Historias Archives - Page 9 of 10 - StoryCorps

José Cruz and Grace Cruz

José Cruz tells his daughter about staying behind in the Dominican Republic at 6 years old after his mother moved to New York City hoping to start a better life for them. He later joined her when he was in the 7th grade.

Originally aired on September 25, 2009, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Griselda Lemus and Papsy Lemus

Nine-year-old Griselda Lemus asks her mother, Sgt. Papsy Lemus, about the 13 months she spent at war serving in Baghdad, Iraq, and the difficulty of leaving her family in the United States.

Originally aired on May 29, 2009, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

John Hope Franklin and John W. Franklin

John Hope Franklin became a Boy Scout in the 1920s as scouting was first coming to children in the black community. One of his troop requirements was to do a good deed each day. At StoryCorps he tells his son John W. about the racism he endured at the hands of a blind white woman he had just helped across a street.

Originally aired March 27, 2009, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Roger Villanueva and Lourdes Villanueva

Lourdes Villanueva talks to her son Roger about growing up in a family of migrant workers, and the dedication and hard work she put in to get her GED—and her desire to graduate before her own children got their diplomas.

Originally aired February 27, 2009, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Hector Vega and his wife Leopoldina

Hector Vega and his wife, Leopoldina, remember the day Hector returned home from war.

Ileana Smith and Gustavo Mestas

Gustavo Mestas talk with his daughter Ileana Smith about the decision he made to escape from Cuba with his family in 1963. A doctor in Cuba, Gustavo arrived in Florida not knowing if he would be able to practice medicine in the United States, but after working jobs picking tomatoes and cleaning motels while attending medical school in the evenings, he was eventually able to begin a practice.

Originally aired August 15, 2008, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Ray Martinez

Ray Martinez remembers growing up in an orphanage until he was adopted at 5 years old. In the orphanage nothing belonged to him—not a toy nor a coat—but his new parents gave him a blue stocking cap and a little toy stuffed dog and after they passed away he discovered they always held on to those first things he ever owned.

Originally aired June 20, 2008, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Ramón “Chunky” Sanchez

Ramón  “Chunky” Sanchez was raised in a small farming community in southern California in the 1950s. As was common practice at that time, teachers at his local elementary school Anglicized the Mexican American students’ names.

Ramón came to StoryCorps to remember a classmate who proved to be the exception to the rule.

Click here to watch “Facundo the Great,” the StoryCorps animation of Ramón’s story.

Originally aired June 6, 2008, on NPR’s Morning Edition. 

Julio Diaz

Julio Diaz is a social worker from the Bronx.

Every night, he ends his hour-long subway commute to the Bronx one stop early just so he can eat at his favorite diner.

But one night, as Julio stepped off the train and onto a nearly empty platform, his evening took an unexpected turn when he was robbed by a teenage boy.

At StoryCorps, Julio recalls what happened next.

Originally aired March 28, 2008, on NPR’s Latino USA.

Miriam Cruz-Colon and Oscar Colon

Miriam Cruz-Colon and her husband Oscar Colon remember meeting as acting students in 1959.