The Man Who Disabled Two Hydrogen Bombs Dropped in North Carolina
On January 24, 1961, a U.S. B-52 bomber was flying over rural North Carolina when fuel started to leak, the plane snapped apart, and the two hydrogen bombs it was carrying fell into a tobacco field. If detonated, these 3.8-megaton weapons would have had an impact 250 times greater than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
Lieutenant Jack ReVelle, a munitions expert who was 25 at the time, was the man called to the scene. His job was to make sure the bombs didn’t explode.
He came to StoryCorps with his daughter, Karen, to remember those harrowing eight days.
Top photo: Four of the “terrible ten” – from ReVelle’s team – observe the retrieval of the second bomb’s parachute pack from inside a hole they dug over the course of eight days. Photo courtesy of the United States Air Force.
Middle photo: The first hydrogen bomb in January 1961. Photo courtesy of the United States Air Force.
Middle photo: 24-year-old First Lieutenant Jack ReVelle in 1960, the year before the incident in North Carolina. ReVelle worked in Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). Photo courtesy of the United States Air Force.
Bottom photo: Jack ReVelle and Karen ReVelle at their StoryCorps interview in Santa Ana, CA. Photo by Kevin Oliver for StoryCorps.
Originally aired January 25, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
A Mother’s Fears as Her Temporary Protected Status (TPS) Expires
In 2000, Maria Rivas immigrated from El Salvador to the United States. A year later, Rivas received Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to stay and work legally in the U.S.
TPS is set to expire for people from El Salvador in September of 2019. But if Rivas is forced to leave the U.S., she won’t risk taking her American-born children with her — and her 15-year-old daughter Emily will stay behind to live with close family friends.
She sat down at StoryCorps with Emily to talk about their uncertain future, together or apart.
Top photo: Maria Rivas and her daughter Emily at their StoryCorps interview in December 2018. By Mia Warren for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Maria Rivas and her daughter Emily in 2007, when Emily was four years old. Courtesy of Maria Rivas.
Originally aired January 11, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Remembering the Start of a Lifelong Love of Books
At StoryCorps, we’re used to hearing tales of love. But here’s one of a different sort: a love letter to the written word.
Meet Alagappa Rammohan, who has amassed enough books over the course of his life to fill a small library (10,000, to be exact).
Rammohan immigrated from India to the United States in 1962. He came to StoryCorps in Chicago with his daughter, Paru Venkat, who as a child witnessed his love of books.
Continuing his lifelong love of books and learning, Rammohan plans to donate all 10,000 of his books to a learning center and library he’s founded in his hometown in India.
Top photo: Paru Venkat and Alagappa Rammohan pose after their StoryCorps interview in Chicago on June 23, 2018. By Eliza Lambert for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Alagappa Rammohan poses at the site of the ancient Great Library at Alexandria (350 B.C. – 280 B.C.) in Alexandria, Egypt in 2013. Courtesy Alagappa Rammohan.
Originally aired January 4, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
The Tallapoosa Possum Drop, a New Year’s Eve Tradition
New Year’s Eve in Times Square? Meh. The real action is in Tallapoosa, Georgia.
That’s where Bud and Jackie Jones, career taxidermists, live. They helped establish a completely different kind of New Year’s Eve tradition in their small town.
Bud and Jackie came to StoryCorps recently to share the love story that helped launch it all.
Since the Tallapoosa Possum Drop began in the late 1990s, the event has grown from about 40 people to over 7,000 in attendance. That’s more than twice the population of Tallapoosa itself.
Top photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose after their StoryCorps interview in Tallapoosa, GA in September 2018. By Kelly Moffitt for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose together in 1963. Courtesy Bud Jones.
Bottom photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose near “Spencer” at the Possum Drop in Tallapoosa, GA in 2014. Courtesy Bud Jones.
Originally aired December 28, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
How a Jewish Man from Georgia Became Santa Claus
There are many ways to celebrate the holidays. While some light the Hannukah candles, some decorate Christmas trees. And for some, well, they do a little bit of both.
This is a story about an out-of-the-ordinary Santa. His real name is Rick Rosenthal. He also happens to be Jewish (Modern Orthodox, to be precise).
Santa Rick came to StoryCorps with an old friend and mentee, Adam Roseman, to talk about how he found his calling.
In addition to his day-to-day work as Santa, Rick started and now runs one of the largest Santa schools in the country.
Top photo: Adam Roseman and Rick Rosenthal pose after their StoryCorps interview in Atlanta, GA in September 2018. By Brenda Ford for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Rick Rosenthal poses in full Santa regalia. Courtesy Rick Rosenthal.
Originally aired December 7, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
In the US 50 Years, a Man Reflects on His Arrival from Honduras
A half-century ago, Roy Daley was 23 years old and living in the capital of Honduras when a friend offered him a job in the United States. So he immigrated with little more than two shirts and a change of pants.
Roy came to StoryCorps with his wife, Ana, and his daughter, Lucy, to talk about his early days in America.
Top photo: Roy Daley with his wife, Ana Smith-Daley (L) and his daughter Lucy Figueroa (R) at the StoryCorps MobileBooth in Austin, TX. By Savannah Winchester for StoryCorps.
Originally aired November 23rd, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Transgender Child Tells Mom ‘It Shouldn’t Be Scary To Be Who You Are’
Parents and children often come to StoryCorps to share the most important moments in their lives. That’s just what 12-year-old Kaysen Ford had in mind when they came to StoryCorps with their mother, Jennifer Sumner.
Growing up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Kaysen is the youngest of seven children.
At StoryCorps, the two sat down to reflect.
Top photo: Jennifer Sumner and her child, Kaysen Ford, at their StoryCorps interview on April 17, 2015 in Birmingham, AL. Photo by Christina Stanton for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Kaysen Ford and Jennifer Sumner at their home on October 24, 2018. Courtesy of the Ford family.
Originally aired October 26, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
A Soldier on Suffering from PTSD and Finding a Home in Fashion
Army Specialist Duane Topping served three tours in Iraq before medically retiring in 2012.
Although he comes across as a tough guy with his tattoos and leather jacket, while deployed he found comfort from an unlikely place. Duane came to StoryCorps with his wife, Jamie Topping, to recall the difficulties of transitioning to civilian life while struggling with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Today, Duane and Jamie run a successful design house out of Denver, Colorado. In September, they returned home from their first official show at New York Fashion Week.
Top photo: Jamie and Duane Topping pose during their StoryCorps interview in the Topping Designs studio in Wheat Ridge, Colorado on May 17, 2018. Photo by Mia Warren for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Duane Topping poses in Kuwait while deployed as an Army Specialist in 2006, during his second deployment to Iraq. Courtesy of Duane Topping.
Bottom photo: Duane Topping works at his design studio in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Photo by Mia Warren for StoryCorps.
Originally aired October 6, 2018, on NPR’s Weekend Edition.
Remembering Balbir Singh Sodhi, Sikh Man Killed in Post-9/11 Hate Crime
In the wake of the September 11th attacks, Muslims, Arabs, and Sikhs became targets for hate across the country. Balbir Singh Sodhi was the first person to be murdered in a hate crime in this aftermath.
On the morning of September 15, 2001, Balbir donated the contents of his wallet to the victims of the attacks. He then went to the gas station he owned in Mesa, Arizona and began planting a garden out in front, when a man who was seeking retaliation for 9/11 drove by in his pickup truck and shot and killed Balbir, assuming he was a Muslim man. Balbir was a follower of the Sikh religion and wore a turban as part of his faith.
At StoryCorps, Balbir’s brothers, Rana and Harjit Sodhi, sat down to remember him.
Later that day, Balbir’s killer also shot at people who were of Middle Eastern descent. They all survived. The murderer is currently serving out a life sentence in Buckeye, Arizona.
Originally aired September 14, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Top Photo: Rana Sodhi (L) and Harjit Sodhi holding a photograph of their late brother, Balbir Singh Sodhi, in Mesa, Arizona. Photo by Mia Warren for StoryCorps.
NYC Sanitation Workers on Lessons Learned While Picking Up Garbage
Sanitation workers Angelo Bruno (above left) and Eddie Nieves (above right) worked together for nearly 10 years on the same garbage route in Manhattan’s West Village and became fixtures in the community.
After 31 years on the job, Angelo retired in 2010. That same year, he came to StoryCorps with Eddie to share the unexpected lessons he learned along the way and what he still misses about the job. Eddie starts their conversation.
In 2016, Eddie joined Angelo in retirement from sanitation work, but occasionally walks their route to keep in touch with old friends.
Click here to watch “Clean Streets,” the StoryCorps animated short of Angelo and Eddie’s story.
Top Photo: Angelo Bruno and Eddie Nieves at their StoryCorps interview in 2010.
Originally aired September 3, 2010, on NPR’s Morning Edition. A rebroadcast aired on August 31, 2018 on the same program.