1907
The "Sanchis" family has an established residence in Estivella in "Calvari (Calvary)" Street #12. My greatgrandfather Salvador, born in Picasent, was working on a railroad being constructed near Estivella.
1908
The "Sanchis" family moves to El Cabanyal. Here my grandfather's younger sister is born, Ramona Sanchis Amades, named after their mother.
1928The "Sanchis" family has an established residence in Estivella in "Calvari (Calvary)" Street #12. My greatgrandfather Salvador, born in Picasent, was working on a railroad being constructed near Estivella.
1908
The "Sanchis" family moves to El Cabanyal. Here my grandfather's younger sister is born, Ramona Sanchis Amades, named after their mother.
1913
1915
The family lives on "Pilar" street in El Cabanyal, today known as "Nicolás de Monsoriu"
1915
The family lives on "Pilar" street in El Cabanyal, today known as "Nicolás de Monsoriu"
1916
The family lives on "San Roque" street #24, today known as "Tramoyeres"
The family lives on "San Roque" street #24, today known as "Tramoyeres"
1920 a 1924
The family finally establishes a residence that would be theirs for a great period of time on Doctor Lluch Street #185-2ª
The family finally establishes a residence that would be theirs for a great period of time on Doctor Lluch Street #185-2ª
1923
19th of January - My grandfather is "Cabin Boy" aboard the SS Cabo Espartel, a transatlantic transporter for those seeking haven in the United States.
9th of february - The SS Cabo Espartel leaves the port of Sevilla, bound for New York City.
5th de march - The SS Cabo Espartel arrives to New York and my grandfather immigrates through Ellis Island. He is only 16 years old at the time.
1924
Vincent's military record seems to state that he enlisted in the U.S. army this year.
1925
17th of June - He enlists in the U.S. Marines. He spends the subsequent years of his service in Nicaragua.
19th of January - My grandfather is "Cabin Boy" aboard the SS Cabo Espartel, a transatlantic transporter for those seeking haven in the United States.
9th of february - The SS Cabo Espartel leaves the port of Sevilla, bound for New York City.
5th de march - The SS Cabo Espartel arrives to New York and my grandfather immigrates through Ellis Island. He is only 16 years old at the time.
1924
Vincent's military record seems to state that he enlisted in the U.S. army this year.
1925
17th of June - He enlists in the U.S. Marines. He spends the subsequent years of his service in Nicaragua.
17th of June - Leaves the U.S. Marines after exactly 4 years of service.
1934
Graduates from Ohio State University?? (Studies French and Accounting)
1935
Works (or studies to become?) as "Spanish Teacher" at Cleveland College, a now defunct university in Cleveland, Ohio. He is there until 1937.
1938
8th of May - Returns to Spain during Spanish Civil War to fight
17th of May - Joins the Abraham Lincoln Brigade in Spain, becoming a member of the Washington Batallion and the Plana Mayor Company.
24th of July to 23rd of September - Time on the front
1939
31st of March - He is capture on the "Aragón" front.
7th of April - Arrives to the concentration camp run by the fascists at a converted monastery named "San Pedro de Cardeña" and located near Burgos, Spain.
31st of March - He is capture on the "Aragón" front.
7th of April - Arrives to the concentration camp run by the fascists at a converted monastery named "San Pedro de Cardeña" and located near Burgos, Spain.
1941
Enters a hospital in Chattenham, England.
1942
Lives in Edmonton, Middlesex in England.
1943
19th of July - Enlists in the United States Army to fight in WWII. At the time, his residence is in the "Wood Green" neighborhood of London, on 10 Grainger Street.
Enters a hospital in Chattenham, England.
1942
Lives in Edmonton, Middlesex in England.
1943
19th of July - Enlists in the United States Army to fight in WWII. At the time, his residence is in the "Wood Green" neighborhood of London, on 10 Grainger Street.
1944
10th of July - Becomes a U.S. Citizen and changes his name to "Vincent Arlen". This takes place in Plymouth, England at a base of the "Special Boat Services" (SBS) base, a division of the Royal Marines of the United Kingdom. Vincent serves in the "European Theatre", participating in the fight against Italian fascism in the north of Africa and the Mediterranean.
1945
10th of July - Becomes a U.S. Citizen and changes his name to "Vincent Arlen". This takes place in Plymouth, England at a base of the "Special Boat Services" (SBS) base, a division of the Royal Marines of the United Kingdom. Vincent serves in the "European Theatre", participating in the fight against Italian fascism in the north of Africa and the Mediterranean.
1945
1st of October - Departs France at the end of World War II
10th of October - Arrives to New York.
18th of October - Separates from the U.S. military at the Indianatown Gap Military Reservation in Pennsylvania. Establishes residence at 33500 Lake Shore Blvd. in Willoughby, Ohio. In December of this same year he changes address to 12615 Superior Ave. in Cleveland, Ohio.
10th of October - Arrives to New York.
18th of October - Separates from the U.S. military at the Indianatown Gap Military Reservation in Pennsylvania. Establishes residence at 33500 Lake Shore Blvd. in Willoughby, Ohio. In December of this same year he changes address to 12615 Superior Ave. in Cleveland, Ohio.
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| My grandparents' wedding |
29th of March - My grandparents, Vincent Arlen and Ruth Brandt, are married in Cleveland. My grandmother had been living at 8314 Euclid Ave. and my grandfather had been living at 5910 Merkle Ave.
1948
(Census of Merchant Boats: "Ripple III)
1949
My grandparents are living in Stamford, Connecticut.
1953
3rd of November - Ramona Amades Alabau, my great-grandmother, leaves Barcelona aboard the Saturnia headed to New York and ready to reunite with her second son.
14th of November - Ramona Amades Alabau, my great-grandmother, lands in New York after crossing the Atlantic on the Saturnia.
1955
My grandfather worked for "Warner & Swasey", a company that manufactured various machinery. The family residence was established on 9908 Raymond Ave. in Cleveland, OH.
2nd of September - The first daughter of my grandparents' marriage is born: my aunt Karen.
(Census of Merchant Boats: "Ripple III)
1949
My grandparents are living in Stamford, Connecticut.
1953
3rd of November - Ramona Amades Alabau, my great-grandmother, leaves Barcelona aboard the Saturnia headed to New York and ready to reunite with her second son.
14th of November - Ramona Amades Alabau, my great-grandmother, lands in New York after crossing the Atlantic on the Saturnia.
1955
My grandfather worked for "Warner & Swasey", a company that manufactured various machinery. The family residence was established on 9908 Raymond Ave. in Cleveland, OH.
2nd of September - The first daughter of my grandparents' marriage is born: my aunt Karen.
1958
7th of November - The second daughter of the marriage is born, my mother, Gloria Dolores Arlen.
19647th of November - The second daughter of the marriage is born, my mother, Gloria Dolores Arlen.
25th of March - My grandparents are officially divorced, just days shy of their 18th anniversary.
1969
27th of January - My great uncle Vicente Amades Alabau passes away at 85 years of age. He had been living on "PL Navarro" Street in Cañamelar, Valencia, Spain.
1972
22nd of January - My great grandmother, Ramona Amades Alabau, passes away just 3 years after the passing of her brother Vicente Amades Alabau.
1987
10th of May - My grandfather, Vicente Sanchis Amades or as he was known at the time, Vincent Arlen, dies of pneumonia in Euclid, Ohio at 80 years of age.
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Junio to 27th of July - My first trip to Spain. I took classes at the University of Madrid-Complutense and walked the Catholic pilgrimage the "Camino de Santiago". The World Cup of 2006 in Germany is celebrated while I am in Spain. This experience changes my life forever. I came to identify with the Spanish people in a way that that I could not explain. Upon my return, my mother tells me for the first time of the existence of my real grandfather and that he was in fact Spanish.
May to June - My second trip to Spain. This time I travel with my older brother Grant and my grandmother Ruth, ex-wife of my grandfather Vicente. We tour Spain in a rental car and visit Madrid, Valencia, Orihuela, Granada, Cadíz, Sevilla, Santiago de Compostela, Ribadeo, Burgos and several other cities and towns.
May to August - My third trip to Spain. This time I study in the outskirts of Madrid at the University of Alcalá de Henares. I stay with a Spanish host family and travel to Murcia, Orihuela, Alicante and Valencia. I visit my grandfather's old neighborhood, El Cabanyal for the first time.
7th of October - I start this blog and write my first of many Spanish-language entries here. The first entry is aptly titled "Searching for Vincent" an article explaining my profound desire to learn of my Spanish roots and uncover the man behind one of the few photographs my family still possessed of my grandfather. I write the following words:
2011
27th of June - On the night of the 27th, I publish the blog entry Por qué soy del Levante UD ("Why I am a Levante U.D. fan") where I explained how I had come to root for the soccer club from my grandfather's old neighborhood El Cabanyal. After posting the article to my Twitter and tagging Rafa Jordà, a player who had gifted me an autographed jersey and whose representative Javier Zamora encouraged me to tell my story of Levante fandom, the link is shared in many social networks, resulting in a significant impact in the Levante or "granota" family of fútbol fans. I received a great number of encouraging messages and well-wishes from Levante fans.
"I go on searching for my grandfather Vincent Sanchis Amades
and find myself uncovering more and more of myself, my own identity."
2011
27th of June - On the night of the 27th, I publish the blog entry Por qué soy del Levante UD ("Why I am a Levante U.D. fan") where I explained how I had come to root for the soccer club from my grandfather's old neighborhood El Cabanyal. After posting the article to my Twitter and tagging Rafa Jordà, a player who had gifted me an autographed jersey and whose representative Javier Zamora encouraged me to tell my story of Levante fandom, the link is shared in many social networks, resulting in a significant impact in the Levante or "granota" family of fútbol fans. I received a great number of encouraging messages and well-wishes from Levante fans.
July - Thanks to that June 27th blog entry about Levante U.D., my story reaches Joan Bosch Gosalvez and Rosa María Alcaína, a married couple of lifelong Levante fans who study the geneology of El Cabanyal, a connection that was truly meant to happen. Joan and Rosa María investigated my ancestors in their files and found out a great deal of information about my Spanish ancestry, especially my grandfather. They discover through an old census document that my grandfather was in fact not born in El Cabanyal, though he did live most of his Spain years in the legendary fishermen's neighborhood. It turns out that Vincente Sanchis Amades was born in Estivella, a small valencian town 22 miles from El Cabanyal.
Joan and Rosa María drive to Estivella to obtain my grandfather's birth certificate, in theory the only document that was keeping me from receiving Spanish citizenship through the Law of Historical Memory, which offered the possibility of Spanish dual-citizenship to grandchildren of those who fled Spain due to the country's civil war in the late 1930's. The birth certificate arrived in the mail just months from the expiration of the law, which would occur in December of this year.
Joan and Rosa quickly became more than just strangers. We developed a very close, loving relationship. An elderly couple who I had no relation to became like family to me. It was like they were my Spanish mother and father. I began to call them my "padrinos" (godparents) and to this day we maintain a very close family relationship.
Joan and Rosa María drive to Estivella to obtain my grandfather's birth certificate, in theory the only document that was keeping me from receiving Spanish citizenship through the Law of Historical Memory, which offered the possibility of Spanish dual-citizenship to grandchildren of those who fled Spain due to the country's civil war in the late 1930's. The birth certificate arrived in the mail just months from the expiration of the law, which would occur in December of this year.
Joan and Rosa quickly became more than just strangers. We developed a very close, loving relationship. An elderly couple who I had no relation to became like family to me. It was like they were my Spanish mother and father. I began to call them my "padrinos" (godparents) and to this day we maintain a very close family relationship.
11th of November of 2011 (11-11-11) On Veteran's Day, a day that I picked in honor of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade and my grandfather, I officially became a citizen of Spain in the Spanish Consulate in Chicago, IL. It was a very simple act, yet very emotional to me, a dream come true after 5 long years of research and frustrations and seemingly hitting a dead end with every turn. The hard work, resolve and the help of countless individuals had its recompensa (reward). I wore a Levante U.D. scarf over my shoulders when I signed pledged the Spanish Constitution.
2012
17th of February - I return to Valencia to discover in depth, for the first time, my Valencian roots. My godparents and my great friend Manolo Lopez receive me in the Manises airport, just outside of Valencia. It marks the beginning of the best weeks of my life to date.
17th of February - I return to Valencia to discover in depth, for the first time, my Valencian roots. My godparents and my great friend Manolo Lopez receive me in the Manises airport, just outside of Valencia. It marks the beginning of the best weeks of my life to date.
18th of February - I stand in front of my grandfather and great-grandmother's old house for the first time. This event is documented in this Spanish-language blog entry: "Hoy mi abuelo ha estado más vivo que nunca"
19th of February - I witness my first Levante U.D. game, an unjust loss of 3-5 at the hand of Rayo Vallecano.
25th of February - I witness An Epic Levante Victory in Barcelona, an away win against RCD Espanyol by the scoreline of 1-2 with a heart-stopping last minute goal from Rubén Suarez.
3rd of March - Visito por primera vez a Estivella, pueblo donde nació mi abuelo.
3rd of March - Visito por primera vez a Estivella, pueblo donde nació mi abuelo.
4th of March - I enter in My grandfather's old house in El Cabanyal
5th of March - I celebrate my 22nd Birthday with a 3-1 home win against Real Betis in Valencia. In the wee hours of the 6th, my godparents take me to the airport for a tearful goodbye and the closing of by far the most exhilarating and emotional three weeks of my life.
2013
2013
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