Muriss Dizdar

Muriss Dizdar, 85, of Florence, Kentucky was reunited with his beloved wife of 61 years, Zineta, on Saturday November 15, 2014. Muriss and “Bila”, as she was fondly called, immigrated to the United States from Livno, Bosnia to escape the war. They had three children together, two sons and a daughter. Their son Beris died in 1973. Son Armanss Dizdar lives in Erlanger and a daughter Berisa Dizdar resides in Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Armanss recounted that he arrived in New York in May of 1994 with his two young children, ages 7 and 4 at the time, with $74 dollars in his pocket. Through the grace of several religious organizations he located to northern Kentucky and continued the immigration process to help his mother and father move to the United States in December of that same year. Muriss and Zineta were forced from their home at gun point. They had one hour to pack and leave. Livno, Bosnia is one of the oldest settlements in Europe (population 10,000) and was founded in 892. Muriss served as the official record keeper, insurance person for county buildings and photographer of the city recording all the vital statistics and marriage licenses for about 40 years before retiring in 1982. His record keeping was impeccable and all the records were done by hand. His printing would rival that of modern computer fonts. When asked what hobbies Muriss enjoyed, without hesitation his family answered photography. He was an avid reader, enjoyed writing, physics, chemistry, algebra and was an accomplished mathematician. Muriss loved to garden and ride his bicycle. Most people did not realize that, although Muriss did not speak English very much, he learned to speak English very well. Muriss taught Armanss the intricate details of mixing the chemicals necessary to ensure perfect picture development. Armanss shares his father’s love for photography and continues his work at Studio Armanss.