Olivia J. Hooker, Pioneer and First Black Woman in the Coast Guard
In November 1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed into law a bill that established the United States Coast Guard Women’s Reserve. Known as SPARS, this new law allowed women to serve in the Coast Guard Reserve for the duration of World War II plus six months. Two years later, in October 1944, the ban on Black women becoming SPARS was lifted and in February 1945, Olivia Hooker joined four other women as the first class of Black SPARS.
An Oklahoma native, Olivia didn’t know anything about boats at the time she enlisted in the Coast Guard Reserve. Joining her fellow SPARS at boot camp in Manhattan Beach, New York, a month after enlisting, she went on to spend her service time in Boston where she worked at a Coast Guard separation center. When the war ended, the SPARS program was disbanded and Olivia returned to civilian life having earned the rank of Petty Officer 2nd Class, as well as a Good Conduct Award.
Following her military service, Olivia earned her master’s degree in psychology and in 1961 she received her PhD. When President Barack Obama spoke at the United States Coast Guard Academy commencement ceremony in 2015, Dr. Hooker, 100 years old at the time, was sitting in the front row. As the cadets listened, President Obama called her “an inspiration” for the remarkable life she had led, and shared with the graduates her belief that, “It’s not about you, or me. It’s about what we can give to this world.”
In September 2018, At 103 years old, Dr. Hooker sat down for a StoryCorps interview with her goddaughter Janis Porter, to talk about what it was like to be a groundbreaking part of military history, and to share what her time in the service has meant to her. She passed away two months after this interview.
On Veterans Day 2018, StoryCorps collaborated with Google and YouTube on an animated Doodle featuring a voice representing each branch of the military, including Olivia’s. Explore it here.
Top photo: Dr. Olivia J. Hooker (right) and her goddaughter, Janis Porter. Photo by Afi Yellow-Duke for StoryCorps.
Middle Photo: From the original caption for the extra photo: Olivia Hooker (in front) and fellow SPAR Aileen Anita Cooks, pause on the ladder of the dry-land ship ‘U.S.S. Neversail’ during their ‘boot’ training at the U.S. Coast Guard Training Station, Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn, NY, 1945.
Originally aired February 28, 2020 on NPR’s Morning Edition.
A Son Remembers his Father, a Lucha Libre Wrestler
John Torres Sr. grew up in the Bronx and fell in love with Lucha Libre, the freestyle wrestling popular in Mexico.
He found fellow enthusiasts at the Bronx Wrestling Federation, where a motley crew of men — plumbers, lawyers and police officers — moonlit as Lucha Libre showmen.
John joined their ranks and quickly became a star in the city. But his biggest fan was his son: John Torres Jr.
John Torres Jr. came to StoryCorps with his dad’s best friend and fellow wrestler, Abraham Guzman, to remember John Sr., who died in 2011.
Top photo: Abraham Guzman (L) putting John Torres Jr. in a friendly chokehold at the StoryCorps booth in New York City. Photo by Liyna Anwar.
Bottom photo: John Torres Sr., who wrestled as The Falcon, is pictured at a wrestling match in 2010. Courtesy of John Torres Jr.
Originally aired October 05, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
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.
A Mother on Her Fight Against Depression and Her Suicide Attempt
People often come to StoryCorps to record difficult conversations that they’ve never been able to have before. That’s how Linda Kwong and her daughter Emily came to our recording booth to talk about a tough time they were going through as a family.
In 2012, Emily Kwong was a college senior studying in New York. Just before finals, she received a disturbing phone call from her father. Her mother, Linda, who had been suffering from depression, had attempted suicide.
At StoryCorps, Linda and Emily talk for the first time about what happened that day.
If you or anyone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 for help.
Top Photo: Emily Kwong (left) and her mother, Linda, at their StoryCorps interview in 2013.
Originally aired August 24, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
From Fuks to Finn: Reflections on Some Hard Teenage Years
Allan Fuks is the son of Ukrainian immigrants. He grew up all over the place: in New York City and Northern California, before finally landing in suburban New Jersey. But no matter where he went, the taunting and bullying at school followed.
You see, Allan’s name is spelled a lot like the mother of all curse words.
He recently sat down with his middle school classmate, Spencer Katzman, to look back on their preteen years.
Top photo: Spencer Katzman and Allan Fuks at their StoryCorps interview in New York City. By Mia Warren for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Allan Fuks in Fair Lawn, New Jersey at around age 13. Courtesy of Allan Fuks.
Originally aired June 8th, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Reflections on Growing up the Son of a NYC Taxi Driver
Mohammad Ashraf Faridi immigrated from Pakistan to the United States in the 1980s. He settled in New York City, and his family joined him almost a decade later. By then, Mohammad was earning a living driving a cab.
At StoryCorps, his oldest son, Muhammad, talked about growing up as the son of a taxi driver.
Top photo: Mohammad Ashraf Faridi with his son, Muhammad Faridi, at their StoryCorps interview in New York City.
Bottom photo: A young Muhammad Faridi (right) with his sister and little brother while still in Pakistan. Courtesy of the Faridi family.
Originally aired March 16, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Doctors on Their Groundbreaking Multigenerational Passion for Medicine
Dr. Jenna Lester comes from a family of African American women who have dedicated their lives to medicine. Her grandmother, Ruby Brangman, became a nurse practitioner during the 1970s. At that time, Ruby was one of the first black women in her profession in New York state.
A generation later, Jenna’s mother, Sharon Brangman, became a doctor. Sharon says it was her own mother’s determination that set her on that path.
At StoryCorps in New York City, Jenna and Sharon sat down to reflect on their family’s legacy.
Top photo: Sharon Brangman and Jenna Lester at their StoryCorps interview in New York City.
Bottom photo: Sharon Brangman, Ruby Brangman, and Jenna Lester in 1988, when Jenna was three months old. Courtesy of the Brangman family.
Originally aired January 26, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Ronald Clark and Jamilah Clark
During the 1940s, custodians who worked for the New York Public Library often lived inside the buildings they tended. In exchange for cleaning and keeping the building secure at night, the library provided an apartment for the custodians and their families.
Ronald Clark’s father, Raymond, was one of those custodians. For three decades he lived with his family on the top floor of the Washington Heights branch on St. Nicholas Avenue in upper Manhattan. Three generations of the Clark family resided in that library until Ronald’s father retired in the late 1970s.
After college, Ronald got a position as a professor teaching history at Cape Cod Community College.
At StoryCorps, Ronald told his daughter, Jamilah Clark, how living inside the library shaped the man he would become.
Originally aired October 13, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition and re-broadcast on February 22, 2019.
Bottom photo: Ronald Clark, his parents, and his daughter Jamilah. Credit: Clark family, courtesy of NYPL.
Armeen Hamdani and Talat Hamdani
On September 11, 2001, Salman Hamdani was a 23-year-old emergency medical technician, NYPD cadet, and aspiring medical student who rushed to the World Trade Center that morning to help.
Like thousands of others, Salman never came home that night. And as his family searched for him in the weeks that followed, he was wrongfully linked as an accomplice in the attacks.
His mother, Talat Hamdani, came to StoryCorps with her niece, Armeen Hamdani, to remember the days after Salman went missing.
In April 2002, a month after his remains were found, Salman was finally given a hero’s burial — with his casket draped in an American flag. Hundreds of people attended his funeral, including then-New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the city’s police commissioner.
Today, there are scholarships in Salman’s name at his alma mater, Queens College, and at Rockefeller University. The street on which he lived in Bayside, Queens, was renamed in his honor.
Originally aired September 8, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Photos of Salman courtesy of Talat Hamdani.
Five Mualimm-ak and Omar Mualimmak
StoryCorps gives people the chance to sit down together and have a conversation they’ve never had before. Five Mualimm-ak did just that with his son, Omar, who was five years old when his father was first incarcerated.
By the time Five Mualimm-ak was finished serving his sentence for weapons charges, he had been in prison for nearly a dozen years, many of those spent in solitary confinement. When he was released in 2012, Omar was a senior in high school. The two have had difficulty connecting since then. They came to StoryCorps together to talk about their relationship for the first time.
Originally aired July 7, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition.