Angels & Mentors Archives - Page 4 of 20 - StoryCorps

Remembering a Gay Icon in Mother Bryant

Alexei Romanoff is a Ukrainian immigrant who grew up as an only child in New York City. As a kid in the 1950s, Alexei knew he was gay — but it wasn’t something he spoke about openly.

Now 82 years old, Alexei came to StoryCorps with his husband, David Farah, to remember the person who taught him to be proud of who he is.

We’re sharing this story as part of Stonewall OutLoud, our national effort to look back on life before the Stonewall riots in 1969, and to ask people to use the StoryCorps App to help preserve the stories of LGBTQ elders before they’re lost to history.

Photo: David Farah (L) and Alexei Romanoff (R) at their StoryCorps interview in Los Angeles, California in June 2015. By Jill Glaser for StoryCorps.

Originally aired June 7th, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Walking in a Mother’s Legacy

Sada Jackson lost her mother, Ileana Watson, to breast cancer in 2016. Just after saying goodbye to her own mother, Sada became a mother herself.

Years later, Sada was still longing for all the moments they’d never get to share — and thinking about all the questions she never got to ask. So she sat down at StoryCorps in Kansas City, Missouri with her mom’s best friend, Angela Morehead-Mugita, to get to know her mom a little better.

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Top photo: Sada Jackson (right) at StoryCorps in Kansas City, MO in 2018 with her late-mother’s best friend, Angela Morehead-Mugita. By Savannah Winchester for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Sada Jackson with her mother, Ilena Watson, in October 2014. Courtesy of Sada Jackson.
Bottom photo: Sada Jackson with her son, Kendrix, in November 2018. By Bria Siglar. 

Originally aired May 10, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

A Visit to the ER Takes an Unexpected Turn

When Ellen Hughes’ son Walker tried a new medication, it was supposed to help him calm down. It wound up doing the opposite.

Thirty-three year old Walker became agitated and violent. Walker has autism and struggled to communicate what was going on. But his mom Ellen knew they had to get to a hospital.

When they arrived at Loyola University Medical Center near Chicago, Walker bit Ellen. That’s when they encountered Public Safety Sergeant Keith Miller. At StoryCorps, Ellen told Keith how he helped her son — and herself — get the care they needed that day.

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Top photo: Keith Miller and Ellen Hughes at the Chicago StoryBooth in February 2019. Photo by Rocio Santos for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Walker Hughes with his mom Ellen Hughes. Courtesy of Ellen Hughes.

Originally aired April 12, 2019, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

How a Jewish Man from Georgia Became Santa Claus

There are many ways to celebrate the holidays. While some light the Hannukah candles, some decorate Christmas trees. And for some, well, they do a little bit of both.

This is a story about an out-of-the-ordinary Santa. His real name is Rick Rosenthal. He also happens to be Jewish (Modern Orthodox, to be precise).

Santa Rick came to StoryCorps with an old friend and mentee, Adam Roseman, to talk about how he found his calling.

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In addition to his day-to-day work as Santa, Rick started and now runs one of the largest Santa schools in the country.

Top photo: Adam Roseman and Rick Rosenthal pose after their StoryCorps interview in Atlanta, GA in September 2018. By Brenda Ford for StoryCorps.
Bottom photo: Rick Rosenthal poses in full Santa regalia. Courtesy Rick Rosenthal.

Originally aired December 7, 2018, 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.

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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.

A Father-Daughter Beatboxing Duo on Making Music

Ed Cage and Nicole Paris are a father-daughter beatboxing duo.

Back during the 1980s, Ed immersed himself in the St. Louis hip hop scene and fell in love with beatboxing. Fast-forward a couple decades and that love is now firmly planted in 26-year-old Nicole as well.

At StoryCorps, they talk about how it all began.

Top photo: Ed Cage and Nicole Paris at StoryCorps. Today, the beatboxing duo travels the world performing on stage together.

Originally aired July 13, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Religious School Rape and Abuse Survivors Confront The Past

When the New Bethany Home for Girls in Arcadia, Louisiana opened in 1971, the religious reform school was known as a safe haven for “wayward girls.”

Over the next three decades, law enforcement officials repeatedly investigated claims of physical and psychological child abuse at the school. Girls routinely ran away, and state officials raided the compound twice and removed children from the home.

Joanna Wright was 16 years old when she first arrived. She had been sexually abused at home and hoped the school would be a refuge. But when she got there, she was raped by the man in charge of the school.

For years, Joanna thought she was the only one. It wasn’t until years later that she connected with other former students, including Tara Cummings, who survived physical and psychological abuse while at New Bethany.

At StoryCorps, they shared difficult memories from their childhoods. Joanna begins their conversation.

With barbed wire encircling the entire compound, the New Bethany Home for Girls as is appeared in December of 1988. (Nola.com | The Times-Picayune archive photo by Ellis Lucia)

In 2014, a group of women — including Joanna and Tara — came forward to say they were raped and abused at the school.

After a year-long investigation, a grand jury declined to indict the founder of the school. He died the following month.

Top photo: Joanna Wright with Tara Cummings in Cypress, Texas.  Morgan Feigal-Stickles for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Outside the gates of the New Bethany Home for Girls in an archival photo from 1988. Ellis Lucia for the Times-Picayune.

Originally aired February 23, 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.

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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.

A Mother on the Challenges of Becoming a Teenage Parent

April Gibson and her teenage son, Gregory Bess, love talking to each other. Gregory says they can talk for hours, and that he feels he learns more from his mom than from school. But there was one subject that they hadn’t really explored.

So when the StoryCorps MobileBooth traveled to St. Paul, Minnesota recently, April invited her son to sit down with her for a recorded conversation.

Gregory asked about his mom’s childhood and their family’s past. He learned that his mom was a quiet kid who liked to write, and that his grandfather was a party DJ before becoming a pastor.

But April knew her 16-year-old had something more he wanted to talk about.

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Bottom photo: April Gibson and Gregory Bess in 2001. Courtesy of April Gibson.

Originally aired January 19, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Johnny Holmes and Christian Picciolini

In the 1990s, Johnny Holmes was head of security at a high school in Blue Island, Illinois, located just outside of Chicago, where he met Christian Picciolini, a teenage student who was the leader of a local neo-Nazi group.

Christian was involved for eight years before he renounced the movement’s racist principles. Today, he devotes himself to helping others leave hate groups.

He credits Johnny with being the person who helped turn him around. Christian and Johnny came to StoryCorps to remember how it happened.

Christian founded EXIT Solutions, a global organization of former extremists with a mission to help people to leave hateful and violent ideologies.

Johnny now serves on his local school board.

Editor’s note: This story contains a quote where a racial slur is used.

 

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Originally aired October 6, 2017, on NPR’s Morning Edition.

Bottom photo: Johnny Holmes from the 1987 issue of the Eisenhower High School yearbook, Crest. Photo courtesy Johnny Holmes.