In the 1990s, the iron curtain was giving way or at least becoming permeable in the age of perestroika. After writing letters for 20 years while teaching Russian at two schools in Exeter, Patricia Cockrell was at last successful in setting up an exchange with a school in Moscow. And in 1992 she was awarded a grant to establish a hospice in Exeter’s twin city – Yaroslavl.
She negotiated some time off from family life and gave up her job in order to promote the growth of civil society in Russia. She trained in conflict management, mediation, diplomacy, and other skills. In 1993 she was appointed to represent Quakers in Russia and to work with others to establish a Friends House in Moscow.
At a time of challenging social unrest, she lived in Moscow and traveled widely from the Caucasus to the Arctic, working on Quaker concerns for peaceful relationships and for the sick, the vulnerable and victims of violence and war.
The text above is very slightly adapted from the description which appears on the back cover of the book. The image above is from the book review, see below.
The attached document (available for download) is the text of a book review, by Chris Lawson, which was published in The Friend magazine in February 2022 (reproduced here with permission).
The book is available in paperback from the Quaker Bookshop (link here ) and other good bookshops, priced at about £9.
