1 50 130 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/023ae657d8278e7f93b2a7244f12ed9f.JPG 9fa6ce84150be239ba86ea33d604d381 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Young Victor Leandry Ready for School Description An account of the resource Photo of a young Victor Leandry all dressed up to go to school. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/eb66347736f6ca973a4e0e8cb6923e50.jpg f30c4e866b8a232442c9a8af55ba8bec Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Volleyball Team Description An account of the resource Photo of Victor's volleyball teammates in Puerto Rico. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/27290123e472a139b58d89e3686f9ad9.png 735c4023ae15a5f7bacc3c61763e22fe Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Maria Carrion Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Virginia (Tolento) Montville OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Montville_Virginia.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Virginia (Tolento) Montville Latino Lorain Fall 2020 Oberlin College Library Virginia (Tolento) Montville Maria Carrion 0 https://youtu.be/OmAwZB4p-m4 YouTube video 12 Introduction of Virginia (Tolento) Montville interviewed by Maria Carrion I am going to begin by introducing myself. My name is Maria Carrion and I'm part of the group that's conducting oral history interviews for the Latino Lorain History Project. I have with me one of our interviewees and I'll have her introduce herself. Virginia introduces herself and says she goes by Ginny and her maiden name is Tolento, last name Montville. El Centro de Servicios Sociales ; Lorain Historical Society ; Oberlin College 122 Virginia talks about her early life growing up in Lorain So, let's begin. Ginny, you sent me some articles and I went through those articles and I just am so fascinated with your background. So I was wondering if you could just start off telling me a little bit about your life. I know you were born and raised in Lorain. So if you want to tell me a little bit about where did you actually grow up and a little bit of history about your Lorain history because I know you're not in Lorain now. Virginia talks about how she was born in Lorain in 1950 and lived on E. 30th Street right off of Vine Ave. As the daughter of a Mexican father and a Native American mother, she talked about how she grew up speaking Spanglish at home and had a diverse group of friends who, like her, didn't have a lot of economic means. But she describes a lively and diverse community. 1950 ; Mexicans in Lorain ; Native Americans in Lorain ; Spanglish ; Vine Ave 224 Speaking Spanglish and challenges growing up You were talking a little bit about speaking Spanglish. Tell me a little more about that. How did you learn Spanglish, from your mother or your father? Virginia talks about how her mother learned Spanish as time went on and how they all spoke Spanglish. Her father's English wasn't good, but they communicated. She also talks about being loved by her father and great memories growing up with him, even though they were poor. He worked at the railroad and in the summer worked on farms in Sandusky County. As the oldest of 7 brothers and sisters, she describes how she took on a lot of responsibility and was protective of her younger brothers and sisters given her mother's struggles with mental health and her father's absence because of work. Eventually, she and her siblings were removed from their home and placed in Green Acres Children's Home, where her own mother had begun her life as well. She also discussed Neighborhood House and other organizations like Puerto Rican Home that provided her and other young kids structure and a sense of community. Cozy Corner ; Farm labor ; Green Acres Chldren's Home ; Lincoln Elementary School ; mental health ; Neighborhood House ; Poverty ; Puerto Rican Home ; Railraod ; Sandusky County ; Spanglish ; Vine Ave 584 Ethnic diversity and leaving Lorain When you were growing up in Lorain at that time...you said your father was Mexican, so you are half Mexican. What about some of the other ethnic groups that lived there that you associated with? Virginia talks about the diverse group of friends she had growing up. Many of them had different lives and family structures, and they maintained contact for a long time. After two years at Green Acres, she met the Presti family in Oberlin through church who supported Tolento as she prepared to accept a scholarship to attend the Andrews School for Girls in Willoughby, Ohio. She lived with the Presti family and helped care for Mrs. Presti's young children the summer before attending the Andrews School and enjoyed the family structure and described how it was a model of what she wanted for her life. Andrews School for Girls, Willoughby ; Ethnic and racial diversity ; Family life ; Green Acres ; Oberlin City ; Oberlin High School 881 Experiences in school and a new home and family in Oberlin How was that experience of, there's this girl from Lorain, you grew up on Vine Avenue, and you say that you grew up on the streets of Vine, you're in and out with no structure, and then you get this scholarship to go to this exclusive girls' school on the east side of Cleveland, tell me a little bit about what did it feel like for you? Virginia talks about how she fit into the elite girls' school, even though she came from a very different background than most of the girls. She also talks about her second grade teacher who mentored her and told her that she was smart and visited her when she was in Green Acres Children's home and how that made an impression on her. She also talked about the transition from the Andrews school to live with the Presti family in Oberlin and how much she loved being in a home with a family. While she loved living with her foster family, she describes some of the challenges being one of the only Hispanics in Oberlin and being mistaken for being Puerto Rican. She experienced prejudice and describes how she surrounded herself with people worthy of her and the life-long friendships she developed. Andrews School for Girls ; Foster home ; Italians and Hispanics in Oberin ; Life-long friendships ; Mentors at school ; Oberlin ; Prejudice ; Presti's Restaurant 1261 Connection to Lorain today Is Lorain part of your life today? Virginia talks about how even though she spent her teenage years in Oberlin, she is still connected to Lorain through her sisters and family who still live in Lorain. She also describes the challenges her family has faced living in Lorain, including losing family members to gun violence and how, for her, it seems part of a larger cycle familiar to her when she was growing up. She also began to discuss the changes she saw in Lorain, but also the fear and sadness of some of the problems in Lorain. Oakwood Park ; Sherriff's Department, Oberlin ; Violence in Lorain 1391 A career in law enforcement Once you graduated from high school, when did you become interested in law enforcement? Virginia discusses the different mentors and influences she had that led her to consider law enforcement as a career. The new police chief in Oberlin, who she describes as progressive and from Michigan, played a particularly important role in pursuing her interest in law enforcement. After a ride-along in 1968, she worked as a dispatcher in Oberlin and then worked at the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Post 47 in Elyria, as she continued to take classes at LCCC. She was then recruited by the Sheriff's Department as the first woman to help diversify the department in 1973 at the age of 23. She was the first woman on the force of 80 men. She describes how she was not received well in the Sheriff's Department where she was competing with men who saw her as a threat to their jobs. She eventually left that position where it was clear she was not welcome to the Marshal Service that was much more professional and respected her position. In all these instances, she talked about how she consistently used her typing skills to help out in different positions in law enforcement across the county. First female marshal ; First woman sheriff ; Lorain County Community College (LCCC) ; Marshall Service ; Mentors ; Oberlin News Tribune ; Oberlin police chief ; Oberlin Police Department ; Ohio State Highway Patrol ; Recruiting women sheriffs ; Secretarial work ; Sexism at work ; Sheriff's Department ; U.S. Marshal 2010 Proudest moment in Lorain Tell me a little bit about if you can think of a moment in Lorain that made you feel really proud or maybe even on visits when you came back, was there anything significant or any experience you think you could say that you were really proud of in terms of your Lorain experience? Virginia describes her proudest moment as her swearing in ceremony with her foster parents as her witnesses for the Sheriff's Department job. Her father also was there at her swearing in ceremony and was very proud of her. She also discussed how even when she was with her foster family and in the home, he visited her regularly and would bring food to share with the kids from the home. She had two sisters living with her at Green Acres and never felt neglected by her father. Children's home (Green Acres) ; Foster family ; Mexican food ; Proudest moment ; Relaionship with her father ; Swearing in ceremony 2312 Relationship with Puerto Ricans in Lorain in the past and returning to Lorain today You've talked about the tamales, you've talked about the tortillas, what about your experiences with the Puerto Rican ethnic food? Virginia discusses how she grew up loving Puerto Rican food and the culture. When they lived in an apartment on Seneca, she could smell the Puerto Rican food and her father resented that she liked Puerto Rican rice and beans better than Mexican rice and beans. Many of her friends growing up were Puerto Rican and she enjoyed being at her friends' homes sharing their food. She also talks about what life is like for her in Hughesville, PA, and how things have changed in her town recently. She also discusses returning to Lorain when she can to see her sister and family and friends. She ends her interview reflecting on her observations of challenges and changes in Lorain. Challenges in Lorain ; Crime ; Hughesville, PA ; Mexicans in Hughesville ; Puerto Rican food ; Revitalization downtown Lorain ; Seneca Ave. 2767 Final reflections Before we close, is there anything we haven't talked about or anything you want to share, it doesn't have to be about Lorain. I can be about Oberlin, it can be about your experience in Hughesville or anything you can talk about as a Latina woman who at one time was accepted because they thought you were Italian...anything you want to talk about. Virginia ends her interview reflecting on experiences of prejudice as a woman and as a Mexican in law enforcement. She didn't take the prejudice to heart and is proud of her Mexican and Native American heritage. Her final thoughts on the problems in the country today make her think of the value of diversity, something she learned from her daughter and how a teacher can make a big difference in someone's life like hers. At the very end, she returned on what she learned at Green Acres and how she adjusted. Ethnic pride ; Green Acres ; Lincoln Elementary School ; Prejudice as Mexican ; Teachers video 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Montville_Virginia.xml LL_Montville_Virginia.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0014 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Virginia (Tolento) Montville Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-10-30 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/fdd6830849b0df5e715cf5f3354db980.jpg c0f07bcdf48bc615c836416c4791544e Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vincente and Andres Rivera Description An account of the resource Photograph of Vincente and Andres Rivera, Lourdes Bennett's father and uncle, taken in 1950-2 in an unknown location Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Lourdes Bennett Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1950-2 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photograph https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b29e62eed3db09264b047b043eb5db4a.jpg 30d1d2d3543af95c8e56dd02a7f84cc7 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry's Graduation Description An account of the resource Photograph of Victor Leandry in his graduation robe and cap alongside an older woman. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/954096557b14814e0c8e02190ca6a273.jpg 8e9cf5d9a81ea84f5319cc4b61d3f198 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry Opening a UnidosUS Conference Description An account of the resource Photo of Victor Leandry getting ready to open a UnidosUS conference in front of thousands of people. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/c938005e65fa77fa149543b7e483a75e.jpg 31645db85cd4ec7aab21c8ab33590423 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry on Rollerskates Description An account of the resource Photo of Victor Leandry rollerskating. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/901d5a5d0c8b0ec0c7799d9790588a48.jpg 86ad4c9c5210a536a94979c6dfd2c60d Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry on a Bike Ride Description An account of the resource Photo of Victor Leandry taking a bike ride through the forest. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/a78b8e91d8683b47fcdce581fc9a201f.jpg 2b0b9bdc544c20f695eabae61e9d255e Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry at NCLR Conference with Vice President Joe Biden Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Description An account of the resource Photograph of Victor Leandry at a National Council of La Raza/UnidosUS conference with Vice President Joe Biden. Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/30bb4ea1b77e19ff6c7654aa6674efb9.jpg 9807020c1d5957b80a436d8ec6b3f86b Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry at NCLR conference with President Barack Obama Description An account of the resource Photograph of Victor Leandry at a National Council of La Raza/UnidosUS conference with President Barack Obama. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/d5686f254bdba372dc0ced49fa9e5bdb.JPG 91bcd85aa25b3befd973c3b0af4a0e87 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry and Family Description An account of the resource Photograph of Victor Leandry with his wife and daughter. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Victor Leandry Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/96ef4764cdd6a839d3daf15fa7358a44.jpg 001412e2bcf2cdc69e8026e8561e04af Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry Description An account of the resource Professional photo of Victor Leandry. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b8990f708cb66847e71c5dc5ab7f9da9.jpg 001412e2bcf2cdc69e8026e8561e04af Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Kaytlen Cruz Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Victor Leandry OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Leandry_Victor.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Victor Leandry Latino Lorain Fall 2020 Oberlin College Library Victor Leandry Kaytlen Cruz 0 https://youtu.be/8ht4-4HFZEQ YouTube video 4 Introduction My name is Kaytlen Cruz and I'm a third year student at Oberlin College. I'm here interviewing Victor Leandry for the Latino Lorain Oral History Project. Cruz introduces Victor Leandry, Executive Director at El Centro de Servicios Sociales, who is being interviewed for the Latino Lorain Oral History Project. The interview is being done over Zoom because of the COVID-19 global pandemic. El Centro ; El Centro de Servicios Sociales ; Latino ; Latino Lorain Oral History Project ; Lorain ; Oberlin College 63 Early life growing up in Puerto Rico If we can begin with some questions about your early life, so tell me a little bit about your family and where you grew up and where you were born. Leandry discusses how his father was in the military so he and his siblings grew up in different military bases. Leandry was born in Atlanta, Georgia at Fort Gordon and when he was five, his family moved to Puerto Rico but his father abandoned them soon after. When his family first moved to Puerto Rico, they lived in a middle to high class community, which Leandry enjoyed since it was made up of many young people and the community would get together to do things like take hikes in the nearby mountains. Then, his family had to move to public housing because his mother could no longer afford the middle class community without the help of Leandry's father. Public housing was a cultural shock for Leandry and it took him some time to adjust to the violence and the language used in this new community. Cultural Shock ; Military ; Public Housing ; Puerto Rico 291 Passion for social work But then we moved to another project. Ponce Leon, it was called Ponce Leon and just to take care of our grandma. My grandma was going to live with us and at that point when we moved to Ponce Leon all of my siblings were out of the house, it was just me and my mom and my grandma. This was when I was in high school, or starting high school, we moved to this project and this was the project that really I really enjoyed, it gave me the beginning of social work. Through these efforts, drugs started moving out of the community. When Leandry moved to Ponce Leon he joined a program where a group of male teenagers would meet with a social worker every Monday to talk about issues affecting teen males in poor communities. Leandry was elected to be the President of the group, and this started his passion for social work. Leandry was in charge of making agendas for the Monday meetings and organizing events, which got him out of the house and deeply involved in the community. Through his leadership, the group became co-ed, they took trips to different parts of Puerto Rico, held Mother's Day celebrations, volleyball and basketball tournaments, and the first haunted house in his town. Ponce Leon ; Project ; Puerto Rico ; Social Work 676 Friends, mentors, and teachers We will continue. We can jump right back into it. Could you tell me a little bit about your friends, your teachers, and your mentors that come to mind for you from your early life? Leandry talks about his friends, mentors, and teachers during his early life. He mentions his mom as one of his biggest mentors ; she was very supportive and encouraging towards Leandry's education. The social worker in charge of going to communities to talk to the teens, Machin, was also a huge mentor for Leandry. Machin pushed Leandry to be the leader that he is and imbued him with a passion for social work. Leandry also mentions a close friends he grew up with. This friend was Vice President alongside Leandry for the teen group in Ponce Leon and they are still like brothers to this day. Leandry points out that there is a poverty cycle in low-income communities that is hard to break out of. His friend and him were one of the first to break out of that cycle and leave the community, while others from the teen group in Ponce Leon took their lives, ended up in jail, were killed, or are still in the same situation after many years. While it took some many years to exit the cycle, many of them are now living in Florida. Friend ; Mentor ; Poverty ; Poverty Cycle ; Public Housing ; Social work 978 Earliest memories and college And kind of along, well I guess it's along different lines, but do you have an earliest memory? Does something come to mind as the first thing you remember about being a child or when you were younger? Leandry's early age memories are family memories of being with siblings at parties and celebrations. He doesn't have many memories about when he moved to his first public housing community because he didn't enjoy his time there and was depressed, so he chose not to remember much. However, he does have many memories about the second public housing community he lived in, where he developed as a social worker and was active in the community. Leandry would organize volleyball tournaments that lasted all day, and they were so good at volleyball that the professional volleyball team from Leandry's town would scrimmage with the youth team from Leandry's community. When Leandry graduated from high school, he was asked to coach one of the high school volleyball teams. Leandry was very disciplined and dedicated to school so he would do his homework first and then go out all night playing dominoes or doing something else in the community. Even in college and after, Leandry was passionate about organizing events and he kept a busy schedule where he would be out all day at different events and then use his car to change before going out to another event. Leandry also discusses his first job in high school and working through college. He chose to go to Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico, close by to his community. Leandry wanted to go to the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus because they were known for architecture and engineering. Leandry wanted to be an architect but he knew it would be financially difficult for his family if he was to go to Mayagüez, so he eventually became a social worker at his catholic university. Childhood memories ; College ; Community Service ; Depression ; Public Housing ; Puerto Rico ; Volleyball 1541 Moving to Lorain, Ohio When was it that you, or your family, moved to Lorain? Leandry moved to Lorain, Ohio in 1991, but he had been back and forth between Puerto Rico and Savannah, Georgia before settling down in Lorain. When he moved to Lorain, he went with $260 and a suitcase full of clothes. Leandry took nothing that would tie him to Puerto Rico, no pictures or photo albums, because he didn't want to be tempted to move back to Puerto Rico since he knew it would be hard to adjust. His first job was at the Cotton Club Company in Cleveland where he was the only Latino in his shift, and he struggled with the regulations and the monotony of the job. Along with the challenges of finding a job, Leandry also struggled with getting to know people, building a community, and acclimating to the cold weather. It wasn't until Leandry started forming a family and gaining a support network that he finally started to feel at home in Lorain. Leandry also talks about getting a job at the Nord Center, doing work he is passionate about. Through the combination of finding family, doing work he loves, and playing volleyball he was able to adjust to Lorain. Cotton Club Company ; Lorain ; Lorain, Ohio ; Mlitary ; Nord Center 2856 Taking on the challenge of El Centro And so now you've mentioned Nord Center and El Centro, were those some of the most important institutions that you've been involved with in Lorain, and were there others? Leandry discusses the different institutions he has worked with in Lorain. Between Nord Center and El Centro, Leandry worked in the schools in Lorain. When a job opened up at El Centro, he didn't want to take the job because El Centro was losing money and didn't have the best reputation. Through many people approaching him about the job, he eventually applied to be the director and took on the challenge of reforming El Centro. Leandry looks back on how big of a challenge it was to be the Executive Director of El Centro ; he faced opposition from other employees and had to work around a lack of resources. By the second year of taking on the position, Leandry built a new team and prioritized hiring people that had a personal mission tied closely to El Centro's mission. He also prioritized the quality of service provided by El Centro over the quantity of people served, and now El Centro has been recognized on the state and national level. Leandry saw that there weren't many social services in Lorain County so he began getting affiliated with Unidos U.S. to start building connections and get to know Latino leadership throughout the midwest. In 2007, Leandry became the Chair for the midwest group of Unidos U.S. and he was also on the board for Unidos U.S. El Centro ; El Centro de Servicios Socials ; Lorain ; National Council of La Raza ; Nord Center ; Social Services ; Unidos US 3835 Proudest moments So if you ask me about some of my proudest, or some of my moments at El Centro that I feel more proud, it was during that time that I was representing a national organization. Being from Lorain, hardly nobody could remember Ohio or the leadership in Ohio, and Lorain is so small, and here I was the chair of the affiliate council of the entire midwest and then I was in the board and I was so active with this national organization that people knew me and people knew El Centro. Leandry talks about his proudest moments, from changing the culture of El Centro to being a chair on the affiliate council for Unidos U.S. (National Council of La Raza). For five or six years, Leandry would open the largest Latino conference in the United States, through Unidos US. He looks back on how important it was that he had the opportunity to open the conference in front of thousands of people with many different news cameras capturing his words. Leandry is also proud of the fact that he was able to move El Centro to a new building where they had to gather $1.5 million to fix the interior and do construction. El Centro was one of the first nonprofits in Lorain County to do a capital campaign and raise money to move to a new building. El Centro ; El Centro de Servicios Sociales ; Latino-led nonprofit ; Lorain ; Midwest ; National Council of La Raza ; NCLR ; Ohio 4591 The role of El Centro in the community What role does El Centro play in the community, I know you guys do a-lot of social services and so much work, but could you elaborate on that? Leandry talks about how El Centro is seen as a lead organization in Lorain, so many people want El Centro to be part of conversations throughout the community. While El Centro is run by a small staff, Leandry emphasizes that people know they are committed and dedicated to bettering the community in Lorain. El Centro ; El Centro de Servicios Sociales ; Latino ; Lorain ; Nonprofit 4710 Change in Lorain And so you kind of mentioned El Centro itself as an organization having changed from the time that you were here in Lorain and have you noticed also other ways that Lorain has changed since you first arrived? Leandry looks back on how Lorain has changed and looks towards the future of Lorain. He mentions that may industries have left Lorain, so the economy has been struggling. Leandry also talks about how the schools had to constantly go through different superintendents, but now there is a new change of administration that sparks hope for the direction the schools will go in. Leandry mentions that in the past, Lorain used to have more transportation systems and routes throughout, but now there are less and less routes and systems. Economy ; Ford ; Lorain ; School ; Transporation 4891 Historical moments in Lorain And kind of along the same lines, what have been some of the most important historical moments in the city? Leandry discusses how Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico had a huge impact on residents in Lorain and on El Centro. The schools and community had to adjust to around 300 people coming into the community at once. Another historical moment happened in 2018 when there was an ICE raid at Corso's Flower and Garden Center in Sandusky County. It was the biggest raid in Ohio and they detained and tried to deport around 114 Latinos, some were US citizens. Leandry also briefly discusses political moments in Lorain. Looking towards the future, Leandry touches on the revitalization efforts of downtown Lorain. Citizenship ; Hurricane Maria ; ICE Raid ; Lorain ; Puerto Rico ; Sandusky 5130 Challenges and Strengths of Lorain And now kind of talking more about Lorain, the city, overall. What do you see as the greatest challenge facing people in the city of Lorain today? Leandry mentions connectivity as an obstacle facing Lorain residents, he also talks about the high unemployment rate, transportation issues, and lack of senior services in Lorain. Leandry emphasizes the need for revitalization efforts in Lorain to convert all of the empty buildings. For the greatest strengths of Lorain, Leandry lists the strength of collaboration and expands on the success of the 2020 US Census. To wrap up the oral history interview, Leandry talks about his love for Lorain and his desire to keep Lorain as his home. 2020 US Census ; Lack of Transportation ; Latinos ; Lorain ; Senior Services ; Unemployment Oral History Interview with Victor Leandry for Latino Lorain Oral History Project video 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Leandry_Victor.xml LL_Leandry_Victor.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0011 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Victor Leandry Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-10-30 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b72dd6823c5dd9da205ecd9a9523d82b.PNG 48629657b8396bd237326f9cf7ea957d Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Trevor Balsely Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Vic Ortiz OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Ortiz_Vic.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Vic Ortiz Latino Lorain Fall 2022 Oberlin College Library Vic Ortiz Trevor Balsely 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/2j62s492k Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title=&quot ; Vic Ortiz&quot ; src=&quot ; //media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/2v23vt362/embed&quot ; width=&quot ; 600&quot ; height=&quot ; 337&quot ; frameborder=&quot ; 0&quot ; webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; 0 Early Life I’m Trevor Balsley I’m here today with Vic Ortiz to talk about his life as a part of the Latino Veterans Oral History project. Thank you Vic for being here and for agreeing to be interviewed. Born in Puerto Rico, Vic and his family moved to the Bronx in New York when he was two years old. Shortly thereafter, they relocated five years later to Lorain, Ohio, due to the rise in industry jobs. Growing up in South Lorain, Vic came to meet his wife at a young age. He attended South View High School, which is when he made up his mind to join the military. Bronx ; industry jobs ; Puerto Rico 161 Vic’s Home Life Growing Up Could you tell me a little bit about your home and sisters, and brothers and what the environment was like for you at home? With his family facing financial difficulties, his family moved out to metropolitan housing, a change from his previous way of living. Growing up, Vic talks about the various activities he was involved in such as sports and different part-time jobs. Growing up, he found himself very involved with the Catholic church. Alongside three of his siblings, they would often help their dad with mowing lawns, cleaning the church, and working the grounds. Catholic church ; children ; El Centro ; family ; Financial struggles ; siblings ; Sports 501 Military and How He Started Thinking About It How did you first start to consider the military when you were in high school? Were you thinking that was a place you wanted to be or a future you wanted for yourself? Vic began his military journey after his brother, who was enlisted, talked to him about joining. Prior to this, Vic attended LCCC and unfortunately failed out of school. Left feeling lost, he found himself talking with a recruiter after speaking with his brother. Shortly thereafter, he was sent off and began his work as a fire technician. ASVAB ; enlistment ; Fire technician ; Lorain County Community College (LCCC) ; military ; Nuclear program 700 Family and Friends How did your family react to that? Your parents? The rest of your siblings? After Vic broke the news to his family and friends, they were all surprised since they knew Vic as someone who had problems with authority. However, Vic realized he needed direction in his life and needed to be disciplined. authority ; discipline ; enlistment ; Family 813 Bootcamp Could you tell me about those few days, weeks, months, in boot camp? What were your initial moments in the military and that was for you, especially with what you were saying about discipline? Carded off from the Cleveland MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) station, he talks about his initial experience at bootcamp and arriving at the barracks. Growing up, Vic was pretty aggressive when it came to sports and would often find himself in fights. This led to conflict during his beginning weeks as he wasn’t fond of power structures. Vic is thankful for the two guys he met there as they were able to keep him level headed and guided him. authority ; barracks ; bootcamp ; friends ; MEPS 1094 Outside Communication Did you have any contact with your family or? I’m interested in your relationship with your wife, then girlfriend, during this whole process. What was that like? During his time at bootcamp, he received top secret security clearance as he was a part of SIOP (Single Integrated Operational Plan). This granted him access to communicate with people back home. Since he had to make frequent calls, he was able to keep in touch with his family and wife. Only a select few had that type of clearance. bootcamp ; clearance ; communication ; family ; SIOP 1186 After Basic Training Could you tell me about after basic training, the process of coming into the military and where you were first stationed? After basic training, Vic went to submarine school in Groton, Connecticut for a few months. Frank, one of his good friends he met at bootcamp, went on to attend the same school. Rey, who was another good friend of his, would often visit them in Connecticut. Their relationship stayed strong and would eventually become even more fortified during their time in Virginia. Vic went down to Virginia to complete A and 2 C schools. While Frank stayed in Connecticut to finish his schooling, he would end up being stationed in Norfolk, Virginia. Rey, who went into the reserves and became an x-ray technician, would end up also being stationed in Virginia. This rare circumstance would lead them to form a lifetime bond still present in Vic’s life today. Vic would go on to marry his wife in Virginia and moved in together by Oceana Naval Base. Charleston, North Carolina ; friends ; Groton, Connecticut ; Norfolk, Virgina ; Oceana Naval Base ; Spouse ; submarine ; U.S. Navy 1725 Time On The Submarine At Sea My first submarine I was one was the USS Francis Scott Key. Vic talks about being stationed on the Francis Scott Key, which was stationed out of Charleston South Carolina, and made patrols out of Kings-bay Georgia. Vic was stationed on boomer submarines that carried Inter-continental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) ; the only submarines he was allowed to work on because of his job. Typically he would be out to sea for about 3 months at a time, though this time would often get extended. During his time on the submarine Vic recalls not seeing the sun, not getting phone calls, and not knowing what was going on. He was on an 18 hour clock, standing watch for 6 hours and then being off for 12 hours, which often changed based on the job and tasks required. “Going out to sea is not a lot of fun” Vic says. He notes that at this time there were only men on submarines which was very different from the navy where men and women interacted together. Men on submarines were able to just “be guys” and not worry about things like sexual harassment without the presence of women. Vic says that after being done with a job at sea, he would come back to the port and get about 3 months off. At this point, Vic would only have to check in with his division officer every 72 hours via phone, which allowed him to travel back to Lorain to visit family, or drive to Connecticut to visit friends. Overall, Vic acknowledges that though there were downsides to being in the military, it was an overall good experience. Family ; Submarine ; U.S. Navy 2035 Getting the job of Fire Technician on the West Coast So when I was on the East Coast on the Francis Scott Key I was only there for one patrol. Vic served on the Francis Scott Key on the East coast for one patrol before finding out that the submarine would be decommissioned. He told a career counselor that he would prefer to stay on the East Coast, but instead he was sent out to the West Coast to be a fire technician. In order to work on the submarine on the West Coast, the counselor advised Vic to become qualified, which entailed knowing all parts of a submarine. The qualification process usually took a year, but Vic did the entire qualification process in 3.5 months. This process wore him out greatly. During this time he didn’t sleep or eat, and he only focused on getting qualified. Getting qualified was probably the hardest thing he’s done, but he states that it was completely worth it. Vic says that when you get qualified, “you get treated different, like you belong kind of.” Fire Technician ; Submarine 2260 Navigating Marriage During Time at Sea on the West Coast When I moved out to the West Coast the reason I did not want to go out there was because I didn't know anybody out there and I didn't have any friends. Vic had multiple concerns when moving to the West Coast about how he did not know anyone there and that he did not have any friends there. His biggest concern however was that he would have to leave his wife alone while he was out at sea. He thought he would have three months to get settled with her when they first moved to the West Coast, but instead he found out that he would be sent out on a different submarine within a week of first moving there. In the midst of starting his job on the USS Michigan submarine, Vic would leave the submarine at night and return home to help his wife find somewhere to live. They ended up finding an apartment and getting a dog for his wife as a companion. Vic talks about how he always knew he would never have kids while being in the military. He witnessed children not recognizing their fathers who were in the military, wives leaving their military husbands, and the high divorce rates for military spouses. Comparatively, he says that he took his marriage vows seriously. Despite the stress of being away, Vic liked his actual job at sea. On the submarine they were often busy, and did not have a lot of down time. Vic says “You didn't have time to get lonely or miss anybody back home.” Though he could not call home on the submarine, he was able to get family grams from loved ones. His wife would write about every week or every other week. You could only write so many words, so Vic says that men on submarines had to set up a code before they went out to sea, which allowed loved ones to communicate important matters with them. The submarines that Vic was on allowed them to make port visits, where he could get letters and packages from his wife. On a port visit in San Francisco, Vic and the other men were able to see their wives. Vic notes that this was different from the experience of an older generation of military members who went many years without seeing their spouses. Family ; Marriage ; Pets ; Port Visits ; Spouse 2724 Vic’s Decision to Leave the Navy I’d like to move to your final months in the military, your final station, and also your transition out of service, what that was like and how you decided to leave. Before Vic went to the service he did not really have a direction, but he knew he never wanted to work in a factory, or anything like that. He thought that he would do 20 years of military service and then retire. He had plans to go through the enlisted ranks and finish his degree, and then go into the officer ranks. However, he had a horrible experience on the submarine he was attached to on the West Coast. The senior enlisted person on the submarine, or chief of the boat, was a racist person who made life difficult for Vic. Vic says the chief of the boat “had it in for him”, and that he was one of the reasons Vic ultimately left the military. When Vic enlisted, he enlisted for 6 years because of all of his schooling, and then enlisted for 2 more years on the Francis Scott Key, giving him a total of 8 years of enlistment. He was almost halfway to retirement, which was his original plan. However, at the time President Clinton was doing military drawbacks and they were decommissioning some submarines. They said that some people on Vic’s submarine could leave early, in what was called early-out. Vic applied and got out after 4.5 years, so he did just half of the enlistment he signed up for. His reason for doing early-out was the chief of the boat’s treatment towards Vic. When Vic got on the USS Michigan he made E-5 rank after 21 months which was a fast time to make that rank. E-5 rank is not senior enlistment, but is kind of “middle of the road”, which gave Vic a little bit of respect. The new service members would be at E-1 or E-2 when they arrived, and often had to do service tasks because of their rank. The chief of the boat had Vic do those kinds of chores despite his rank, which caused Vic to have to involve the higher ups. Overall, Vic did not want to be in that situation anymore, which is why he left. Career ; Leaving the military ; Racism ; Rank ; Retirement Plan 2990 Finding a New Job After the Military So I got out of the navy and I came back home, kind of undecided about what I wanted to do. After being in the navy, Vic returned back home. He gave himself a year to figure out what he would do, and if he found nothing in that time, his plan was to re-enlist. He first got a job in engineering at a Lorain factory called Lorain products that made telecommunications equipment. In school he had been in pre-engineering and wanted to be an electrical engineer, but he had not finished his degree. When he interviewed at Lorain products, they said they would pay for the rest of his schooling, and he got a job with them as a field service engineer. However, he hated working at the factory and stayed only for 3 months or less. His backup plan was law enforcement, so at this point he decided to pursue being a police officer and he took the police exam in multiple cities. He ended up getting hired as a police officer in Oberlin. He took the test in November or December, after having gotten out of the navy on January 17th of that year. If Vic did not have a concrete plan by January 17th of the following year, he would have gone back to the military recruiter. A few days before that date, the police chief called Vic to inform him that he did very well on the exam, and offered Vic an interview, and ultimately a job. Vic recalled feeling complicated emotions when he left the military, what he described as feeling bittersweet. He was thankful for the skills he learned in the military like discipline, detail orientation, and organization. He also witnessed a lot of racism and classism which ultimately influenced his decision to leave. Career ; Classism ; Law Enforcement ; Racism 3196 How Vic’s Military Experience Influenced Him as a Police Officer How do you think your experience in the military changed you, how has it influenced the rest of your life after service. Vic recalls growing up in Lorain, a very diverse city. He lived in metropolitan housing when he was young, where he recalls diverse populations that included Hispanic, African American, and Hungarian people. Vic thought that it was the norm to see people from all over. In the military, the diversity of people was magnified, and Vic recalls the different types of people in the military including a British person, impoverished people, well-off people, those from the East Coast, and those from the West Coast. If racism had been prevalent when he was growing up in Lorain, he does not remember seeing it. But he saw and felt it in the military. The racism and classism he witnessed in the military ultimately influenced him in his position as a police officer. His military service made him feel as though as a police officer, it was important to him to treat others the way he wants to be treated, regardless of race, class, etc. He says “It did not escape me the fact that certain people get treated a certain way by police officers”, and he sought to not be like those police officers. He formed bonds and connections with members of the Oberlin community because of this commitment to mutual respect. Vic recalls days as a police officer when he would stop at the park to take his gear off and play with the kids. He would patrol neighborhoods and walk and sit on front porches with people. Vic was aware that these sorts of actions might label other police officers as weak or lesser than, but he did what he thought was the right thing to do as a police officer. A lot of these values came from his time in the navy. He saw how he was treated and how others were treated and he did not want to treat others that way. He talks about teaching kids lessons about law enforcement because he wanted to put them on a better path, almost like being their mentor. He says he wanted to be the opposite of the way he was treated in the navy. Classism ; Diversity ; Racism 3480 Concluding Thoughts About Vic’s Time in the Service Is there anything you'd like to add to this interview, is there anything that feels missing. Vic says that sometimes when he talks about the military he paints it as being bad, but he believes that the military was good to him. He still gets involved in veteran things, and is part of the Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial, which is in part due to his involvement with El Centro. He looks back on his time in the military fondly, because if he had not joined it, he does not know where he would be now. Vic grew up in what he says were bad areas, in the Bronx, New York, and the projects in Lorain. He used to think living to 35 was a good number. Growing up he remembers his friends being killed and using drugs. The navy opened Vic’s eyes to a different possibility. Overall, he looks back on his time in the military fondly, saying “there’s the good the bad, what you do with it is what you make of it”. He was glad to have had his time in the service, and to not have put much thought into joining it, or he may have backed out. Overall, he would not change his military service. El Centro ; New York ; Ohio Hispanic Veterans Memorial ; The Bronx In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Ortiz_Vic.xml LL_Ortiz_Vic.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0016 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Vic Ortiz Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-11-05 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/caa8d2d8100656fc869f6bd35baf8e55.pdf cd8357b7ad9d6c9dce6cc2b47a7b5a1f Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Lorain Arts Council Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Jane Rissover-Plotke Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived LorainCounty.com https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/1bdcb810a14a93e0159b72aceade6254.pdf c8912df3a54e862b883251623db9a10f Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Borinqueneers: The Forgotten Heroes of a Forgotten War Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Harry Franqui Rivera Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived centropr.hunter.cuny.edu Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Jane Rissover-Plotke https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/bf50aae23d2bbd61e5ebf40eb50e95d2.png aec13066eeec1d80388a7fe505658eee Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Amherst news-times. (Amherst, Ohio), 1990-10-03 Description An account of the resource C.H.I.P. president Dr. Saris E. Sagarra Jr. is honored with a citation from Governor Richard Celeste as a Distinguished Hispanic Ohioan. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Amherst Public Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1990-10-03 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Julia Rohde Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Online access is provided for research purposes only. For rights and reproduction requests to more information, go to http://www.ohiohistory.org/images/information https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/0d0ad8ad354e2115e4ebe2be3d8d1b18.png 34e2abe340afd1f2c8c1ebf97a9642fe Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Segarra honored with leadership recognition award Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Amherst Public Library Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1990-05-23 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Julia Rohde Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Online access is provided for research purposes only. For rights and reproduction requests or more information, go to http://www.ohiohistory.org/images/information https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/777c88d88fbc3a67bfb2443d27adf0f4.PNG a7c6d9b05597bb9f24f482fafa36b287 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Ava Carubia Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Rico Reveron OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Reveron_Rico.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Rico Reveron Latino Lorain Fall 2022 Oberlin College Library Rico Reveron Ava Carubia 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/hh63sv894 Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title=&quot ; Rico Reveron&quot ; src=&quot ; //media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/2b88qc22m/embed&quot ; width=&quot ; 600&quot ; height=&quot ; 337&quot ; frameborder=&quot ; 0&quot ; webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; 0 Introduction So I'm Ava Carubia, and I am interviewing Rico Reveron to talk about his life as part of the Latino Veterans Oral History Project. Thank you, Mr. Reveron, for agreeing to be interviewed. Can you please briefly state your name and birthdate? Interviewer and Reveron introduce themselves and establish that the interview is part of the Latino Lorain Veterans Oral History Project. Reveron begins to share some details from his early life in Santurce, Puerto Rico and Cleveland, Ohio. 67 Early Life in Humacao, Puerto Rico and Cleveland, Ohio So you just talked a little bit about your early life and I have some more questions about that. Can you tell me a little more about your parents, like what kind of jobs they had, and just growing up with your family? Mr. Reveron discusses his early life growing up in Humacao, Puerto Rico. Born in 1944, Mr. Reveron moved to Cleveland when he was 10 years old in October of 1954. Mr. Reveron recalls the distinctly clean smell of the Ohio air as he stepped off the plane. Upon his arrival in Cleveland, Mr. Reveron enrolled in Dunham Elementary School, where he was able to continue his 5th year of education training. Addison Junior High School ; Cleveland East High School ; Draft ; Dunham Elementary School ; Humacao, Puerto Rico ; Migration ; Punta Santiago ; Republic Steel ; Steel Mills ; U.S Air Force ; Vietnam War 484 Basic Training And what was it like there, in San Antonio, during basic training? After enlisting in the United States Air Force in 1965, Mr. Reveron was sent to San Antonio, Texas to complete his basic training. Mr. Reveron recalls that it was his discipline that allowed him to make it through the training with minimal problems. Upon completion of his basic training, Mr. Reveron was assigned to a medical squadron with the Air Force and was sent to Gunter Air Base in Montgomery, Alabama, to train as a medic. Gunter Air Force Base ; Montgomery, Alabama ; San Antonio, Texas ; Sheppard Air Force Base ; U.S Air Force ; Wichita Falls 694 Introduction to Wife And then during that time you had met...well she wasn't your wife yet... Mr. Reveron recalls meeting his wife, Mrs. Judy Reveron, in Cleveland in 1964, just before his departure to San Antonio, Texas. Mr. Reveron proposed to Mrs. Reveron in 1966, and the two later married in 1967. Air Force Hospital ; Montreal, Canada ; Utuado, Puerto Rico ; Wichita Falls 937 Military Life So what was life like on the base? I mean, you were not married for some of that time, right? After getting married in 1967, Mr. Reveron and Mrs Reveron moved to Wichita Falls, Texas so that Mr. Reveron could continue his military service. Shortly after moving to Texas as a married couple, Mr. and Mrs. Reveron gave birth to their first born daughter, Anna, in 1968. Mr. Reveron recalls how his wife had a difficult time acclimating to life on the military base. Discharge ; Sergeant 1078 Positive Memories of the Air Force And then out of all your service, what was the best thing about being in the military? Mr. Reveron shares his favorite parts about military life, citing free meals, medical treatment, and on-site support as his favorite military benefits. Although Mr. Reveron enjoyed his military benefits, he chose to not re-enlist, as Mrs. Reveron did not like military life. Dallas, Texas ; Denton University ; Denton, Texas ; San Antonio, Texas ; The Red River ; Wichita Mountains 1157 Experiences with Racism What was the most challenging thing about your service? Mr. Reveron recalls the racism he faced while training as a medic in Montgomery, Alabama. After spending the evening at the Airman's Officer Club, Mr. Reveron hailed a taxi cab with his fellow Airman, who was white. Mr. Reveron recalls how the white taxi driver refused to give Mr. Reveron a ride. The taxi driver said to Mr. Reveron, “I'll tell you what. I'll take you (Mr. Reveron’s white friend), but I'm not gonna take you cuz you're brown.” Alabama ; Discrimination ; Non-Enlisted Airman's Club ; Racism 1300 Military Service Comes to an End I know when you ended your service, your wife was relieved, but how did, how did you feel? I felt good, and I felt bad at the same time. I really liked military life...the instructional part and...the order and everything. I had just gotten promoted to sergeant before I got discharged, so I was happy that I had three stripes. Mr. Reveron discusses his initial disappointment at the end of his military service as well as his disappointment upon finally seeing The Alamo, a historic Spanish mission turned museum in San Antonio, Texas. Children ; Discharge ; San Antonio, Texas ; Sergeant ; The Alamo 1469 Lessons from Military Service and Retirement What's something you learned from your military service? I think I learned a lot about the rigidness of being in the service. We were taught how to fold our clothes in one way, how to hang them in a certain way, how to be diligent in the morning or the evenings, and how to pay attention to a lot of details - that has stayed with me throughout my life. Mr. Reveron shares how his time in the military taught him personal discipline, a trait that he later carried into his post-service life. Specifically, Mr. Reveron recalls how upon first leaving the military, he still continued to fold his clothing in the same ways taught to him in basic training. After retiring, Mr. Reveron decided to become a part-time usher for Cleveland sports teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Cleveland Guardians. Cleveland, Ohio ; Marriage ; Retirement 1775 Feelings about the Military How did your military service impact your feelings about the military in general? At every baseball game and every sporting event, we say the pledge of allegiance. And every time we play the pledge of allegiance, we take our hats off, and we stand our attention, and then we put our hands over our heart and fold the left hand behind us, and we listen to the national anthem and say the pledge of allegiance - that makes me feel proud. Mr. Reveron discusses the pride he feels when he hears the United States' Pledge of Allegiance and National Anthem during public sporting events. He describes other instances where he feels proud to be a veteran. Discharge ; National Anthem ; National Pride 1970 Responsibilities while stationed on Military Bases What were your responsibilities at the base? Basically, a lot of medical processing. As I mentioned earlier, Sheppard Air Base was known as a Psychiatric center. We used to get a lot of psychiatric patients. My job back then was mostly paperwork. We also interview and help with the administration. And, I'm meeting patients. I didn't do any psychiatric evaluations or anything like that. It was not a difficult job, but I got used to it. I remember one time, a patient was run over by the heat in front of the hospital, and we had to run outside and give first aid. Mr. Reveron recalls his main responsibilities while working at the Sheppard Air Force Base. Mr. Reveron assisted at the psychiatric facility and assisted the administration with processing paperwork. Medical care ; Psychiatric care ; Sheppard Air Force Base 2046 Message for Future Generations What message would you like to leave for future generations? Please, please get in touch with your congressman, senators and President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Write letters, make phone calls and urge them to support the effort of Puerto Rico being the 51st state of the United States. I, my community, and now my grandchildren are all in college except one high school. And I urged them all to continue their effort to help Puerto Rico become the next state. Mr. Reveron shares his lifelong work to advocate for the civic inclusion of Puerto Rico and urges viewers to call their congress people to support Puerto Rico in its efforts to become the 51st State of America. Mr. Reveron details the history of Puerto Rican immigration into the United States via the Jones Act of 1920 as well as the hypocrisy that Puerto Ricans can serve in the United States military, but are unable to vote in federal elections. Mr. Reveron highlights how Puerto Rico is predominantly affiliated with the Democrat Party, while those in congress opposing the inclusion of Puerto Rico as the 51st State of America are predominantly affiliated with the Republican Party. Jones Act ; Migration ; Puerto Rico ; Statehood 2565 Personal Documents, Photos, and Artifacts I was wondering if you wanted to share some of your documents? This picture was taken in the spring of 1967 at the Shepherd Air Force Base flight line. This was a training airplane. It was an F-104. And the plane was ready to scramble. I was not a pilot, but I was allowed to go on the flight line. My friends and I used to take our cameras and just roam around the Air Force base. A lot of people didn't know this, but Shepherd Air Force Base back then was a tactical air training base. When you train the German Air Force or the Iranian Air Force, they used to come to Shepherd Air Force Bay to be trained as helicopter pilots and as jet pilots. The base constantly had helicopters flying all over the time and jets playing, taking off and coming back because it was a training base. Mr. Reveron shares personal photos, artifacts, and documents from his time in the military, as well as of his early life in Lorain. These photos, artifacts, and documents include military vaccination records, military dischargement certificates, wedding photos, and more. 65th Infantry of Puerto Rico ; Marriage ; Sheppard Air Force Base In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Reveron_Rico.xml LL_Reveron_Rico.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0018 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rico Reveron Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-10-29 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b41203624adb5c45a75eaaccb5a40979.jpg c81dd5c3cdbc1001f8edb6eeef43636a Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia's First Day in Hawaii https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/6c90b89429ea6f3ee1496bd136663d75.jpg 93892a9fccb2a56005444c0e96ffc0de Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia Portrait 2 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/30244fc56d9d7026c91bd59314634661.jpg 8d6ebdb2d3275bf1987c361470659786 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia Portrait 1 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/85e1756e581b93a5ac4747dd088b403e.jpg dd5d77193615fef5be118e3876930711 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia Navy Headshot https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/bc2215e360108558631df1a91a38f465.jpg f91f502fdc8bda2582c746eae36ccd63 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia in Phillipines https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/4961b0b6d1055a0594c7050ff7bf9e8a.jpg 8d6ebdb2d3275bf1987c361470659786 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/7b75d8c40dc002391939b2b8b0cf66ac.jpg 8d6ebdb2d3275bf1987c361470659786 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Stephanie Mata Granados Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Raul Garcia OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Garcia_Raul.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 0203-10-28 Raul Garcia 01:14:27 Latino Lorain Latino Veterans Fall 2023 Oberlin College Libraries oberlin Raul Garcia Stephanie Mata Granados 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/xw42n792v Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title="Raul Garcia" src="//media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/j3860697r/embed" width="600" height="337" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; English 0 Introduction Hello. I am Stephanie Mata Granados and I'm interviewing Raul Garcia to talk about his life as part of the Latino Veterans Oral History Project. Thank you, Mr. Garcia, for agreeing to be interviewed. Could you please state your name and your birthdate? Stephanie Mata Granados introduces Raul Garcia who is being interviewed for the Latino Lorain Veteran History Project, which is a collaboration between the Lorain Historical Society and Oberlin College. The interview takes place in the Lorain Historical Society. Latino Lorain Oral History Project ; Lorain Historical Society 0 36 Family So the first question I have for you today is just if you could ask, if you could tell me, um, where you were born and where you grew up. Raul Garcia discusses his early life in Lorain and his experiences with his parents and 5 siblings. US Marine Corps ; Utah ; Mexico ; siblings 0 201 Early Life Then what about just life in general for you and your family? What was that like growing up? Mr. Garcia describes growing up in Lorain as a place with people of “all nationalities.” He also discusses community clubs, organizations, and life in Lorain during the civil rights movement. The Gents multicultural club ; civil rights ; Lorain 0 313 Dance and Music What were some of the things that you would do besides parties? Like, what was, like, would you guys organize in some way? Raul Garcia shares that weekly dances were a major way that Mr. Garcia’s club, The Gents, would create community. dance ; the Gents 0 409 Mentors and Role Models And what about some of your mentors or role models? Did you have any growing up? So like, could you tell us more about them? Mr. Garcia talks about some of his role models growing up, including President John F. Kennedy, his uncles, and brothers. Additionally, Mr. Garcia points out that TV’s glorification of the military contributed to people’s perception of the military as cool. &#13 ; &#13 ; John F. Kennedy ; Better American ; family ; TV 0 540 Coming Back From War When my uncles went in, I think they were both drafted. They come out, uh, better people. Mr. Garcia recalls that his uncles and brother came out of war as better people, but they also didn’t talk about their experiences in war. However, he did witness them being verbally mistreated by people who didn’t approve of their participation in war. Mr. Garcia also shares about his inability to talk about his service, except with his old squadrons. Korean War ; Vietnam War ; secret missions ; FaceBook ; social media 0 840 Service Beyond the Military Yeah. So thank you for that. I appreciate hearing about like, early life and then delving into a little bit later, but that's awesome. Yeah. I'd love to hear it all. Um, yeah. So we kind of talked about how you first began to think about military service, like through your role models, like, um, people on TV and your uncles. Was there anything else you would like to share about that?&#13 ; Mr. Garcia says he wanted to serve his country because it’s something he loved to do. In fact, he continued to serve his country in other ways after he stopped serving in the military. corrections officer ; military police ; post office ; human services 0 1025 Time in the Military So speaking specifically about your service, what was the branch that you entered and why specifically that Mr. Garcia shares that he was in the navy, in which he traveled the world and came across different living conditions. He remembers having a good time during his basic training, although this wasn’t the case for all the men there. US Navy ; Hawaii ; Alaska ; Hong Kong ; Australia ; Italy ; Spain ; FaceBook ; Great Lakes ; Chicago 0 1484 How Background Impacts Service What were some of the emotions that you had during boot camp? For Mr. Garcia, basic training and boot camp felt like a playground, especially because of the way he was brought up. basic training ; bootcamp ; orders 0 1769 Being Away From Home Was the basic training your first time away from home? Mr. Garcia shares that basic training was the first time that he was away from home and it was wonderful because he was able to see the world and how other people lived. leaving home 0 1842 Memorable Stories of Service What is your most vivid, vivid memory of your time? Training or in school? Raul Garcia remembers when his aircraft caught on fire while he was serving in the US Air Force. US Air Force ; emergency landing 0 2124 A Favorite Part of Service Oh God. when you start walking home. I don't know. Um, but yeah. Uh, thank you for talking about that aspect of your life. Now we would like to talk more about your wartime service, which you've been talking about already, but just some further questions. Mm-Hmm. Um, we talked about a little bit about what you loved most about your time in Hawaii, maybe. Was there any other, like best part of your service overall or like your favorite part of service overall? One of Mr. Garcia’s favorite parts of his service was in Adak, Alaska. He shares a specific favorite memory of bald eagles that were following him. &#13 ; Adak, Alaska ; submarines ; Russia ; bald eagle 0 2339 Difficult Times of Service What about, um, like, oh, like you said before, there are good and bad parts of, of life. That's life, so it's great to hear about that, like favorite memory. But what about, was there like a time that wasn't so great? Or maybe that was difficult, like a challenge? Mr. Garcia recalls that one of the hardest parts of his service was flying in the military planes. Regardless, it was challenging and made him stronger because it taught him where his limits were and therefore taught him who he was. He finds comparisons between this lesson that he learned in the military and the lessons that he and his wife give their daughter.&#13 ; military planes ; submarine ; family ; college ; help 0 2758 Leaving the Military How did it feel ending service? Mr. Garcia describes that when he left the military he continued to do some work in Europe, but eventually had to leave to start planning his life. He mentions that he and other veterans on FaceBook say the same thing, including that if they could, they would go back and serve on their aircrafts. Mr. Garcia also mentions that his service never ends because of constant reminders of his experiences in the military. &#13 ; Military service ; reserves ; Rome ; Italy ; Spain ; FaceBook ; Fourth of July ; Veterans Day ; Dreams ; Lorain 0 3210 Legacy With that, with like generations coming, we were talking about this earlier, but do you feel like generations after you are also joining the military? Or do you feel like you're setting that example? Raul Garcia shares that his son is now interested in joining the military as well. Mr. Garcia explains how military service for Latinos is intertwined with Latino values of family, respect, and protection. He also discusses how family sets the foundation for people. son ; uncles ; grandfather ; Mexican Revolution ; protecting family ; respect 0 3460 The Impact of Military So we would like to know how your experiences in the military changed you. Mr. Garcia shares that being in the military made him into something he always wanted to be. Lorain ; US Military ; travel 0 3662 Life Lessons Speaking of life lessons, we've talked a lot about different ones that you've learned that have. Are there any others that you'd like to share? Mr. Garcia shares the life lesson of respecting your family as much as possible and to not turn on each other, but instead to resolve problems, something that was reinforced in the military. He also tells a personal anecdote of a time when he embraced this life lesson. respect ; family ; military ; sailor ; help 0 4060 Military Service’s Impact on Feelings Surrounding War and Military We'd also like to know more about how your military service impacted your feelings about war and the military in general. Raul Garcia talks about how the military has strengthened the ways that he interacts with current war and the concept of protection. war ; home ; gratitude ; prepared ; protect 0 4305 Advice for Future Generations I appreciate all the wisdom that you have. I mean, brought here today. Uh, one of the final questions that we have is what message do you want to give to future generations that may come across this interview, that will watch this interview? Mr. Garcia’s advice to future generations that will watch this interview is that you learn by making mistakes, and when those mistakes happen, just get up and keep going. He wishes everyone good luck. mistakes ; personal growth 0 4391 Last Remarks Awesome. Uh, so just to wrap up, I wanna ask you if there's anything else that you would like to talk about, um, or that you want people to remember about your story, your family, um, before we end the interview? Mr. Garcia shares that he tells his kids that they should serve their country at least for a year or two. This is a way of giving a part of yourself to your country and community and it’ll make you a better person. service ; national service ; community 0 Oral History In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Garcia_Raul.xml LL_Garcia_Raul.xml Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Raul Garcia Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2023-10-28 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/c4c5c7ced91ae9e59679cd331dcbe6ab.pdf fbcdb606778995c0155f0a2d4f2fe08b Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document With great cheers, attendees at the Lorain International Festival Breakfast June 22, 2009 voiced a shared sentiment of pride in the Puerto Rican culture. The second keynote speaker, José Feliciano, vocalized the ethnic pride the best when he emphasized "All Puerto Ricans are U.S. citizens," and when he reiterated "soy un Jibaro." The audience would reply with beaming faces and a roar of applause. As this year's spotlighted nationality went to the Puerto Ricans, this year's Breakfast would pay tribute to the Puerto Rican culture by chronicling its past, present, and looking toward its future. Loud cheers filled the DeLucas Place in the Park hall when U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown called U.S. Supreme Court Justice nominee Sonia Sotomayor humble and highly qualified. 'This could make all of you who are Puerto Rican proud and could make all us Americans proud: she has had more experience as a judge than anyone that's been nominated for the United States Supreme Court in the last 100 years," Brown said. The Breakfast had two keynote speakers-Eugenio "Gene" Rivera, a clinical social worker in Connecticut, and Feliciano, chairman of the Hispanic Roundtable. Rivera, of Ponce, spoke about the "genesis" of the Puerto Rican community in Lorain. Feliciano, of Yauco, spoke about the Puerto Ricans' current significance and future as a growing community. Rivera wrote about the first Puerto Ricans to settle in Lorain, published in the book The Puerto Rican Diaspora: Historical Perspectives. He said the first busload of Puerto Ricans arrived in Lorain in the late 1940s. Roughly 200 lived within the barracks at the Lorain National Tube and worked the steel mills. Unable to speak English and having to adapt to a new, colder climate posed a great challenge for the early Puerto Ricans to settle in Lorain. But their problems did not end there, Rivera explained. Housing was scarce, and their social and religious needs were not being met, Rivera said. But by 1954, the number of Puerto Ricans in Lorain would quickly grow to 2,700, and with growing numbers came great housing expansions. Without the approval of Lorain City Council, the early Puerto Ricans began to construct houses extending multiple streets in an area they called "El Campito." The Puerto Rican and city leaders soon resolved their legal disputes, and the housing district grew, Rivera said. La Capilla del Sagrado Corazon opened soon after, serving their religious needs. Rivera said places like the Puerto Rican Home and other organizations brought national media attention and welcomed important political and athletic figures. "Our people brought, most importantly, a culture and a history," Rivera said. The early Puerto Ricans brought a new style of music when constructing their cuatros made of different kinds of woods, Rivera said. "That is the genesis of our community. We have actually done wonderful things with very little resources," Rivera said "We honor our first generation...they laid the foundation for all of us to be here," Rivera said. Feliciano followed by emphasizing how the current political status of Puerto Rico as a commonwealth, or its partnership with the United States greatly affects and shapes Puerto Ricans. He focused his speech on trying to define who Puerto Ricans are and what they have accomplished. "Most Puerto Ricans know this but I do this for our good friends, los Americanos," Feliciano said. "Let me state this loudly and clear that all Puerto Ricans are (U.S.) citizens," he said, as the crowd cheered. Feliciano continued "U.S. citizenship is a precious asset to us, however it's something for which we Puerto Ricans have paid a very high price," he said, referring to the many Puerto Rican military men and women who have died serving in combat. Feliciano proudly described the Puerto Rican community as family-oriented, religious, and having a rich culture. He added their political and economic power as a community is growing as Latinos are the largest, and fastest growing minority in the U.S. "It's a joy to be Puerto Rican," Feliciano said, "Be assured that we love our country, both of them, and that's a paradox at least," Feliciano said. José Candelario, Lorain County Board of Elections director and of Puerto Rican descent, left the Breakfast event satisfied. "The speakers had a good connection between where we come from as a community and where we are today," Candelario, who hosted the event, said "What's exciting is for tomorrow. We still get to write that," he said. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Puerto Ricans' current and past successes highlighted at breakfast Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ingrid Marie Rivera Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived La Prensa Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource June 26, 2009 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource newsletter https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/36990d41873229bbf414d1f255b32b05.pdf 377e0919573bb12e0131d7801cd455dd Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document Lorain: The Puerto Rican Home Club celebrated its 50th year anniversary with a highly successful weekend festival, Aug. 10-12, 2007, according to OCHLA Commissioner Richard Romero. According to Romero, "the Club has been planning this celebration for some time now." Current Officers of the Club are: José "Mon" Rivera (Pres.), Juan "Berto" Silva (Vice Pres.), Rosie Reyes (Treasurer), Evelyn Vázquez (Secretary), and Nelson Rosas (Chair of Activities); Counselors include: Luis "Lilo" Salva and William Visalden; Sergeant at Arms are: Raúl García, Gilberto Vásquez, and Armando Rivera. Vocal Trustees include: Milton Velásquez, Pedro Velásquez, and Armando Rivera. Photos also on page 1 and at www.laprensal.com Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Puerto Rican Home Club turns 50 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available La Prensa Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource August 17, 2007 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource newletter article https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/aa4970d290e16837f2e9d568a8ca0488.png f9139f4035ea43229eaa0112e2a8b875 Website A resource comprising of a web page or web pages and all related assets ( such as images, sound and video files, etc. ). Local URL The URL of the local directory containing all assets of the website https://cfs.osu.edu/archives/collections/ONLO/anabel-barron-sanchez Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral Narratives of Latin@s in Ohio: Anabel Barron Sanchez Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Center for Folklore Studies Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived <a href="https://cfs.osu.edu/archives/collections/ONLO/anabel-barron-sanchez" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Ohio State University</a> Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kahtia Moyotl Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2015 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/44494e4f3573f3c87eca468da9ca89b1.pdf d84cf3f111508994c4fcd96edfa7c36c Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document LUIS R. CRUZ Luis R. Cruz, 78, of Lorain, OH, died Saturday, Oct. 21, 2006, in the emergency room at Community Health Partners Hospital, Lorain, following a sudden illness. He was born Sept. 9, 1928, in Coamo, Puerto Rico. He lived in New York, New Jersey and Florida before coming to Lorain more than 55 years ago. Cruz was a founding member of the Puerto Rican Home, where he served as president from 1956 through 1966, and a founding member of Club Coameno. He received a congressional recognition certificate for meeting the needs of the Puerto Rican community from 1947 through 1967. He was employed as a balancer and utility man at Ford Motor Co., Brook Park, for 31 years, retiring in 1981. Before that he was a railroad worker. He helped establish a fast-pitch softball league and several teams at Oakwood Park in Lorain and coached the Coamo fast-pitch softball team. Cruz was a member of Sacred Heart Chapel, Lorain, and United Auto Workers Union Local 1250 and enjoyed gardening, baseball and walking. Survivors include his wife of 13 years, Anna M. (née Sepulvida); sons Luis Cruz of Vermilion and Arturo "Tito" Cruz and Roberto "Bobbie" Cruz, both of Lorain; daughters Nancy Molina, Carmen Cruz and Joann Cato Cruz, all of Lorain; stepsons Paul Flores Jr. of Elyria and Dennis Flores and Johnny Flores, both of Lorain; stepdaughters Mary Flores of Lorain and Grace Carlson of North Ridgeville; brothers Roberto Guzmán and Luis F. Ralat, both of Villalba, Puerto Rico, and Reynaldo Ralat of Lorain; sisters Carmen M. Pérez of Newark, N.J., and Gloria Colón of Guayama, Puerto Rico; and 15 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Guadalupe Barrio Cruz in 1989 and Carmen (née Rivas) Cruz in 1997; and a brother, Oscar Ralat, in 1973. CARMEN C. FLORES Carmen "Mamá" C. Flores (née Caraballo), 81, of Lorain, OH, died Thursday, Oct. 12, 2006, at the Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, after a long illness. She was born Nov. 1, 1924, in Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico. She moved to Lorain from Puerto Rico 55 years ago. She had devoted her time to her home and family. She was a member of Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal Ebenezer and enjoyed gardening, sewing, and cooking. Survivors include her sons Gasper Jr. and Germán, both of Pinellas Park, Fla.; daughters Margarita Rodríguez of Long Island, N.Y., and Marian Mounts and Matilda Lamberty, both of Lorain; brothers Fídel Jr. and Vidal, both of Puerto Rico; sisters Dominga, Sara, Lubina and Eva, all of Puerto Rico; and 14 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Gasper Flores, in April 1993; daughter, Nilsa Toro, in November 2000; a grandson; and her parents, Fidel and Jova (née Feliciano) Caraballo. EDUARDO FLORES JR. Eduardo Flores Jr., 45, of Bowling Green, OH, died Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2006, at his residence. Arrangements are pending at Smith-Crates Funeral Home, North Baltimore. EXIQUIO GARCÍA Exiquio "Pete" García passed away on October 3, 2006, at the Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. He was 86 years old. He was born on November 18, 1919, in Guanajuato, México and along with other family members settled in Kerrville, Texas. Exiquio joined the U.S. Navy during WW II. In 1950, he moved to Toledo, Ohio and eventually opened García's Dry Cleaners and Tailor Shop in the Old South End where he was a master tailor. He worked for several clothing stores in Toledo including Tiedke's. In 1978 he returned to Kerrville with his wife, Mary and his sons, Edward and Eli where he continued his tailoring business until his retirement. Among his traits, Exiquio had an insightful sense of humor and was a resourceful man who believed in pursuing ones dream and making good use of ones time and talents. He was a loving father and will be sorely missed. His ashes were interred at the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. Exiquio is survived by his wife, Mary of 54 years and sons, Edward (Bobbie) and Eli (Lupe); sons, Raymond (Espe) and Exiquio, Jr. (Marylou) whose mother was Esperanza Gutiérrez (deceased); sons, Robert (Maureen), Richard (Kathy), and Raul (Pat) whose mother was Alicia Gonzáles (deceased). In addition, he is survived by his brother, Evodio García (Dora); sisters, Felicitas DeAnda (Lupe), Jaunita Vargas and Susie Portiflo (Pete) and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by brothers, Francisco García (Christine), Frank Juárez (Mary) and sister, Luisa Ayala (Santana). LOUIS J. LÓPEZ Louis J. López, 94, of Lorain, OH, died Saturday, Oct. 14, 2006, at Community Health Partners Hospital, Lorain, following a short illness. He was born Aug. 20, 1912, in Michoacán, México. He lived in Texas for a short time before moving to Lorain in 1924, where he has lived since. López was employed at U.S. Steel's Lorain Works as a scalfer for 33 years, retiring in 1973. He enjoyed writing to area newspapers and to local, state and federal governments. He was a member of United Steel workers Local 1104 of Lorain. Survivors include his sons, David López, Patrick López, Christopher López and John López, all of Lorain; daughters Isabel Velazquez of Lorain and Alicia López of Steubenville; and seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his brother, Felipe López; and a sister, Mercedes Lupe. HELEN P. OSOWIK Helen P. Osowik died Friday, October 20, 2006, in Aspen Grove Assisted Living, Lambertville, MI, at the age of 88. She was born March 25, 1918, and was the last surviving child of Louis and Tekla Billick's eight children. Mrs. Osowik worked at Sheraton Westgate, retiring in 1985, and spent most of her time enjoying her family. She is preceded in death by her son, John and is survived by her sons, Dennis (Carol) and Thomas (Rosmarie) Osowik; and grandsons, Michael, Peter, Charlie and Frank Osowik. FRANCISCO L. RAMIREZ Francisco L. Ramirez 36, of Winter Haven, FL and formerly of Findlay, OH, passed away on Sunday, October 15, 2006 at 5:30 p.m. Frank was born on July 30, 1970 in Findlay, OH and graduated from Findlay High School in 1989. He is survived by his beloved mother and stepfather, Norma (Mike) Foreman, Huntertown, IN; his father, Mario Ramirez of Pandora, OH and a daughter, Alexis H. Ramirez of Leipsic, OH. He is also survived by a brother, Isreal and two sisters, Christina Ramirez and Blanca (Dan) Myers, all of Findlay, OH. Frank was employed at Buckhead Beef in Auburndale, FL as a meat cutter. He enjoyed NASCAR racing, watching football, and fishing. He was quick to smile and offer a lending hand. He touched many lives and will be greatly missed by his family and friends. JULIA AYALA REYES Julia Ayala Reyes, 68, of Lorain, died Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2006, in Golden Acres Nursing Home, Amherst, following a lengthy illness. She was born Dec. 22, 1937, in Sabana Seca, Puerto Rico. She moved to Lorain in 1960 and to New Briton, Conn., in 1978, returning to Lorain in 1993. Mrs. Reyes enjoyed singing Puerto Rican folk songs, camping and bingo. She was a member of Sacred Heart Chapel, Lorain, and a helper in the church kitchen. She had been employed as a housekeeper at the University of Connecticut Medical Center for 15 years. Survivors include her husband of 55 years, Ramón Reyes; son, Miguel Reyes of Columbia Station; daughter Nilda Morales of Lorain; brothers Frank Ayala of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, Wilson Ayala of Sabana Seca and Antonio Ayala of Rochester, N.Y.; sisters Juana Ayala and Luz Virginia Ayala, both of Sabana Seca, and Severiana Ayala of Rochester; and two grandsons. She was preceded in death by her parents, Luis and Natividad (née Pérez) Ayala, and several brothers and sisters. CRUZ G. RUIZ Sr. Cruz G. Ruiz Sr., 85, of Toledo, OH, passed away Friday, October 20, 2006, in his home. Cruz was born in Chihuahua, México on May 3, 1921, to Salvador and Josefina (Gallardo) Ruiz. Mr. Ruiz was employed by Doehler Jarvis, retiring in 1978. He also was a member of Sts. Peter and Paul Church. Cruz is survived by his daughters, Mary (Enrique) Canales, Josephine Gartee, Alisia (Tony Navarro) Ruiz, Rita (Francisco Vásquez) Ruiz, and Isabel "Kitty" (Harold) Young; sons, Abelino (Jeanne), Guadalupe (María), Pedro (Estella), Tony and Cruz (Nancy) Ruiz Jr.; brothers, Raimundo Dominguez, Tom Navarro, Abelino, Timio, Salvador, Santos, and George Ruiz; sister, Angelina González and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and wife, Isabel. Our readers are free to submit obituaries via email at: latinoprensa@yahoo.com at no cost to the reader. 2005-6 Obituaries also available online at www.laprensal.com. Gracias! Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Obituaries, 25 October 2006 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived La Prensa Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 25, 2006 Language A language of the resource English https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/e9017379e99f14e993da9b724cbf06c9.PNG 104aba205b7aeb9aaec9510763c74666 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Newspaper Article - Sacred Heart Chapel Fire https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/d53a1effc6ff0b58cb7f152b6ee249a3.JPG 6c705349a675e9e9b2058d1904cb7a98 Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data photo Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource New York Puerto Rican Parade Description An account of the resource Photo of Victor Leandry alongside his daughter at the New York Puerto Rican Parade. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Victor Leandry Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource jpg Type The nature or genre of the resource photo https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/940a068370650014c33716484ca5b01d.pdf bc8053a07c85f7f6598101c6a8521edd Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data paper Text Any textual data included in the document "BOOM TOWN. Overcrowding and substandard housing are symptoms of Lorain's rapid postwar boom. Top left: Two National Tube Co. 'in-migrants,' Leon Lake, jr., (on bed) and Carlos Gower, in the room they have shared with as many as five other men. Top right: Lake points to a rotting fire hose on a floor housing 40 men. The valve was on, but no water came. Below right: White barracks house Puerto Rican laborers on steel company property." Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource National Tube Co. Housing Photos Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Cleveland Plain Dealer Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 27, 1948 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Language A language of the resource English Type The nature or genre of the resource Newspaper article Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Pearl Puzak https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/8d58c652feac4b498d041f55e5a2f92b.pdf cd79d6f36e07bb25dfc8a0a3fbecc41d Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Morning Journal Newspaper Article on Victor Leandry Description An account of the resource Newspaper article about the work Victor Leandry and El Centro do in Lorain to help the Hispanic community. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Kaylee Remington Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Victor Leandry Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Morning Journal Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource pdf Type The nature or genre of the resource newspaper https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b0b1f8e6e51ac7f7e7762e21d14c8899.png 337a1b7ce50ca920370bc99123000fa6 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Morell Collage 3 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/b3b3b2a53a0b5385c824b53693a85c31.png 57c26e9eaa2326d341228242c416198f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. 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Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer Description An account of the resource Test description Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer Portrait 2 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/2f99afb1be020449df0c617ea44bab14.jpg e6defaf3c47c1a0d3caab8fba6b29ced Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer Description An account of the resource Test description Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer Portrait 1 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/21f2c4ddf3003b0e1070a9616ffd1d27.jpg 369a7fa7021880a4925b4d3436ef618d https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/7329056de03dc3d3851402f0ca9c1c49.jpg af4365202642109e37b2459ea88950fd Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer at Fort Totten Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource (Queens, New York) February 1984 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/f1b4362936da310d4a85101ef9655fa7.jpg 4625b8eff6d747ba4a3b26af30e467cf https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/d5442d69c5eaf6608f259f7fc5c837ba.jpg 3f3e59a5b7690aff8366bdada7a4c075 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer at Fort Drum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource (New York) February 1984 https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/73f1c01c3f86b4d579e996be61dcb5f9.jpg 6115e25d0cef15eaef09b8e40c1a1789 Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Walter Thomas-Patterson Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Mike Ferrer OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Ferrer_Mike.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Mike Ferrer 01:31:07 Latino Lorain Latino Veterans Fall 2023 Oberlin College Libraries oberlin Mike Ferrer Walter Thomas-Patterson 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/9c67wm83m Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title="Mike Ferrer" src="//media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/6682x398c/embed" width="600" height="337" frameborder="0" webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; English 77 Introduction Hello my name is Walter Thomas-Patterson, and I am here with Mike Ferrer to interview him as part of the Latino Veterans Oral History Project, and for the record can you state your name and birth date Ferrer states his name and birthdate. The interview setting is the Lorain Historical Society.&#13 ; Lorain Historical Society ; Latino Veterans ; Oral History Project. 0 78 Childhood in New York City Where were you born and where did you grow up Ferrer discusses his early life and his family growing up as being one of four boys living. His family lived in the boroughs of Manhattan and Queens in New York. He stated that his biological father was mostly out-of-the-picture ; Ferrer recalled one time when his father picked him up from school, which was a notable event. Ferrer stated that his mother was from Sabana Grande, a small town in Puerto Rico ; she was the one who mainly raised him.&#13 ; &#13 ; His upbringing in New York during the 1960s was chaotic. He recalls "playing on the roofs of Manhattan, gangs everywhere, people threatening to take your lunch money,” and that his schooling was marked by inconsistency: “we switched schools every year, year-and-a-half maybe.” Ferrer stated that his schools in New York were predominantly African-American. He stated that in reference to his childhood in New York City: “you never think you’re having a bad childhood when you have so many crumpled buildings to play in.”&#13 ; Manhattan, New York ; Sabana Grande, Puerto Rico ; childhood ; Lorain. 0 79 Childhood in Lorain, Ohio We came to Lorain for a very strange reason. The family moved out of New York City after one of his brothers started robbing department stores and was eventually caught by police. His mother, determined to not have another one of her children descend into crime, decided to move the family to Lorain, Ohio, where his grandmother lived.&#13 ; &#13 ; Ferrer explained that his upbringing living in South Lorain was “docile” compared to the streets of New York. Ferrer recalls being amazed by the grassy lawns that dotted the sidewalks in his neighborhood, and his perception of less crime. His mother remarried while they were in Ohio, and Ferrer started working for his Uncle who owned a bakery.&#13 ; &#13 ; Ferrer added that more broadly during his childhood, his family tended to avoid discussing difficult or uncomfortable topics ; “we never dealt with issues, we never discussed problems,” he stated. The general expectation was to toughen up and face the circumstances you were given, he reiterated.&#13 ; &#13 ; He stated that during high school, although he had trouble with tardiness, he was able to immerse himself in theater and take classes on Shakespeare and Greek.&#13 ; Migration ; crime ; family ; theater ; friends ; high school ; Shakespeare 0 153 Race in his Early Life How was race talked about in your early life? He mentions that he never remembers being subject to racism in New York: “I do not ever remember being subjected to racism. It was always ‘punk kid,’ but never ‘punk, Puerto Rican kid.’&#13 ; race ; racism ; New York City ; African-Americans 0 222 Life in College What was your experience in College? Ferrer says that he did not consider applying to college, and he envisioned himself staying near his home and playing basketball post-high school. However, his mother and his English teacher worked together and applied to Bowling Green State University for him. Ferrer recalled receiving a letter in the mail with his acceptance.&#13 ; &#13 ; During his time at Bowling Green, Ferrer became involved in the Latino Student Union at Bowling Green, where he wrote speeches and other literature for their activities.&#13 ; &#13 ; He noted that he became more distant from his Puerto Rican identity in College, stating that he struggled to reconcile the version of obedience that his mother and relatives taught him when speaking to authority figures (teachers and cops): “they always looked down at the ground,” which Ferrer assumed meant “they were either afraid or they were ashamed to be Hispanic.” Ferrer explained that his perception of hispanic subservience troubled him during college, and that as a result, his Puerto Rican identity became a source of shame. “I don’t wanna be Hispanic in college because I’m not subservient to anybody.” Ferrer clarified that his name gained a variety of ethnic connotations as a result: “so Ferrer was either French or Italian. . . but never Puerto Rican.” He says that the only people that knew he was Hispanic were his fellow classmates in the Latino Student Union.&#13 ; College ; Bowling Green State University ; Latino Student Union ; Hispanic identity 0 282 Military Service It was my last semester, and we were partyin. Ferrer said that he struggled during his final semester in college ; he was failing his courses and hanging out with friends who would party late into the night. One day during his final semester, he stumbled upon a military recruiter stationed on his college campus, and recalled addressing the recruiter: “yo man, if you can get me out of this semester in a week, I will join the military.” Ferrer said that his decision to join the military was not motivated by a patriotic duty ; rather, he saw it as an opportunity to escape his current circumstances. He traveled to Ft. Jackson in North Carolina to prepare for Basic Training, which he described as quite comfortable relative to what came next.&#13 ; &#13 ; After his time in North Carolina, Ferrer traveled to Ft. Campbell Kentucky for Basic Training for six weeks. He recalls being roused from his barracks early in the morning and whisked onto a bus to Fort Campbell. Upon arriving at Fort Campbell Kentucky, he recalled encountering drill sergeants for the first time, who rushed on the bus and started yelling. This experience was emblematic of what the next six weeks became for him. According to Ferrer, this time, “was the scariest time of my life, but it was also the first time I understood what discipline was.”&#13 ; &#13 ; Later, Ferrer recalled how his time in Basic Training helped him clarify the difference between obedience through fear, which his mother instilled in him, and obedience through discipline, which he began to internalize during basic training.&#13 ; 0 329 Joining the Commander and Chief's Guard When I get back to the barracks, there is this guy standing by the shower. During his time in advanced individual training, which came after basic training, Ferrer was recruited to join the Commander and Chief’s Guard, which is the personal escort of the United States President. Ferrer recalled receiving a top-secret White House Clearance for this job.&#13 ; &#13 ; Ferrer said there were a number of different roles he was expected to carry out on a daily basis. He took part in ceremonies and events involving the president. He saluted the president if, for example, the president was entering or leaving a specific area. He was also expected to march by the presidential motorcade.&#13 ; &#13 ; If a U.S. soldier was killed in action, his unit was expected to carry the casket of the deceased. Ferrer participated in Arlington National Cemetery Memorials and remembers standing by the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Once a year, he took part in putting flags in front of every single gravestone in Arlington National Cemetery, which he remembered being an especially tedious task.&#13 ; &#13 ; In addition to his roles in Washington D.C, Ferrer remembered participating in ceremonies in Virginia to welcome foreign dignitaries to the United States, who arrived at different Virginia military bases. He remembered the tremendous amount of preparation and attention-to-detail he had to practice to be prepared.&#13 ; &#13 ; Beyond his ceremonial roles, Ferrer participated in a traveling show called the “Spirit of America.” as part of the Commander and Chief’s Guard. They would travel the country and perform military reenactments of the Revolutionary War—dressing up as colonial and British soldiers and firing their prop muskets at one another. Ferrer recalled the elaborate choreography and presentation skills that these shows involved.&#13 ; &#13 ; Serving in the Commander and Chief’s Guard was a sought-after position, and Ferrer said that if soldiers dropped their rifle, then they were transferred out of the unit Korea. This was a common occurrence for many soldiers, Ferrer stated, because they could easily pass out if they locked their knees while standing.&#13 ; &#13 ; Ferrer eventually left the Commander and Chief’s Guard after his daughter was born. &#13 ; Commander and Chief’s Guard ; Arlington National Cemetery ; Washington D.C. 0 396 Leaving the Military When I got out, I decided I’m gonna go back to college. Ferrer explained that after being discharged from the military, he was more mature ; he received straight A’s in his final semester and graduated. He said that his experience in the military was transformative because of the lessons it taught him about discipline. He started grant-writing for local organizations, but initially struggled to find his calling. Fortunately however, he was offered a job as director of the youth center in Lorain. Even though he took a significant pay cut, he quickly fell in love with his job. Most notably, he started a theater program that ran successfully for fifteen years.&#13 ; 0 442 Lessons from the Military Can you describe how your time in the military informed your work? “In the military, you cannot fail,” Ferrer declared, “You assume that every mission you were given, you were going to do.” The rigid nature of the military command structure, where failure was not an option, motivated his later desire to work with underprivileged kids in Lorain who were vulnerable to joining organized crime. Ferrer inserted this sense of order into his teaching practice. Additionally, he incorporated the physicality of military instruction into his positions as a community organizer in Lorain.&#13 ; &#13 ; Ferrer described that on a psychological level, his ability to distance himself from negative and destructive thoughts that would previously feel overwhelming were another critical lesson from the military. His ability to dissociate from feelings of anger is a key psychological practice that he has passed on to his mentees.&#13 ; Military discipline ; theater ; workforce development agency ; mentorship. 0 503 Perception of Military I think any experience can be good or bad, it depends on who your mentors are ; who your associates are ; who you hang out with, how easily it is for people to get on your head. Ferrer emphasized that the military was not a cure-all for society ills, but it was an opportunity for building character and responsibility. It helped develop young people’s sense of pride, but crucially, only if those buy into the structure that it provides: “It’s what you make of it,” Ferrer said. Ferrer added that from his perception, the military played a crucial role in removing kids he knew from toxic home lives, where they were especially vulnerable: "In my book, the military has saved 27 kids.” Ferrer summarized that he doesn’t attach a value-judgment to the military, rather, it gives people an opportunity, and they can choose what they want to make with that.&#13 ; Family ; military and character building ; opportunity 0 572 On Himself as a Latino and a Veteran Now everywhere I go and everything I do, there is not a person I know who doesn’t know that I’m Puerto Rican. Ferrer said that his views on race have changed as compared to when he was younger. He says he had a better understanding of how unconscious bias impacts treatment of Latinos in the United States, and said he was frustrated by how people lack a recognition of their own bias. He stated that he does not experience racism in his life. On the topic of military in politics, Ferrer said he tries to remain neutral ; he said that on a personal level, he carries his own beliefs on the military.&#13 ; Race ; racism ; unconscious bias 0 623 Closing Thoughts No one teaches me as much as these young people. Ferrer described the kinds of lessons he had learned throughout his life in service, as well as the values he seeks to uphold. He said that he sees himself “as a life-long learner,” and the enduring relevance that young people hold in shaping his own life. He said that his life-long dedication to service has only energized him to continue working with kids as long as he can.&#13 ; LCCC (Lorain County Community College) ; senior citizens ; service. 0 659 Message to Future Generations What’s your message for future generations? Ferrer emphasized the importance of listening to your heart and finding friends that care about you. Ferrer said it is crucial to be able to distinguish between acquaintances, or people you just know, to real friends, who can aid you during a difficult time. He described showing his mentees optical illusions that challenge their decision-making abilities ; it takes time for the viewer to see the various pictures within the illusions, and through this process, Ferrer said he helps them realize the downside in jumping to conclusions: “Let things filter in,” Ferrer emphasized, “Don’t trust family for everything. Friendship ; mentorship ; family 0 Oral History In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Ferrer_Mike.xml LL_Ferrer_Mike.xml Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mike Ferrer Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2023-10-28 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/0a0054b8e52a60ac18c7511cd6568257.jpg 2bfc1a81561d1edac96381a3280b742c https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/13834a8c8f6cb7983dcd49c3d55256e1.jpg 16425c0274dc6ff2c9bb6bbc0a74d43d Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Mexican families in Lorain (1921) Description An account of the resource Some of the first few Mexican families that lived in Lorain, specifically South Lorain who were employed by the B&O Railroad or the steel mill. Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Lorain Historical Society Type The nature or genre of the resource Photographs Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Kahtia Moyotl https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/574f61e77d25bc29093f781509ab7ed6.PNG 59b08622d7442c198830e442182615cf Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Leah Yonemoto-Weston Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Merida Rodriguez OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Rodriguez_Merida.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Merida Rodriguez Latino Lorain Fall 2022 Oberlin College Library Merida Rodriguez Leah Yonemoto-Weston 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/5999n342c Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title=&quot ; Merida Rodriguez&quot ; src=&quot ; //media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/nv935287v/embed&quot ; width=&quot ; 600&quot ; height=&quot ; 337&quot ; frameborder=&quot ; 0&quot ; webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; 0 Introduction to interview with Merida Rodriguez Okay, we have to start by doing what’s called a LEDE. It’s just kind of an introduction by saying I’m here interviewing Ms. Merida Rodriguez and like a formal statement. Do you want me to say Mary or Merida for this? Yonemoto-Weston conducts a LEDE and introduces Merida Rodriguez who is being interviewed on October 29th, 2022 for the Latino Veterans Oral History Project which is a collaboration between the Lorain Historical Society, El Centro de Servicios Sociales and Oberlin College. 47 Early life, from Puerto Rico to Lorain We’ll begin with some questions about your early life if that’s ok? So I guess we’ll just start with, can you begin by telling me where you were born and where you grew up? Rodriguez recounts that she was born in Santa Isabel, Puerto Rico and then brought to Lorain, Ohio a year later by her family where she has lived ever since. She states that she knows Lorain very well and that the location for the interview (Lorain Historical Society) was once a public library. Rodriguez describes being raised in the neighborhood surrounding Lorain Historical Society, Downtown Broadway, in apartments with many other Hispanic families and attending the local schools. She recounts that she met her husband and other friends, including Celestino Rivera, through Sacred Heart Chapel’s youth groups. Rodriguez describes how she and her husband made their first Communion together as children before becoming a couple many years later. Catholicism ; friends ; migration ; Sacred Heart Chapel ; Santa Isabel, Puerto Rico 214 Meeting husband and early days of relationship Wow! That’s so wild! So how old were you when you and your husband started dating? Rodriguez describes that she and her husband started dating when she was 17 years old after finishing high school. She states that knowing her husband through her brothers growing up made him feel like a friend first and foremost before developing a romantic relationship with him. Rodriguez describes how her husband was drafted and sent to Vietnam while the two were dating. They eventually reunited in Puerto Rico when he received “R and R” and Rodriguez went to meet and visit family there. She describes the joy of meeting both her own family and her husband’s family as well during this trip. family ; Puerto Rico ; Vietnam War 315 Family and friends in the military I definitely want to talk about, obviously, your husband’s service and everything like that in Vietnam, but before we go there, you talked about your brothers. Did you have any sisters as well? Rodriguez discusses her family including how she has two older brothers but no sisters. One of her brothers, Hector Rodriguez, was in the air force and served for four years and their other brother, Angel, was in the navy. Rodriguez describes how neither of her brothers were sent to Vietnam but instead to Thailand and The Netherlands. After their military service, both the brothers came back to Lorain and got married. Rodriguez describes how she knew many people in the military and many military families growing up. Most of her friends were drafted, including her husband. However, she describes that her brothers enlisted. Yonemoto-Weston asks about other members of Rodriguez’s family growing up and Rodriguez describes how her father came to Lorain to work in the steel mill. Rodriguez recounts that her father left Puerto Rico for Connecticut with his brother before moving to Lorain and that after he was able to save up money, he sent for Rodriguez and her mother and brothers in Puerto Rico and moved them to the U.S. with him. Rodriguez states that Lorain is most of what she knows in respect to her surroundings as she has lived there for so long and the vast majority of her life. draft ; military family ; U.S. Air Force ; U.S. Navy 467 Life in Lorain during husband’s service and difficulties of his return after war We can talk a little bit more about your husband’s service if that’s alright with you. So you met at Sacred Heart and then how did you learn he was being drafted? What did that feel like to you? Rodriguez recounts that the draft was a communal thing during the Vietnam War and how most of her male family and friends were drafted around the same time in 1968-69 and pretty much everyone in her community knew someone in the military. Rodriguez describes dating her husband before he served six months in Vietnam and then returning to Lorain together from their trip to Puerto Rico after his service. She states that the two dated for a bit longer after returning to Lorain before getting engaged. Rodriguez recalls that she could see the difference in her husband’s personality after his return from Vietnam. She describes him being less calm and relaxed and having anxiety, which was difficult for her to understand. Rodriguez discusses how the general American societal culture at the time was very hostile towards Vietnam veterans and that her husband experienced harassment including being spit on and being told not to wear his uniform upon returning to the U.S. Rodriguez states that she heard and saw these things but that they were hard for her to absorb or fully understand as a civilian who’s relationship with her husband was independent from the military and his service. She states that the world was in a very different place and time culturally. Rodriguez recalls that this time was very difficult because she did not understand where her husband’s anxiety and depression were coming from and that she felt she was naive to these issues when she married a person who was struggling. Yonemoto-Weston asks what kinds of things Rodriguez was involved with while her husband was away in Vietnam. Rodriguez answers that she attended beauty school and started working in various beauty parlors as she waited for her husband to return. She also states that she found community in her church with other women whose husbands or fiancees were at war. Rodriguez describes this as a traumatic time as the community repeatedly had to experience the loss of friends and family serving overseas. She reminisces about sending letters to her husband while he was away and receiving the letter with the news that he was being discharged. depression ; discrimination ; marriage ; Sacred Heart Chapel ; trauma ; Vietnam 975 Marriage and family life, husband’s journey to recovery Could you tell me more about your life after he was discharged and what that was like? Your married life? Rodriguez discusses how over all her marriage has been wonderful and she feels lucky. She talks about how once she and her husband had children in the 1960s, things started to change in terms of her husband’s mental health and Rodriguez could not understand this shift. She gives examples of how his PTSD would affect the family like that he could only sit facing the windows of a building in public settings and did not like crowds and how this represented a loss of trust in the community around him. Rodriguez describes her husband as not feeling secure during this time. She emphasized however, that her husband was a wonderful father and did not let his mental health issues affect his parenting. In fact, according to Rodriguez, her husband would emphasize to his children that they were lucky to have the things they did in the US and that children in Vietnam did not have the same privileges. Rodrgiuez expresses that she feels that she had to keep a lot secret and hold a lot of her husband’s trauma and that she believes many Vietnam veteran wives feel the same way. She discusses how the creation of VA programs and the expansion of mental health awareness has made things a lot easier for their family in the past few decades. children ; family ; mental health ; VA medical center ; Veterans Affairs 1401 PTSD and cultural mental health education Because it’s, uh, it’s, I have to tell you it’s sad when you see someone you love suffer from anxiety, depression, which is what we know today as PTSD. I didn’t even know what that meant. I remember he used to come home and say, “You know they say I have PTSD!” and I’m like “Well, what’s that?”. So we all had to be educated on that. Rodriguez discusses how awareness around PTSD and veterans’ mental health has become more widespread in the past 20 years and how this has helped her community and family. She describes that understanding and naming the things her husband has gone through validates her experiences because it was difficult to help her husband through this PTSD. marital relationship ; PTSD ; spouse ; stigma 1599 Pride and strength Was there anything you found to be good or fulfilling about being the wife of a Vietnam vet? Or any positive parts? Rodriguez states that a positive part of being a Vietnam veteran’s wife has made her very prideful and aware of the sacrifices veterans have gone through. She describes feeling glad that she was naive to the atrocities of war while it was happening or else she does not know how the community would have coped. Rodriguez describes the strength, empathy, kindness, and compassion she gained from being a Vietnam veteran’s wife. Though she describes herself as being less trusting as well and feels well aware of the toll war takes on people. She praises her children for enduring the aftermath of their father’s service. familial support ; respect 1911 Message for future generations What message would you like to leave for future generations who might view or hear this interview? Rodriguez describes her message for future generations as to not give up on one’s family struggling with mental health issues as veterans. She describes the importance of continuing to support veterans through the hard times and help destigmatize mental health. future ; love ; support In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Rodriguez_Merida.xml LL_Rodriguez_Merida.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0023 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Merida Rodriguez Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-10-29 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/58f7f7c13069238932da7042c9d124ab.jpg 9e9e98b458699c3b174890c5b67454f7 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez's Selective Service System Registration Certificate Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Martinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/d4323050418cdb7d9395d46fd8477530.jpg b39e9c6727050bacea0b4caaf940f46f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez's Selective Service System Registration Certificate Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Martinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/56f649ba710fa71cfb905185e0e057a4.jpg 83ea96116f05aa8d26ca7527634134dc Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez's Military service from December 1964-May 1969 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Martinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/bb086125f2cfd9fa527c70ff4fa47e62.jpg 5258ae329d70bf5c0766821287702a77 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez's Lackland Military Training Center letter Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Martinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/9f6b5aded2d8957bc470edebd0533a17.jpg add3d1ba26742897682ec1821281853e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez in uniform with a woman Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Martinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/e43a27c155a174602c84f9c6adb4c0fe.jpg a720e92bba8e083683d69bccac6ed13c Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez in uniform at the Chicksands Airforce Base Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Marty Matinez https://latinolorain.oberlincollegelibrary.org/files/original/3d2524ab05cd4ab547436a9b3f060065.PNG 0c47e7c56eda596ea623d85dc91641ef Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview Jonathan Bruzon Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed Marty Martinez OHMS Object This field contains the OHMS Hyperlink (link to the XML file within the OHMS viewer) https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Martinez_Marty.xml OHMS Object Text The field contains the OHMS Index and/or Transcript and is what makes the contents of the OHMS object searchable within Omeka 5.4 Marty Martinez Latino Lorain Fall 2022 Oberlin College Library Marty Martinez Jonathan Bruzon 0 https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/media_objects/tb09j569g Avalon https://media.lib.oberlin.edu/ video &lt ; iframe title=&quot ; Marty Martinez&quot ; src=&quot ; //media.lib.oberlin.edu:443/master_files/mk61rg95s/embed&quot ; width=&quot ; 600&quot ; height=&quot ; 337&quot ; frameborder=&quot ; 0&quot ; webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen allowfullscreen&gt ; &lt ; /iframe&gt ; 0 Introduction to Interview with Marty Martinez 29 Early Life in Lorain &quot ; So could you first begin by telling me a little a bit about where you were born and where you grew up?&quot ; &quot ; I was born and raised in Ohio and uh, I'm an Italian-Mexican so I lived in the Italian section for the first five years, and then we were some of the first to move to Homewood in South Lorain...&quot ; Marty Martinez was born and raised in Lorain in the mid-1940s, first born in the Italian section of Lorain and then moving to Homewood in South Lorain. He discusses his education path, particularly noting his time at junior high as being very influential for being a tough school. He graduated high school and pursued night classes before enlisting in the military. He also details his family, introducing his Mexican father, Italian mother, and younger sister. He emphasizes that all his decisions were made with family in mind, noting his grandfather on his mother's side as being his biggest role-model, with the Lorain community also helping to raise him as well. Education ; Family ; Role-Model 487 Enlistment and Family Reactions &quot ; So talking about decisions and family, you kinda talked already about how you decided to enlist in the military, so when did you start thinking about military service as something you wanted to do?&quot ; &quot ; I started thinking about it in December of that year cause I was lost. I went to night school for computers. I couldn't afford college ; I didn't have the grades to get the scholarships, but I was just lost from the time I graduated, and I just wanted to get it over with cause I knew I was gonna get drafted.&quot ; After graduating high school, Marty pursued night school as he could not afford college at the time. Claiming to feel lost, he decided to enlist in the military mainly since he knew he was going to be drafted anyways and did not want to delay the inevitable. His main reasoning for joining the Air Force was his constant mentality of &quot ; what can I do to survive,&quot ; joining as he knew the odds of surviving there were greater than that of the Army. He also joined the Air Force knowing that his grandfather once served there. He notes that while his mother was angry with him for enlisting and the rest of his family distraught, they knew that he had to go serve. Enlistment ; Survival ; U.S. Air Force 672 Military Service and Experiences in the U.S. Air Force &quot ; What was your most vivid memory that you can remember either in training or in school?&quot ; &quot ; I went to basic training like everybody, and while I was doing guard duty I bumped into a guy I grew up with. It's a small world. And then after basic training, I was transferred to outside Montgomery, Alabama for medical school cause I was in the medics...&quot ; Marty began his service with basic training and guard duty, then being transferred to Alabama for medical school to serve as a patient care medic. He notes that he was there during the Civil Rights Movement in the 60s, having to be cautious because of prejudice and racism there. He then transferred to Tennessee for tactical air command, serving in supply transportation. He was then ordered to a station in the Dominican Republic, serving as a night guard assigned to take care of the labor force. He found his time there to be especially difficult due to the hot weather and dark nights, and even mentioned never being told who the &quot ; enemy&quot ; was. He was then transferred back to Tennessee until 1966, when he was ordered to go to France and then England, and mentions his time in Europe as being his most fond memory of his service. He then ends his description of his service by admitting that he did not wish to come back home once his service was over. Dominican Republic ; Europe ; Medics ; Tactical Air Command 1164 Post-Service: Occupations and Struggles &quot ; I was in England and I stayed 6 months in England because I didn't wanna come home. I would've stayed but I survived the war, it's all about survival. I survived in the first place, why would I wanna stay in when this time I'd go for sure. So I ended up coming home and the only reason I came home was cause of my grandfather Ragnoni, I just loved him dearly...&quot ; Marty reflects on his feelings of not wishing to come home after service, noting that the biggest reason he returned was to see his grandfather, who he ended up staying with when he first returned. He emphasizes the feeling of betrayal he experienced upon his return, noting that veterans are often thanked now upon the basis that the military is now volunteer-based, but he was never given any gratitude at the time of his return. He then goes on to discuss his post-service education and occupations, beginning with his studies at Lorain Community College in computer science while working at Standard Oil of Ohio (SOHIO) in marketing. He then went on to major in business at Baldwin Wallace University while making a living. He recounts the many occupations he's had, including a traveling insurance company, Cleveland Clinic, and multiple banks. He found out very difficult and discouraging to navigate through these, mentioning that despite his hard work he was treated poorly and almost never rewarded with any raises, bonuses, or promotions. He even brings up the psychological troubles he has faced because of these struggles, and he began to question whether his efforts were worth it. Betrayal ; Corporate America ; Higher Education ; Mental Health ; Occupations 2186 Starting a Family: Holding Family as a Core Value &quot ; I met my wife in 1972. I was on a drinking spree, I was at a bar. I met her at Beaver Park, and she was the most beautiful thing I ever saw, and we started dating...&quot ; Marty recounts first meeting his spouse at Beaver Park in Lorain, Ohio, and then marrying her in 1973, also mentioning his two sons who were born in 1974 and 1977. One of their challenges with starting a family involved debt, with his spouse receiving an operation without insurance before they were married, and then giving birth to their first son still without insurance. He shares his admiration and respect for his spouse, claiming both that she and his grandfather were the two most important people in his life. He is grateful of his spouse for having helped him through his toughest times during his life after service. He once again emphasizes that his reasoning behind all his decisions is based around family, and what he can best do to protect them. Debt ; Family ; Spouse 2473 Community and Camaraderie &quot ; What we've learned growing up in South Lorain, we learned to understand you right away, cause I had to know when you come at me, are you gonna stick me, beat the heck out of me, or be nice to me? We all had to learn that...&quot ; Reflecting on the values and lessons his upbringing in Lorain taught him, Marty mentions the importance of helping one another in the community and knowing as many people as possible. He also recalls his time spent in the old neighborhood house and new neighborhood house (modern-day El Centro de Servicios Sociales) for the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and the Chicanos clubs, as well as the work that social workers in Lorain provided him with. He also touches upon the sense of camaraderie during his service, mentioning that has units felt like family to him. He recalls times spent with his friends in military service and the difficulties they would help each other through. Despite the unpleasant conditions during his time in the Dominican Republic, he is very thankful for his officers and comrades, and claims to have been treated very well. Community ; Connection ; Friendship 2912 Coping With Prejudice &quot ; What was that sense of coping with prejudice for you like, if you don't mind me asking?&quot ; &quot ; Growing up in Elyria- Lorain I mean, I was protected a lot but I had to watch myself.&quot ; Marty emphasizes the importance of watching where you went in Lorain, recalling the times where he was kicked out of a past partner's house by her father, and another where his group, the Chicanos, were almost kicked out of a bar by patrons. He also notes how important his association with his family name, the Chicanos, and the VFW all helped him by bringing in a factor of intimidation, emphasizing the importance of intimidation and association as survival tactics at that time. Chicanos ; Prejudice ; Survival ; Veterans of Foreign Wars 3117 Messages for Future Generations and Closing Thoughts &quot ; Are there any other messages that you want future generations to hear from you personally?&quot ; &quot ; Yeah and I brought them up off and on: I'm not used to 'it's all about me,' that's not our generation. And what they need to know, and what I'm seeing it as is they don't know who they are. They need to know who they are, where they come from, and they need to understand our history.&quot ; When asked what messages he would leave with future generations, Marty advises them to be selfless and realize the importance of histories, both their own and those of others. He asserts that the issues we face today are a result of people not learning our understanding our past history, pointing out U.S. history in particular as an example of this. He states that doing so will help people be more understanding of one another and the cultures they bring with them. He also advises future generations to listen to his generation's stories, emphasizing the men who were lost in the war as true martyrs. He closes off by emphasizing how thankful he is to have survived, and that he continues to think positive and give back to the community as much as he can. Advice ; Martyr ; Selfless ; Storytelling In copyright. video All rights reserved. 0 https://oberlincollegelibrary.org/ohms-viewer/render.php?cachefile=LL_Martinez_Marty.xml LL_Martinez_Marty.xml Sort Priority This field should be added if you are using the Philly Theme with your OHMSPlugin Suite 0013 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Marty Martinez Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2022-10-29 Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource video