Family Archives - Page 38 of 47 - StoryCorps

Aja David, Kai Leigh Harriott and Tonya David

Fourteen-year-old Kai Leigh Harriott is paralyzed from the chest down, the result of a stray bullet that hit her when she was three.

She was sitting outside on her porch in Dorchester, Massachusetts, with her older sister, Aja David, who was babysitting at the time.

The family is still dealing with the aftermath of the shooting a decade later.

Two years after Kai was shot, the family appeared at the shooter’s court hearing. In the below audio, Kai (center), Aja (left), and their mother, Tonya David (right), remember what was said on the stand.

Originally aired July 11, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Dekalb Walcott Jr. and Dekalb Walcott III

Dekalb Walcott Jr. spent more than 30 years as a firefighter for the Chicago Fire Department.

He’s now retired, but his son, Dekalb Walcott III, is following in his dad’s line of work. At StoryCorps, Dekalb III talks about how becoming a firefighter meant fulfilling a lifelong dream.

Dekalb Walcott III also wrote and recorded a song, “It’s a Callin’,” about his career. Listen to it here:

Originally aired July 4, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Patrick Haggerty and Robin Bolland

Patrick Haggerty grew up the son of a dairy farmer in rural Washington during the 1950s.

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As a teenager, Patrick (above) began to understand he was gay—something he thought he was hiding well.

But, as he told his daughter Robin (right), someone was onto him. One day, when he went to perform at a school assembly, his father, Charles Edward Haggerty, decided to have a serious talk with him.

Patrick later formed a band, Lavender Country, whose self-titled 1973 album is the first-known gay-themed album in country music history.

Click here to watch 2016 Sundance Film Festival selection “The Saint of Dry Creek”—Patrick’s story told as a StoryCorps animated short.

Originally aired June 27, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Bottom photo: Patrick Haggery in a 4-H drag show in 1959 courtesy of Paradise of Bachelors.

Cheri Lindsay and Phillip Lindsay

Cheri Lindsay and her father, Phillip, both have vitiligo, a rare skin condition that runs in their family.

People with vitiligo gradually lose pigment in their skin, often in patches that appear randomly and can grow over time.

Cheri’s condition has spread so dramatically over the past four years that most of her face and body now appear white.

At StoryCorps, Cheri remembered when her vitiligo first started to spread.

Originally aired June 20, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition. 

Thompson Williams and Kiamichi-tet Williams

williamsth2Thompson Williams (above left) grew up in Oklahoma as one of eight children. His father, Melford Williams (pictured at left with Thompson), was a tribal leader of the Caddo Nation and a World War II veteran who had a big impact on Thompson’s life.

At StoryCorps, Thompson’s son, Kiamichi-tet (above right), sat down with his dad to learn more about his grandfather.

Thompson also told his son about his father’s death from a heart attack in 1978.

Originally aired June 6, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Photo courtesy of Thompson Williams.

Frank Tempone and Jack Tempone

In 2009, Frank Tempone (left) was severely depressed. As a result of what he calls a mid-life crisis, Frank left his wife and three kids to go live on his own.

After two years apart, Frank reunited with his family. He brought his oldest son, Jack (right), to StoryCorps to apologize.

Originally aired May 2, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Ernest Greene and Collin Smith

Twenty-three-year-old Collin Smith (right) grew up in Asheboro, North Carolina. When he was a sophomore in high school, he was in a car accident that left him quadriplegic.

Ernest Greene (left), who is 72, attended the same church as Collin’s family, and though he’d never met Collin, he decided he wanted to help.

He offered to do whatever Collin needed, from taking him to school to helping him shave. And when Collin began college, Ernest went too.

They came to StoryCorps to remember that time.

Originally aired April 11, 2014, on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday

Elisa Seeger and Bobby Seeger Jr.

In December of 2013, New York became the first state to require newborn screening for a deadly genetic disorder called adrenoleukodystrophy, or ALD.

The disorder rapidly attacks the nervous system, mainly in young boys, and can be fatal within a year. If ALD is detected in newborns, however, a bone marrow transplant increases their chances of survival.

New York’s legislation, known as “Aidan’s Law,” is named for Aidan Jack Seeger who died from ALD in 2012 at the age of 7.

Aidan’s parents, Elisa and Bobby Seeger (pictured above), who were instrumental in getting this legislation passed, remembered their son.

Originally aired April 14, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition

HunterNPRWhen newborn screening under “Aidan’s Law” began, Nick and Lindsay Hunter’s son, Matthew, was one of the first to test positive for ALD.

Listen as Elisa speaks with the Hunters (pictured at left with Elisa who is holding Matthew) about what the passage of the law has meant to their family:

 

Dean Smith, Debby Smith, and Finis Smith

Smith-family-636x487In 1957, Dean Smith left Texas and headed for Hollywood.

For the next 40 years, he spent his time working as a stuntman in films, including Oscar-winning Westerns like True Grit, How the West Was Won and The Alamo. (Dean is pictured above on the set of The Alamo with legendary movie star John Wayne).

Today he’s retired and lives with his wife, Debby (center), and son Finis (left) in Breckenridge, Texas.

The three of them came to StoryCorps so that he could share memories from his storied career.

Originally aired February 28, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Photos courtesy of the Wayne Family.

Barbara Amaya and Bianca Belteton

When she was 12, Barbara Amaya ran away from an abusive home. She ended up on the streets of Washington D.C. where she was picked up by sex traffickers and forced into prostitution.

At StoryCorps, Barbara spoke with her daughter, Bianca Belteton, about the years that followed.

Originally aired February 7, 2014, on NPR’s Morning Edition.