Alla Poznyak was born on December 16, 1925 to Semyon and Vera Poznyak in Minsk, Belarus.

When the Nazis attacked the Soviet Union in June 1941, Alla was fifteen and a half years old. The years of war, and especially the first months of the war left an indelible impression on Alla, which she recalled with lucidity late into her life.
Alla left Minsk with her father, which was being bombed by the Nazis and was ultimately destroyed in the war. Alla and her father walked 200 km to Mogilev, driven by the fear of capture. The Poznyak family eventually evacuated to Sverdlovsk (now Yekaterinburg), in the Urals in 1941. While in high school, Alla and other students helped tend to soldiers wounded in battles with the Nazis.

In Sverdlovsk, Alla graduated from high school and began her studies at the School of Geological Exploration. Pressured by her parents, Alla left the School of Geological Exploration after two years and went to study medicine. In Alla’s own words, she “never looked back.”

After Belarus was liberated from the Nazis in 1944, the Poznyak family returned to Minsk. At that time, Alla was already a student at the prestigious Medical Institute in Moscow, but she yearned to return home to Minsk. She transferred to Minsk’s Medical Institute, from which she graduated in 1949.

While still a student, Alla met Semyon Kalnitsky. They married and lived together for 75 years, until Semyon’s death in 2022.

In 1951, the young family moved to Kaliningrad. The city lacked doctors, especially in obstetrics and gynecology, and the local health authority assigned Alla to a maternity hospital. The years after the war was the time of “baby boomers,” especially in a city full of young people. Alla was busy and often worked for 36 hours straight. But Alla was young, full of energy, and, most importantly, she loved her work.

In 1962, the family returned to Minsk. From that time and until she retired, Alla worked in an outpatient OB-GYN clinic. Alla was a knowledgeable doctor with a good bedside manner. The patients trusted her, and many wanted to be seen only by Doctor Poznyak. We do not know how many babies were born under Alla’s care, but we saw how many flowers she brought home, a sign of her patients’ gratitude.

Alla’s three main hobbies were reading, knitting, and baking. Alla was also an avid reader of books and literary magazines. She knew all the latest literary trends and could recite her favorite poems from memory. She loved to knit complex, “interesting” designs and knit clothes for everyone in her family.

On holidays, the house was full of delicious pie smells. Alla would always bake several pies and cakes. Very frequently, there would appear an exotically-named cake baked according to a new recipe, and if the cake won approval, it would be added to Alla’s repertoire.

Alla will be dearly missed by her family. She is survived by her daughters Marina and Elena, granddaughters Victoria, Vera, and Sasha, and six great-grandchildren.

Family and friends will gather to honor Alla's remarkable life at her Funeral Service at 12:00 noon on Thursday, March 9, 2023, at Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden. Interment will follow at B'nai Brith Cemetery, 55 St. John's Road, Worcester.

Memorial Contributions may be made to a charity of the donor's choice.