Occupational Traditions

Interview Description Michelle Souza (58) talks to her friend Laura Richarz (58) about her mother Blase Camacho Souza. Facilitator Subject Log 01:00 Michelle's mother Blase was born in Hawaii but was of Puerto-Rican descent. She talks about her mother's parents and her birth. 01:50 Michelle talks about the origins of her mother's name "Blase. " 07:20 Michelle talks about her mother moving from Hawaii to New York City to attend the Pratt...

Interview Description Coulette Takach (62) talks with coworker Crystal Velez (21) about being a librarian. Facilitator Subject Log 00:50 Coulette talks about working Crystal's mother at her previous library. She has been a librarian for over 30 years. 10:55 Coulette talks about what brought her to Texas from Iowa. She talks about the first library she worked at. She was there for over 20 years. 15:00 Crystal talks about how she ended up at...

Interview Description Emma Torres y su compañera de trabajo Maria Chavoya platican sobre la vida laboral de Emma, su papel dentro del sindicato de trabajadores campesinos (UFW, por sus siglas en Ingles), el declive del sindicato y sus logros y aspiraciones educativas. [Emma Torres and her coworker Maria Chavoya talk about Emma's work life, her role in the United Farm Workers union (UFW), the union's decline, and Emma's educational achievements and aspirations.] ...

Interview Description Gladys Torres (54) talks with her son Juan Pablo Martinez (31) about leaving Colombia to be a nurse in the United States. Facilitator Subject Log 02:30 Gladys talks about the conversation she had with Juan Pablo when he was ten years old about coming to the United States to be a nurse. 11:00 Juan Pablo remembers when his mother would sell brownies on the bus in Colombia in order to save money for her trip to the United States....

Interview Description Jorge Valdez (26) interviews his wife, Jesusita Valdez (28) about her work and life passion as a teacher. Facilitator Subject Log 01:09 Jesusita talks about some of her role models growing up that inspired her to become a teacher. Her basketball coach gave her an MVP award. 04:05 Jesusita always worked hard in college to succeed. She learned through teaching that there are some things she can't control everything for her students...

Interview Description Jorge Valdez (26) talks to his wife, Jesusita Valdez (28) about his love of family, his experiences in the Marine Corps, and his relationship with Jesusita. Facilitator Subject Log 00:45 Family is very important to Jorge. He shares childhood memories from growing up in Texas. 05:30 Jorge recalls being in boot camp on September 11, 2001. 07:30 Jorge was deployed to Iraq 4 times. He shares memories of those times,...

Interview Description Amelia Alice Vara (87) talks with daughter Mary Hernandez (65) and granddaughter Dawn Leal (37) about her service to her community. Facilitator Subject Log 02:30 Amelia talks about her mother and her father. Her father was a Spanish translator. 04:50 Amelia talks about her experiences in school. She remembers being segregated at school from her sister because they had differing skin tones. 16:10 Amelia talks about...

Interview Description Maria Teresa Varela y Maria Robles, amigas, celebran sus vidas, narran la vida de Maria Teresa y comparten su sabiduria. [Maria Teresa Varela and Maria Robles, friends, celebrate each other, recount Maria Teresa's life, and share wisdom gained from working.] Facilitator Subject Log 4:35 MT recuerda su trabajo en el campo al llegar a Estados Unidoes. Una mujer "troquera. " 7:40 MT discute la crianza de sus hijos y la...

Interview Description Gabriela Baeza Ventura (39) talks with sister Georgina Baeza (27) about her academic success. Facilitator Subject Log 00:40 Gabriela is originally from Ciudad Juarez. She tells the story about learning English in school and only feeling comfortable in her mathematics class when she didn't speak English. 02:30 Gabriela tells a story about being forced to wash windows with her mom (who was a maid) and knowing she didn't want to do...

Interview Description April Wood (38) talks with her mother Maria Teresa Hill (60) about their lives. Facilitator Subject Log 01:20 Maria is from Juarez, MX. She talks about meeting her husband in 1969. She recalls moving to California with her new husband. 05:45 April talks about Harry. Maria talks about meeting Harry for the first time when he was in a convalescent home. 10:55 Maria names and mentions all of her children. She also talks...