My Iterview to My Mother

I grew up watching my mother strive to give me a better life and become a better person. Amongst great difficulty, she decided to finish school and attend university. Her hard work and determination have marked and defined my life. Every day she had to work, then go to university and later take care of me. She excelled in every aspect of her life, teaching me that the impossible is overcome through hard work and

My sixty-year old grandmother, Helaine Bondar, conveniently lives in Baltimore, MD. This made the interview quite convenient, and we were able to sit down face-to-face on her dining room table chairs with a plate of cookies for the interview. "Bubby" as I call her, was born in New York City and lived there her entire youth. She only had one sister, Suzette, who still lives in New York City (my grandmother recalls at this time that my great-grandmother was very fond of French names.) When asked about her grandparents she reminisced on her days with "nanny" and "poppy," her maternal grandparents who practically raised her. She spoke about their personalities. Nanny was the bulldozer go-getter of the family, my grandmother said her favorite phrase was "my way or the highway." Poppy was more calm, and they balanced each other out perfectly. Bubby 's paternal grandparents were Anna and Sol Gross, and despite their close proximity-- they also lived in the Bronx -- Bubby just wasn’t as close with them.

On June 17, 2013, Mrs. Ahmed, my mom, graduated from CSUB after completing her last year of college. They women I saw before had completely changed from the women I saw after graduation. Knowledge had brought her more than just a better IQ level; rather made her more happy and lively then I had seen her before. Mrs. Ahmed’s experience in college, made her grow and mature which created a more dedicated, responsible, and independent her. Thanks to these traits earned in college, Mrs. Ahmed now works and Berkshire Elementary; a job she would have never would have received without her credentials. My mom had come out of her shell and experienced an experience that she never thought she would before. I

The person that I chose to interview for this assignment was my mom, Annie Sequeira. I chose to interview my mom because I act like my mom in many ways, and I want to compare her high school experience to what mine will be. During my mom’s high school years, she was very focused on her education and wanted to receive a degree from college. But, most of the people in her village disagreed with her and thought that girls should not have to study or work; they would marry and become housewives. My mom’s family worked in the rice fields, and they thought that she should stay and help them with the farming; but, my mom wanted a better life, so she studied hard. My mom had a teacher and mentor, Mrs. Pimenta, who encouraged her during her high school years and gave her the important advice that an education would help her achieve a better life than farming. Even today, she is proud that she put a lot of effort into her high school education, because there is now a plaque with her name at her school which awards her for high academic distinction.

My mother, a housekeeper at a Best Western Hotel, has been recognized for her exceptional commitment, leadership, and organizational skills for maintaining a clean and hospital environment in collaboration with her colleagues. She is from the countryside of a small town in Mexico called San Juan de Los Lagos, Jalisco, a beautiful place known for its rich history and architecture. At an early age my mother lost her father during a storm in Mexico. The loss of my grandfather was devastating for he left behind a widow, a new born, and a total of 8 children. The hardship caused several of the older children to leave school and start working to support the family. My mother however, managed to remain in school but with time, the teachers that would go out to the country to teach the children stopped coming and my mother was forced to resign her education. With school no longer an option my mother began working due to the lack of resources. At this point she was only able to obtain an education up to the 6th

Because of my parent’s humble beginnings in the south and being ever so present during the Civil Rights era, education was very important in my household. My father would often say that education and knowledge could never be taken away from you once you have acquired it. He himself, only had a 3rd grade formal education but yet at the same time was a modern day math wizard. He was the second to the oldest out of eleven children so he chose to continually work the fields so that his younger siblings didn’t have to and they would have the opportunity to attend school during the day. My mother continually pursued higher education and received her Associates of Arts degree as an adult. Later in life, as a senior citizen she also attended South Suburban College in South Holland, Illinois and enrolled in a couple courses in Computer Training and

For this project I interviewed my mom, Lynn Pasko. During the course of doing this project and going through the questions, it made me realize how much I didn’t know about my mother. It never occurred to me how times have changed and how different things are now. I learned a lot about my mother that I did not know. Some of these include how my mother moved schools every year of her schooling up until her last half of junior year. I couldn’t imagine having to go to a new school every year. Not to mention how many friends she lost contact with and how hard it was to be the new kid every year. Another thing that had really surprised me was the hardest that she had to do. The hardest thing my mother had to do was after 9/11 happened, she had to write goodbye letters to my sister and I in case anything had happened to them on their way to Hawaii. Both my mother and father thought about taking different planes just incase if something happened to one of them, the other would still be there for me and my sister.

My mother worked four jobs at once to make financial ends meet, while always stressing the importance of education and financial independence to my brother and myself. My grandmother only achieved a second grade education due to the financial constraints on her family at a young age, but still in the end managed to make certain that of her children and grandchildren had what was needed to flourish and become successful, educated members of the community. The tenacity and history of these two women I still carry with me today. Their struggles have inspired to me to only want more from life, but also serve as a positive role model for the younger members of my community. I observed from other family members how an education can open a multitude of doors and opportunities. I want to make the biggest and most significant on my community and on my family as possible, and the only foreseeable path is to achieve a college education to gain the necessary skills, knowledge and connections needed to flourish and implement positive

For my oral history project, I decided to interview my mother. I am pretty close with my mom, as we talk daily, and I am comfortable often to seek advice from her. A challenge that I faced was trying to find an appropriate date and time for the interview. My mom works six days a week, and I am often preoccupied with classes and school work. Another challenge was my mom’s hesitation with going into too much detail about her experiences. In addition, it was difficult to interview another family member such as a relative because I was not particularly close with my uncles or aunts, nor were any of them easy to contact due to variations in time zones. Furthermore, arguably one of my largest reason why I choose to interview my mom was because I never had taken the time or initiative to ask about my mom’s past. I had only knew of some general aspects, but never asked too much into detail. The oral history project was a perfect opportunity to dwell deeper into my family’s history and how they came to America.

For the interview I conducted, I chose to talk to my mom. Her name is Teresa Stutts, and she is 56 years old. She was born and raised in Florence, AL. she is I actually grew up in the same house she did. She went to a private Christian school; my sister and I attended the same school as well. She started working at a bank when she was 19, and she completed 2 years of college but didn’t graduate. Her dad passed away in 1980, when she was still in school. He was the one encouraged her to finish, but she didn’t like school and got a promotion at the bank. She has two children, and she has been married to my dad for 25 years. Neither one of them had been married before, and neither one had previous children. My sister and I are their only children.

I was born in Austin, Texas as the youngest of my parent’s three children. My mother is from San Bernardino, California and is a Political Science professor at Texas State University. My father is from Temple, Texas and is a contract manager for the state of Texas’s Health and Human Services department. My two older sisters attend the University of Notre Dame, one is a freshman and the other is a senior. Having a mother that is a college professor has greatly impacted my life, mainly my education. With a desire for us to learn, my mother taught my sisters and me how to read, write, and how to do simple math at an early age. I excel in school and I always give the credit to my mom, since she instilled my love of learning. In the past father was in the army and was a police officer/ detective. Due to his years of service and law

What can one say about their mother? One may talk about her positive and negative

The person I interviewed for this assignment, was my mother, Ginger Lee George Steele. I chose to interview my mom because I knew my mom would have an interesting story to tell, since she had a brother, her parents divorced when she was young, and she went to a boarding school. My mother often talks about how different boarding school was then her previous public school, so I knew she would have a lot of stories to account for. My mom started working when she was young, so I knew she would have insight to offer about working at a young age during that time. She was born September 16, 1966 in Beckley, West Virginia. Her mother was young when she had my mom, and then 3 years later she had a son, my mom’s brother, Brad George. My mother has always played an extremely important role in my life, which is why I chose her. My mother is one of the most caring and sweetest people I know.

Growing up I have always admired my mother Pam, born October 3rd, 1955. She is a strong, independent woman, who all on her own raised two children. She has given my brother and I everything we could ever need. Pam has tried her hardest to make sure we take full advantage of all opportunities that come our way. She has unknowingly shown me that even without today's ‘model’ family dynamic of a wife, husband, and biological children, life can still be just as good and wholesome. These are just a few of the reasons of why I picked my mother, my role model, to be my first interviewee. Next, I chose to interview my Grandmother on my Mother's side, Eileen. Eileen Casadei was born on December 27th, 1928. Eileen has always been a frequent and

A mother is someone who can take the place of all others but no one can take the place of her. There are many different definitions you could use to describe your mother. My mother, Pam Krull, fits every one of those. Today I decided to pick the three that I thought was most important to me. I admire and aspire to be like my mother because of how supportive, how selfless, and how loving she is.