A Teenage Romance, Rekindled After Three Decades
It was the spring of 1981 in Louisiana. Liz Barnez was 16 and Lori Daigle was 17. They met while playing on competing high school sports teams. When they joined the all-star softball team that summer, their friendship blossomed into something more.
At StoryCorps in Fort Collins, Colorado, Liz and Lori sat down to reflect on their teenage romance, and how they reunited nearly 30 years later.
They married in 2015 after the Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage. That was more than 30 years after their first kiss.
Top photo: Lori Daigle and Liz Barnez at StoryCorps in Fort Collins, Colorado. Photo by Jacqueline Van Meter for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Liz Barnez and Lori Daigle in the summer of 1981. Photo courtesy of Lori Daigle.
Bottom photo: Robert Herman, Lori Daigle, Liz Barnez, and Haley Daigle, from left to right, at Liz Barnez and Lori Daigle’s wedding in 2015. Photo by Kris Harmon and courtesy of Lori Daigle.
Originally aired March 8, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Strangers Talk in Hopes of Bridging Their Political Divides
Here at StoryCorps, we’re used to hearing conversations between two people who know and love one another.
In this story, we eavesdrop on a conversation that’s a little bit different. It takes place between two strangers, and was recorded as part of One Small Step, our new initiative that brings people together from opposite sides of the political divide.
In summer of 2018, Tiffany Briseño and Israel Baryeshua met for the first time in Denver to have this discussion.
Photo: Tiffany Briseño and Israel Baryeshua pose at their One Small Step interview in Denver, Colorado on July 18, 2018. By Camila Kerwin for StoryCorps.
Originally aired November 9, 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.
Memories of a Sister and Daughter Murdered in a Transgender Hate Crime
On July 17, 2008, Angie Zapata — a transgender woman — was killed in northern Colorado. Angie was murdered by a man she was dating.
Angie’s killer was sentenced to life in prison plus 60 years. This was one of the first U.S. cases ever to result in a conviction of a hate crime against a transgender person.
Ten years after Angie’s death, her mother, Maria Zapata, and Angie’s brother, Gonzalo Zapata, sat down to remember her at StoryCorps.
Top photo: Maria Zapata and Gonzalo Zapata at their StoryCorps interview in Brighton, CO. Credit: Liyna Anwar for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Angie Zapata. Courtesy Maria Zapata.
Thompson Williams and Kiamichi-tet Williams
Thompson Williams and his son Kiamichi-tet came to StoryCorps in 2014 to talk about Thompson’s father — and Kiamichi-tet’s grandfather — Melford Williams, a tribal leader with the Caddo Nation in Oklahoma and a World War II veteran.
During that conversation, they also remembered a family Christmas in 2001.
They were living in Edmond, Oklahoma at the time. Kiamichi-tet was 11 years old and his sister, AuNane, was 14. Thompson was a teacher’s assistant for students with special needs — work he loved but that didn’t pay well. His wife was an artist, selling paintings and handmade Christmas ornaments.
As the holidays approached, Thompson realized they wouldn’t have money for gifts, and he was faced with a difficult decision. But, as he remembers here, it was his children who would help him make the right choice.
Originally aired December 22, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Hear more on episode 514 of the StoryCorps podcast, His First and Greatest Teacher.
Tom Sullivan and Terry Sullivan
On July 20, 2012, a gunman shot and killed 12 people in a packed movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. One of the victims was Alex Sullivan. He was celebrating his birthday at the movies that night — something he had done since he was a small child. Alex and a group of friends planned to see a midnight showing of the latest Batman film, just as he turned 27.
Five years later, his parents, Tom and Terry Sullivan, sat down at StoryCorps to remember him.
After their son was killed, Tom and Terry Sullivan turned to a close network of friends and family for support. Tom’s longtime friend, Dan Van Minnen, was one of those people.
Originally aired July 14, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Top photo: Tom and Terry Sullivan.
Middle photo: Terry Sullivan holds a photo of her son, Alex.
Bottom photo: Tom and his friend Dan Van Minnen.
Calvin Burns and Stepheni Bellamy
Calvin Burns has trouble getting his 15-year-old daughter, Stepheni Bellamy, to talk, which is something parents of teenagers everywhere can understand.
Calvin knew that Stepheni was having a hard time adjusting to being one of the only Black students in her school. Having grown up in a similar situation, Calvin could relate to that, but he had never taken the time to talk to his daughter about it.
He thought that bringing Stepheni to StoryCorps and sharing stories from his teenage years might help Stepheni open up.
Please note that this conversation contains a racial slur.
Originally aired April 21, 2017 on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Photo courtesy of the Burns family
Megiddëh Goldston, Raphael Hameed and Heidi Hameed
In July 2014, Raphael Hameed was walking with his 5-year-old son, Ish, when they were hit by a speeding car. Raphael lost his leg. Ish, his only son, was killed.
While the driver is awaiting trial for vehicular homicide, her sister, Megiddëh Goldston (above left), is trying to do right by the Hameed family.
They connected after the accident. Now she visits Raphael and his wife, Heidi (above right), to help with their day-to day-life. They sat down for StoryCorps in Colorado Springs.
Originally aired January 2, 2015, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Terri Van Keuren, Rick Shoup and Pamela Farrell
Every Christmas Eve, people worldwide log on to the official Santa Tracker to follow the man himself (along with his eight reindeer and Rudolph), as they make their way across the globe delivering presents to boys and girls.
It all started in 1955 with a misprint in a Colorado Springs newspaper and a call to Air Force Colonel Harry Shoup’s secret hotline at the Continental Air Defense Command, now known as NORAD.
Here’s the story of how it all began, as told by Colonel Shoup’s three children, Terri Van Keuren (top left), Richard Shoup, and Pamela Farrell (top right).
Originally aired December 19, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Listen to Terri, Richard and Pamela’s story on the StoryCorps Podcast.
Alex Landau and Patsy Hathaway
WARNING: The audio of this story contains graphic descriptions of violence and this web post contains a graphic photograph.
In 2009, Alex Landau was a student at Community College of Denver. After a traffic stop one night, he was severely beaten by Denver Police officers.
Alex is African American. He was adopted by a white couple and he grew up in largely white, middle-class suburbs of Denver.
Alex and his mother, Patsy Hathaway, came to StoryCorps to talk about how Alex’s race has influenced his life and what happened that night when police pulled him over.
In 2011, Alex was awarded a $795,000 settlement from the City of Denver.
Two of the officers involved have since been fired from the Denver Police Department for other incidents.
Click here to watch “Traffic Stop,” Alex’s story told as a StoryCorps animated short.
Originally aired August 15, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.