Growing Up Archives - Page 3 of 40 - StoryCorps

“You Are Seriously Fearless”: A Niece Thanks Her Favorite Aunt For Her Wisdom and Friendship

Menaja Obinali was born in 1948 and grew up in Franklin, a small Louisiana town. She was one of eleven children, and loved dancing, reading and making art as a teenager. One day an unexpected event shifted the course of Menaja’s life.

Undaunted, Menaja went on to get a Ph.D. in clinical psychology, and later moved to Dallas to get a master’s degree in theology. That’s when she moved in with her sister Connie and 5-year-old niece, Jarie.

Jarie, who still lives in Dallas, interviewed Menaja for StoryCorps when the Mobile Tour passed through in 2014.

Photo: Jarie Bradley and Menaja Obinali at their first StoryCorps interview in Dallas, Texas on December 13, 2014. By Callie Thuma for StoryCorps.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired June 23, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

‘Your Heart is On Protein Powder:’ Reflections On Love and Family

 

Mason Best seems to have a lot on his mind. At 12 years old, he already has a lot of thoughts on life and love. Mason came to StoryCorps at his local Boys Club in Queens, NY. 

Roseann Smith and Mason Best on New Year’s Day 2023. Courtesy of Roseann Smith.

He decided to invite his mom, Roseann Smith, to sit down for a conversation. The duo got right to the serious stuff.

 

Top Photo: Mason Best and Roseann Smith at their StoryCorps interview in Queens, New York on March 25, 2023. By Julia Kirschenbaum for StoryCorps.

This recording was made possible by a partnership with The Boys’ Club of New York.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, the National Endowment for the Arts, and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.

Originally aired April 28, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

A Mile in Her Shoes: How A Polio Survivor Forged Her Own Path

Shirley Duhart and her three younger brothers were raised by a single mom in Vine City, Georgia: a segregated, poverty-stricken area at the time. She contracted polio when she was 2 years old, just five years before the vaccine was released. Undaunted, she went on to have a successful career in the tech industry, and to mentor youth on how to navigate college and the corporate world.

Shirley Duhart on the Emory University campus in Atlanta, Georgia in the 1990s.

And Shirley has always defined herself in her own terms, evident in the way she dresses. While her doctors recommended she wear flat, well-balanced shoes, Shirley has been wearing pumps since she was thirteen. She came to StoryCorps with her longtime friend and doctor, Dale Strasser, to talk about why her shoes mean so much to her.

Shirley Duhart and Dale Strasser at their StoryCorps in Atlanta, Georgia on January 17, 2023.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Originally aired April 21, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Mother and Daughter Reflect On the Bill of Rights That Helped Shaped Their Bond

Growing up in a small rural town, Margaret Powell developed a toughness and learned how to stand up for herself. Her daughter, Folashade Alao, remembers admiring her boldness as a child, and she saw how hard her mother worked as a single mother to give her as many opportunities as possible.

Folashade never wanted to disappoint her mother, but this didn’t mean she never asserted her own views. In elementary school, Folashade wrote and presented her own Bill of Rights with amendments stating what she thought was fair and unfair. 

Margaret Powell and Folashade Alao at Sea World around the time she drafted her Bill of Rights.

“What came out of it was you telling me you’re not my friend, you’re my mama and that we each have an important role in supporting our household,” Folashade remembers.

Folashade and Margaret came to StoryCorps to reflect on how they shaped their relationship and what it takes to raise a child.

Top Photo: Margaret Powell and Folashade Alao at their StoryCorps interview in Decatur, GA  on January 31, 2023. By Kevin Alarcon for StoryCorps.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired April 14, 2023 on NPR’s Morning Edition.

After An Accident, Father And Daughter Reflect On What It Takes To Live Again

In 1990, Les Harris was just beginning his career in construction. A father of two young children, he looked forward to working to buy a house and take care of his family. Everything changed on October 5th of that year when a work site accident left him paralyzed from the waist down. 

Les Harris with his son Troy and daughter Angie Presley in Republic, MO in 1987. Courtesy of Les Harris.

As Les learned to live without the use of his legs, he also learned the importance of having a never quit attitude. For the past 32 years, Angie and Les have even celebrated October 5th as his “life day.” 

“Everybody that meets you walks away feeling better, smiling, laughing. You have a positive perspective. And I know that I got that from you. I see the difference you’ve made in people’s lives,” Angie told her father. They came to StoryCorps to reflect on how that perspective has carried them both through over the decades since the accident. 

Top Photo: Les Harris and Angie Presly at their StoryCorps interview in Springfield, MO on April 22, 2022. By Sarah Padgett for StoryCorps.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired March 31, 2023 on NPR’s Morning Edition.

The Facebook Post That Led To A Kidney Donation: “You messaged me. And you didn’t know me”

It was 2014, when Kim Pratt was suddenly rushed to the ER. She remembers feeling too weak to stand and was soon diagnosed with septic phenomena. Doctor’s told Kim’s family it was unlikely she would live another 48 hours, and they placed her in a medically induced coma.

But Kim survived and woke up two weeks later.

“The room was full of medical people, and they were discussing how Mrs. Pratt had her dialysis treatment today for five hours. And I was saying to myself, ‘What is dialysis and who are these people?’” she remembers.

That was the moment when Kim first learned her kidneys were failing, and she would need to spend the next five years on dialysis. A long and arduous process, she received three treatments per week, leaving little time for anything else. “When I became sick, everything stopped. I was pretty much a full time dialysis patient,” she said.

All the while she held out hope that she’d find a willing donor.

Middle Photo: The bumper sticker and flier Kim created in 2018 to help her find a potential kidney donor. Courtesy of Kim Pratt.

“It’s an interesting thing when you find yourself needing an organ,” said Kim. “It’s not something you can go rent or buy. You have to rely on the unconditional kindness of another human being.”

Kim came to StoryCorps with her friend, CJ Johnston, to remember what happened next.

Top Photo: Kim Pratt and CJ Johnston at their StoryCorps interview in West Warwick, RI on April 8, 2022. By Eleanor Vassili for StoryCorps.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired March 24th, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition. 

Little Bit of Me—A Father And Son Look Back On A Life Filled With Music

Seventy-year-old Jim Von Stein was a Navy kid, and grew up all over the country before his family landed in Chattanooga, Tennessee. 

He became a draftsman by trade before retiring as an HVAC service technician, where he would crawl under houses installing heating and air conditioning units—hard work that often involved handling hazardous materials. 

But if you were looking around his trailer in rural Tennessee, you’d see mountains of songbooks and homemade recordings, and scraps of paper and napkins scribbled with lyrics. These are songs he’s been writing since he was nine years old, that almost nobody has ever heard.


Jason and Jim Von Stein in Birmingham, Alabama, in August of 2018. Courtesy of the Von Stein family.

Jim came to StoryCorps with his son, Jason, to look back on a life of music and the ultimate gesture of love.


Jim and Jason Von Stein on  September 18th, 1982, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Courtesy of the Von Stein family.
Top Photo: Jim and Jason Von Stein at their StoryCorps interview in Chattanooga, TN on April 1st, 2019. By Eleanor Vassili for StoryCorps

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Originally aired March 10th, 2023 on NPR’s Morning Edition.

 

 

“I Thought You Knew:” A Love Story Like No Other

In the mid-90s, Chhaya Chhoum shared some high school classes with Eddie Rivera. Eddie was more interested in sports than school, but the two connected.

Eddie Rivera and Chhaya Chhoum early in their relationship after a 1996 snow storm in New York City. Courtesy of Chhaya Chhoum.

Chhaya grew up the daughter of Cambodian refugees in the Bronx, and Eddie came from a Puerto Rican family in Manhattan. Starting out as just a friend, Eddie won over Chhaya – and her extended family. Chhaya and Eddie came to StoryCorps to reminisce about how they met and some of the unexpected ways their cultural differences shaped their relationship. .  

Top Photo: Chhaya Chhoum and Eddie Rivera at their StoryCorps interview in the Bronx, NY on January 11, 2014. By Jill Glaser for StoryCorps.

This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Originally aired March 3, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

With your support, StoryCorps is able to record more stories that help lift up underrepresented voices, bridge political and social divides, and preserve personal histories for the future.

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‘Honey, You Got A Terrific Nose;’ Two Siblings Reflect On Their Father’s Legacy

David Hedison grew up in Providence, Rhode Island, as the son of Armenian immigrants. In 2005 he recorded a conversation with his youngest daughter, Serena, at the flagship StoryCorps booth at Grand Central Terminal.  There, he spoke candidly for the first time about how he got cosmetic surgery — a nose job — as a young man in order to achieve his dream of becoming an actor.  He went on to have a prolific career as a television, film, and stage actor. Most notably, he starred in the American sci-fi television series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea from the 1960s and was cast in two James Bond movies (Live and Let Die, 1973 and License to Kill, 1989).
David Hedison in London, 2019. Courtesy of Alex Hedison.
He died in 2019 at the age of 92. Recently his daughters, Serena and Alex, came back to StoryCorps to reflect on the secret he shared, and the legacy he left behind.
Alex Hedison and Serena Hedison at their StoryCorps interview in Los Angeles on January 24, 2023. By Garden of Sound studio for StoryCorps.
 
Top Photo: Alex, David and Serena Hedison in Malibu, CA, circa 1975. Courtesy of Alex Hedison.
This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Originally aired Feb. 10, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition. 

With your support, StoryCorps is able to record more stories that help lift up underrepresented voices, bridge political and social divides, and preserve personal histories for the future.

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On The Day Their Concentration Camp Was Liberated, Two Former Prisoners Found Love

In 1945, the Allied forces arrived at the Theresienstadt concentration camp and liberated thousands of prisoners – many of whom were Jewish. The front gates swung open and anyone who was able wandered into the nearby town in search of food and clothing. But one woman, Mina Bergman, was sick with typhus, barefoot, and unable to walk. Mina’s sister set off, promising to bring back whatever she could find. She returned with Yehuda Czarnoczapka, who introduced himself and gave Mina a few potatoes and a pair of shoes he’d found. “I think the efforts he went through won her over,” said Susan Moinester.

Passports of Mina Czarnoczapka and Yehuda Czarnoczapka issued in a displaced persons camp in Linz, Austria, after their release. Photos courtesy of Susan Moinester.

Despite the trauma, her parents endured, and Susan remembers growing up in a home filled with love. Her mother had a particular thirst for life that remained unaffected by the war. She loved to attend parties, see Broadway performances, and encouraged her daughters to date and have fun. “That was the harshest demand she placed on me,” remembers Moinester.

Mina Czarnoczapka and Yehuda Czarnoczapka in a displaced persons camp in Linz, Austria in 1945. Photo courtesy of Susan Moinester.

Like many Holocaust survivors, Yehuda and Mina have passed away, but each year Susan and family honor their story of their liberation and enduring romance. Top photo: Margot and Susan Moinester in Memphis, Tennessee in 2022. Photo courtesy of Susan Moinester. This broadcast is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Originally aired January 27, 2023, on NPR’s Morning Edition. 

With your support, StoryCorps is able to record more stories that help lift up underrepresented voices, bridge political and social divides, and preserve personal histories for the future.

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