Oral History Commons^™

Interview No. 1478, Robert Wingo

Paso del Norte Entrepreneurship Oral History Project

Robert Wingo was born in Columbus, Ohio but spent the majority of his life in El Paso, Texas. Robert attended elementary and high school in El Paso. After graduating from high school, Robert was drafted into the Vietnam War. After the serving his time in the Vietnam War, Robert attended The University of Texas at El Paso and in 1973 he got his BBA in Marketing. While attending UTEP, Robert worked for BDM Corporation on Fort Bliss. After graduating, Robert started working for Billy the Kid and ended up as the VP of Advertising. In 1983, the company was sold …

Interview No. 1478, Robert Wingo

Combined Interviews

Robert Wingo was born in Columbus, Ohio but spent the majority of his life in El Paso, Texas. Robert attended elementary and high school in El Paso. After graduating from high school, Robert was drafted into the Vietnam War. After the serving his time in the Vietnam War, Robert attended The University of Texas at El Paso and in 1973 he got his BBA in Marketing. While attending UTEP, Robert worked for BDM Corporation on Fort Bliss. After graduating, Robert started working for Billy the Kid and ended up as the VP of Advertising. In 1983, the company was sold …

Interview No. 1618, Josephine Maceyra

Combined Interviews

Josephine Maceyra in 1958 left a job as a supervisor of surgery in a hospital to take an industrial nurse position at the Farah Company at the insistence of Willie and James Farah; Mrs. Maceyra initially worked at 3rd street location; she eventually was placed in charge of all clinics in each factory and the hospital for the company; she explains that medical care was provided free of charge for all employees; she recalls the personalities of Willie and James Farah; Mrs. Maceyra mentions James having a very friendly personality, recounts the time he had a heart attack at work …

Interview With Harold Decker By Brien Williams, Harold J. Decker

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Harold James Decker was born February 23, 1945, in Kalamazoo, Michigan. His parents were Harold and Dena (Bouma) Decker, both children of Dutch immigrants. He was graduated from Kalamazoo College majoring in political science, joined the Army in 1968 and served during the Vietnam War. In 1973, he took his law degree from Southwestern Law School and subsequently practiced law in southern California for six years. He then worked for the pharmaceutical manufacturer Upjohn for eighteen years. In February, 2001, he was asked by Dr. Bernadine Healy to redesign the legal function of the American Red Cross. In …

Interview With Barbara Mikulski By Brien Williams, Barbara A. Mikulski

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Barbara Ann Mikulski was born on July 20, 1936, and grew up in the Highlandtown neighborhood of East Baltimore, Maryland. She attended Mount Saint Agnes College and received her M.S.W. from the University of Maryland School of Social Work. She became a social worker, community organizer, and Baltimore city councilor, and she made an unsuccessful bid for the U.S. Senate in 1974 before winning election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1976. After serving in the House for ten years, she ran for the U.S. Senate in 1986, becoming the first elected woman Democratic U.S. senator. She …

Interview With Ed Bonney By Andrea L’Hommedieu, Edward 'Ed' M. Bonney

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Edward Mason “Ed” Bonney was born April 5, 1933, in Buckfield, Maine, and grew up in Lisbon Falls, Maine. His parents, Mason Turner and Beatrice Evelyn (Dean) Bonney, were Roosevelt Democrats. Ed served four years in the Air Force and later became an air traffic controller in New York for several years. He and his wife moved back to Maine to raise their family and became involved in Maine Democratic politics. Ed served as chair of the Cumberland County Democratic Committee, where he first met George Mitchell, and later was executive director of the Maine Democratic Party when …

Interview With Sherman Saperstein By Andrea L’Hommedieu, Sherman H. Saperstein

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Sherman Saperstein was born in Waterville, Maine, on March 16, 1932, to Rose (Rosenthal) and Edward Saperstein, entered the family business in 1954, and remained there until the business was sold in 1997. A childhood friend of the Mitchell family, he was also a fund raiser for George Mitchell’s campaigns. At the time of this interview, he was a resident of Scottsdale, Arizona.

Summary
Interview includes discussion of: early family life in Waterville, Maine; being a classmate and childhood friend of George Mitchell et al.; Mitchell’s traits and personality; his selection to Boys State and election there as …

Interview With Jim Sasser By Diane Dewhirst, James 'Jim' R. Sasser

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
James R. “Jim” Sasser was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on September 30, 1936. A graduate of Vanderbilt University, he was awarded a law degree in 1961, admitted to the Tennessee bar, and became active in the Democratic Party; he managed Albert Gore Sr.’s unsuccessful 1970 campaign. In 1976 he sought election and won a seat in the U.S. Senate; he was reelected to two further terms, serving until 1995. He first met George Mitchell in 1972 when they were both working on Ed Muskie’s presidential primary campaign. He worked with Senator Mitchell on the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee …

Interview With Kelly Currie By Brien Williams, Kelly T. Currie

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Kelly T. Currie was born on September 11, 1963, in Lewistown, Montana, to Edmund and Bette Currie, and grew up in Farmington, Maine. His father was a professor at the University of Maine, Farmington and his mother was a nurse. He attended the University of Virginia and was graduated in 1986, serving a summer internship with Senator Mitchell’s office between his junior and senior year. In the fall of 1986, he worked on Jim Tierney’s Maine gubernatorial campaign. He joined Senator Mitchell’s Senate staff full-time in January of 1987 as a legislative correspondent dealing with finance, defense, and …

Interview With Beverly Sherman By Andrea L’Hommedieu, Beverly M. Sherman

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Beverly (Marshall) Sherman was born in 1937 in Old Orchard Beach, Maine, to Ruth and Norris Marshall. She attended the University of Michigan and the University of Southern Maine. She had slight involvement in Mitchell’s 1982 U.S. Senate campaign and was more deeply involved with events and fund-raising for his 1988 Senate reelection campaign. She also worked with Mitchell’s staff to organize several events, including visits from President Clinton and New York Governor Cuomo, as well as the “thank you” event in Maine upon Senator Mitchell’s retirement announcement.

Summary
Interview includes discussion of: family and educational background; Old …

Interview With Jay Rockefeller By Brien Williams, John 'Jay' D. Rockefeller

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note

John Davison “Jay” Rockefeller was born June 18, 1937, in New York to Blanchette Ferry (Hooker) and John D. Rockefeller III. He has served as a Democratic U.S. Senator representing West Virginia since 1985. Prior to that (1977-1985), he was governor of West Virginia. He is married to Sharon Percy, daughter of former Illinois Senator Charles “Chuck” Percy. He worked closely with Senator Mitchell on the 1993 health care reform package.

Summary

Interview includes discussion of: description of Senator Mitchell; differences in majority leader styles; Senator Byrd; story of President Clinton’s coming to the Democratic Caucus; their shared …

Interview With Paul Brountas (2) By Andrea L’Hommedieu, Paul P. Brountas

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Paul Peter Brountas was born on March 19, 1932, in Bangor, Maine. He and George Mitchell were classmates at Bowdoin College, where he was graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1954; he took bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Oxford in 1956 and his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1960. That same year, he joined Hale and Dorr, the predecessor of WilmerHale. He became a partner in 1968 and served as senior counsel to the firm from 2003 until his retirement in 2005. In 1987 and 1988, he served as national chairman of the …

Interview With Ken Curtis By Andrea L’Hommedieu, Kenneth 'Ken' M. Curtis

George J. Mitchell Oral History Project

Biographical Note
Kenneth Merwin “Ken” Curtis was born on February 8, 1931, in Leeds (Curtis Corner), Maine. He was graduated with a bachelor of science degree from the Maine Maritime Academy and rose to the rank of lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy. In 1959, he earned a law degree from the Portland University School of Law (now the University of Maine School of Law) and opened a private practice. A life-long Democrat, he served as Maine’s secretary of state from 1965-1966 before being elected govern in 1967, an office he held until 1975. He was chairman of the Democratic …

Interview No. 1640, Thomas Edward Dent, Mary Helen Dent Trammell

Combined Interviews

He describes the schools growing up, and how they were all named after famous Texans, such as Davey Crocket and James Bowie. Mrs. Trammell describes how her mother was forced to work because of her father’s age and failing health. Her father had asthma and eventually suffered a stroke. The family lived in a rural area, where they kept chickens, cows, and other animals. Mr. Dent describes the fear that existed when WWII broke out, as he was still in elementary school. Both siblings describe the process of making phone calls at this time, and dealing with operators. There were …

Interview No. 1438, Sebastián Ruíz Ávila

Combined Interviews

Sebastian Ruíz Ávila lived there up until his late teens. He worked as baker helper in Matamores until he learned about the braceros. He worked at Lamesa, Texas. He was able to help his family back in México by working in the cotton fields everyday. His payment was based on the amount of cotton he would pick up. He worked 6 years as a bracero for the same person. Mr. Ruíz didn’t know English during his time working as a bracero. After having a family in Mexico, Mr. Ruíz stayed there working as a brick-maker. Then, he became a politician, …

Interview No. 1474, Jesus J. Ibarra Huerta

Combined Interviews

Mr. Ibarra worked as a farmer since he was young. He traveled to Monterrey, Mexico to get hired as a bracero and then to El Paso del Aguila, Texas. Ibarra worked for the first time picking cotton in Laredo, Texas. He renewed his contract three consecutive times and worked in Bryan, Mission, McAllen and Mandy Texas. Ibarra worked in six different cities around Texas in 1957 and 1958. He renewed his contract and worked for eight months picking beetroot in Bay City, Michigan. He worked as a bracero for the last time in 1964. He got his American residency thanks …

Interview No. 1473, Octaviano Galvan

Combined Interviews

No abstract provided.

Interview No. 1472, Maria Arreola Galvan

Combined Interviews

No abstract provided.

Interview No. 1505, Nan Napier

Paso del Norte Entrepreneurship Oral History Project

Tres Mariposas was started by three women in El Paso, Texas and after a time, only one of the women owned the dress shop. This woman, Betty Bowman (Young) sold the business to her husband, Sam Young Jr. Sam was a client of Frank Napier and he then sold Tres Mariposas to Frank Napier. Frank Napier’s wife, Isabel Napier ran the store for a while until they presented their son, Charles and his wife Nan with the opportunity to run the store. Nan ran the store by herself until her two children were born and then her husband joined her. …

Interview With Clarice Durham, Lauren Ashley Alexander

Chicago Anti-Apartheid Movement

Length: 95 minutes

Oral history interview of Clarice Durham by Lauren Ashley Alexander

Clarice Durham recalls her childhood and recounts her work with the Illinois NAACP, The National Anti-Imperialist Movement in Solidarity with African Liberation (NAIMSAL), and as co-chair of the National Alliance Against Racial and Political Oppression. She campaigned for justice in the Scottsboro Boys case in 1931, attended the founding convention of the Progressive Party in 1948, and participated in the March on Washington in 1963. As Durham recaps her trip to South Africa, she recalls the change it had on her and her views of the movement. …