Born in 1948, post war East Berlin, Christina Erika Olga Mandrella never planned to be a pioneer for women, and in early 1985, at age 36, her legacy would not end, but continue to blaze trails for women.
In June 1950, Soviet forces blocked the roads and railroad lines into West Berlin, and in December of 1951, impoverished, and with fear, Christine and her family fled to the West leaving behind the life the young Mandrella family created. In spite of losing everything they owned, young Christine always had a smile, was always learning, and was always on an adventure. In late October of 1952, an event that could have irrevocably damaged her instead made her stronger. Richard Adam Mandrella, born in Northern Italy, a dentist, and a young man forced to serve in Hitler’s army and suffering from what we now define as PTSD, ended his life, leaving Christine and her mother Erika to survive in a devastated city, alone.
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Continually challenging authority, in 1961, at age 13, Christine’s friends were home listening to Elvis Presley, and Christine stood with others in protest, watching the German Democratic Republic (CDR) build the Berlin Wall. 22 months later, on June 26, 1963, once again Christine stood in solidarity, this time with 450,000 other Germans, as John F. Kennedy spoke on the steps of the Rathaus in Schöneberg declaring “Ich bin ein Berliner” showing support for West Germany and the people of