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176. Interview with Aparna Ramaswamy

Creator:
Ramaswamy, Aparna
Date Created:
1997-07-20
Description:
Aparna Ramaswamy was born in India. She moved with her parents to Minnesota where she was raised and attended college. She studied classical dance in India, and has performed with the Ragamala Music and Dance Theater founded by her mother. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Family life - interest in both Indian and American culture - studying dance in India - college life - Bharata Natyam dance - development and growth of the Ragamala dance company - participating in the School of India for Languages and Culture (SILC) in Minnesota - views on Hindu religious practice - Indian movies - melding professional plans with interest in Indian dance - importance of maintaining a sense of Indian culture.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

177. Interview with Arturo and Elvira Coronado

Creator:
Coronado, Arturo
Date Created:
1975-08-18
Description:
Arturo Coronado was born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. His father was a successful railroad conductor in Mexico, but in 1915, when Arturo was ten years old, the family left the country because his father didn't want to be involved in the Revolution. They returned to Mexico later, only to go back to the United States again. He arrived in Minnesota in 1923 and held a variety of jobs, primarily tailoring and dry cleaning. Elvira Coronado was born in 1908, also in San Luis Potosi. Her father had an accident while in the United States seeking his sister, and the family came to join him in Houston, Texas. She came to Minnesota with her husband. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Immediate family, including names, birth dates and occupations - personal life history - the community in St. Paul - Arturo Coronado's dry cleaning business, and his work in organizing a labor union for that trade (1930-1946) - their first restaurant in St. Paul, La Casa Coronado, and their later restaurant in Minneapolis - Guadalupe Church - and advice for future generations.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

178. Interview with Arturo Zamora

Creator:
Zamora, Arturo
Date Created:
1976-07-15
Description:
Arturo Zamora was born in Benjamin, Texas, in 1925, one of eleven children. He came to Cloquet, Minnesota, in 1931 with his parents and settled in 1938 near Hollandale, Minn., where his family has owned a farm since 1940. Zamora has worked at Wilson Meat Packing Co. in Albert Lea since 1945 and operates a restaurant near Albert Lea with his three brothers. Subjects discussed include: Family and early life - work in the meatpacking industry - Club Azteca, League of United Latin American Citizens and Knights of Columbus in Albert Lea - and his restaurant.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

179. Interview with Ashoke Mandal

Creator:
Mandal, Ashoke
Date Created:
2005-06-12
Description:
Ashoke Mandal came to Minnesota in 1995 and upon arrival contacted various members of the Indian community. He became president of the India Association of Minnesota [IAM] in 2002. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Family - education in India - immigration to the United States and becoming a citizen - finding a job in Minnesota - contacting members of the Indian community and subsequent involvement with IAM - involvement with the Bengali Association - participation in the Festival of Nations - coordinating the annual dinner for IAM - contact with important Minnesota political figures - issues dealt with by IAM - organizational structure of IAM - member recruitment - impact of Senator Paul Wellstone's death on him and the Indian community - newsletter India Town - and future of IAM.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

180. Interview with Ashok Mahendra Patel

Creator:
Patel, Ashok Mahendra
Date Created:
2012-02-02
Description:
Ashok Mahendra Patel was born in 1962 Kampala, Uganda. His parents were immigrants from Indore, India. Subjects discussed include: Early life and family - living in Uganda, India, and Canada - home life, doing chores, and being a kid - education, medical school, and coming to work for the Mayo Clinic - being involved in the community - calling Minnesota his home.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

181. Interview with Augusto and Rebecca Sumangil

Creator:
Sumangil, Augusto
Date Created:
1978-12-08
Description:
Augusto (Tito) and Rebecca Sumangil immigrated to the United States from the Philippines in 1969 as young professionals. Augusto grew up in Manila, on the island of Luzon, and is an accountant. Rebecca's home was in Antique Province, in the Visayan Islands of the central Philippines, and she is a registered nurse. Both found jobs very quickly in the Twin Cities, and Augusto is now employed by the Northrup King Seed Company, while Rebecca works at St. Barnabus Hospital. They have a young daughter, Anne, born in Minnesota. The Sumangils have been active in the Fil-Minnesotan Association, and Augusto is the editor of the organization's newsletter. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: The Sumangils discuss their early impressions of Minnesota and contrast the good reception they have had with the discrimination encountered by the old timers" in the Filipino community in the Twin Cities during the 1920s and 1930s. They also discuss the problems of child rearing faced by immigrant parents and point out that like many other young professional from the Philippines
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

182. Interview with Bao Vang

Creator:
Vang, Bao
Date Created:
1999-12-17
Description:
Bao Vang is a half sister of Kim Yang. She was born in Long Cheng, Laos in 1973. She is a White Hmong. Her family immigrated to the U.S. twenty-one years ago. She graduated from high school, married at seventeen and has two children. Her husband belongs to the Moua clan. Currently, she works for American Express as a Distribution Coordinator. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Biographical information and religious affiliation. Childhood-school attendance, duties at home, community service, skills taught, social activities as a child, aspirations as a child. Hmong women's roles-decision making inside and outside of home and clan, women in leadership roles and how they are seen in the community, what women do to support their families, family planning, when women feel respected or disrespected. The war and living in refugee camps-memories of fleeing Laos, of refugee camps, difference in treatment of men and women in the camps. Adjustments since coming to the U.S.-skills needed to adjust, learning English, skills from Laos and Thailand that are adaptable or useable in the U.S., citizenship, leadership roles for women in the U.S. versus Laos, public contributions by Hmong women. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: The interview was conducted predominantly in Hmong. The Hmong transcript and an English translation are bound together for this interview.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

183. Interview with Bash Singh

Creator:
Singh, Bash
Date Created:
1995-01-12
Description:
Bash Singh was born in a city formerly in India and now in Pakistan. She attended school and college in India. She came to the U.S. and lived first in Tennessee and then moved to Minnesota in the early 1970s. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Experiences living in Saudi Arabia - discrimination in Tennessee - the move to Minnesota and adjusting to cold weather - operating her candy store - marriage - instilling Indian values - religion, Sikh Association of Minnesota - other family members' experiences in Minnesota - membership in the Indo-American Club and the Association of American Physicians from India (AAPI) - volunteer work - connections to family in India - retirement plans - the importance of family values, personal values - the American Dream.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

184. Interview with Belen Andrada

Creator:
Andrada, Belen S.
Date Created:
2010-12-01
Description:
Belen Andrada was born in Butuan, in the southern Philippines. After World War II, Belen finished college with a bachelor's degree in math from Santo Tomas in Manila. She came to the U.S. as a master's degree student at the University of Chicago. After marrying she moved to Minnesota and worked in area high schools. She continues to be active in the Filipino community. Subjects discussed include: parents, growing up, World War II, Japanese occupation of the Philippines, college, immigrating, the Filipino community in the 1950s in Minnesota, and the Filipino since the 1950.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

185. Interview with Belen S. Andrada

Creator:
Andrada, Belen S.
Date Created:
1978-10-20
Description:
Belen S. Andrada was born in the Philippines in 1926 and came to the United States in 1956 to continue her studies. In 1957 she married Benigno Andrada in Minnesota. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Her family in the Philippines - the importance of her family - her reasons for coming to the United States - her reactions to living in Minnesota - and prejudice against her as a Filipino.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

186. Interview with Ben Brochin

Creator:
Brochin, Ben
Date Created:
1979-07-01
Description:
Ben Brochin was born in Minneapolis on Sept. 2, 1909, to Solomon Brochin (1878-1958) and Anna Levinson Brochin (1883-1947), who came to Minneapolis from Lithuania in 1906. Solomon Brochin ran a grocery store (later a delicatessen) in North Minneapolis. Ben Brochin began work in his father's store as a child and later took over the business. Brochin's Delicatessen had four locations and finally closed in 1967. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: The North Minneapolis Jewish neighborhood - Brochin's store, with a vivid description of its contents - his father, an ardent Zionist, grocer, and agent for a steamship company that brought immigrants to the United States - boyhood work in the store, including selling newspapers - amateur boxing as a source of income for young men - celebrating the end of World War I at the Glass Block in Minneapolis - his father's practice of staking new immigrants to food on credit at his store - the Talmud Torah picnic at Longfellow Gardens and Zoo - and the Emanuel Cohen Center. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: The MHS photo collection includes a photo of Solomon Brochin in his store.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

187. Interview with Ben Gonsalez

Creator:
Gonsalez, Ben
Date Created:
1976-07-27
Description:
Ben Gonsalez was born in Laughton, Oklahoma, in 1921 and came to Minnesota with his mother in 1930 to work in the beet fields and canning industry. He was drafted into the military in 1942 and discharged in 1945. In 1946 he got married in Winnebago, and he worked at Fairmont Canning Company for sixteen years. At the time of the interview he was involved in the Pentecostal movement. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: His move to Minnesota - Minnesota Citizens for Migrant Affairs - and his work as acting minister and missionary for the Temple de la Fe, a Pentecostal church in Guckeen, Faribault County.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

188. Interview with Ben Ho

Creator:
Ho, Ben
Date Created:
2012-03-15
Description:
Ben Ho was born in 1936 in Hawaii. Ben was in the Marine Corps and later worked for Univac. He is the brother of singer Don Ho. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Early life - family history - living in Hawaii during World War II - different languages spoken at home - his career in the Marine Corps - working for Univac - meeting his wife - being a brother to the famous singer Don Ho - living in New York, Los Angeles, London, and finally Minnesota - not experiencing racism in the Marine Corps, and experience racism working for Univac - his children - growing up Mormon in Hawaii - Hawaiian traditions and how his family kept very few of them - being involved in Hawaiian issues, particularly the Hawaiian Situation - being on the water in Hawaii and Minnesota.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

189. Interview with Benigno Andrada

Creator:
Andrada, Benigno
Date Created:
1978-10-09 - 1978-11-01
Description:
Benigno Andrada came to Minnesota from the Philippines in 1928 at the age of 16. His first job was as a waiter at the Minneapolis Athletic Club. In 1930 he married a Norwegian-American woman, and they had three sons. His wife died in 1956, and in 1957 he married his second wife, Belen, a Filipino woman. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: In the first interview, Mr. Andrada discusses his adjustment to life in Minnesota, his family, his jobs and the Filipino community in the Twin Cities. In the second interview he tells about the Philippine Echo newspaper, work during the depression and World War II, Filipinos who worked on the farms near Albert Lea and Chaska, Minnesota and his return trip to the Philippines in 1966.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

190. Interview with Benita Clark

Creator:
Clark, Benita
Date Created:
2011-11-02
Description:
Benita Clark was born in 1967 in Bohol in the Philippines. Subjects discussed include: Early life in the Philippines - parents and grandparents occupations, and her perceived lack of being impoverished - language, religion, and her responsibilities as a child - education, moving to Manila - having a long distance relationship with her husband before she even met him - coming to the United States to meet her husband for the first time - fitting into the community and raising her daughter - going back to the Philippines to visit her family - things she is grateful for.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

191. Interview with Benjamin G. Arriola

Creator:
Arriola, Benjamin G.
Date Created:
1979-01-13
Description:
Benjamin G. Arriola was born in Manilia in 1931, and grew up in Cebu, in the central Philippines. In 1960 he came to the United States as a student, along with his wife. The couple first stayed with Ben and Belen Andrada, who had encouraged them to immigrate. He became a U.S. citizen in 1970. He is the father of Benjamin S. and Melissa S. Arriola. At the time of the interview he worked in insurance.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

192. Interview with Benjamin S. and Melissa S. Arriola

Creator:
Arriola, Melissa S.
Date Created:
1979-01-13
Description:
Benjamin S. Arriola was born in Minneapolis on February 26, 1961, and his sister, Melissa S., was born on July 20, 1963, in Golden Valley, Minnesota. Their parents arrived in Minnesota from the Philippines one and a half years before Benjamin was born. They have both attended public schools in Richfield, and Benjamin, a high school senior, plans to study engineering at the University of Minnesota. Unlike their first cousins who live a block from the Arriola home (see interviews of Marietta and Cristeta Andrada, also in this oral history project), the Arriola children have not been active participants in Filipino cultural activities, but instead have focused on social activities with school friends. Nevertheless, the four children, whose mothers are sisters, have always spent a great deal of time in each other's homes, and the Filipino cultural tradition of their immigrant parents has been an important influence in their lives. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Benjamin and Melissa discuss the ways in which they are more adapted to American ways than their parents and also the influence of Filipino values on their early development. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: This very short interview is interesting mainly for the children's statements near the end, in which they describe the importance of their parents' cultural background in their own development, despite conscious efforts to be American. Part of the tape is marred by poor audio quality, but all of the interview is understandable.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

193. Interview with Bill Villarreal

Creator:
Villarreal, Bill
Date Created:
1976-07-27
Description:
Bill Villarreal was born in Sabinas, Hidalgo, Mexico, in 1909 and came to the United States in 1923. He settled in Albert Lea in 1948. Subjects discussed include: His early years working in agriculture in the United States - his involvement in clubs and societies in southern Minnesota, including the League of United Latin American Citizens - his role in founding the Azteca Club - the education and careers of his children - the need for Mexican Americans to be organized - and philosophies and viewpoints on progress and reform of society and its subcultures. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: In Spanish, transcribed into English.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

194. Interview with Blanche Halpern Goldberg

Creator:
Goldberg, Blanche Halpern
Date Created:
1976-05-04
Description:
Blanche Halpern Goldberg was born in Minneapolis in about 1906. Her family had come from Politork, Romania, in 1900. In 1910 they moved to Hebron, North Dakota, returning to Minneapolis in 1921. She is one of twelve Halpern children. She attended West High School and the University of Minnesota, from which she received a bachelor's degree in education in 1926. Also in 1926 she married Dr. Isadore Goldberg, and they have two sons, Stanley and Arthur. Goldberg taught in Minneapolis public schools for a short time after World War II. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Immigration of extended family to Minneapolis - life as Jews in a small North Dakota town - anti-Semitism at the University of Minnesota and in teaching and medicine - education - the Depression - and child-rearing, including her two sons and her sister's two children. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: Goldberg's husband, Isadore Goldberg, was also interviewed for this oral history project.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

195. Interview with Bless Say

Creator:
Say, Bless
Date Created:
2011-05-11
Description:
Bless Say was born in Burma, August 8, 1950. She came to the United States in 2008. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Early life - family - school in Burma - dangers of being Karen in Burma - farming - Karen communities in Burma - fleeing to Thailand - refugee camps - moving to Minnesota - citizenship - working in Minnesota - learning English.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

196. Interview with Bo Thao

Creator:
Thao, Bo
Date Created:
2000-01-17
Description:
Bo Thao is the daughter of Mai Vang Thao and the granddaughter of Mao Thao Yang. She was born in Luang Phrabang, Laos in 1974. She is a Stripe Hmong. Her family immigrated to the United States in December 1979. She has a bachelor's degree in family social science. At the time of the interview, she worked for the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry and was working on her master's degree. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Biographical information and religious affiliation. Childhood-school attendance, duties at home, community service, skills taught, social activities as a child, aspirations as a child. Hmong women's roles-decision making inside and outside of home and clan, women in leadership roles and how they are seen in the community, what women do to support their families, family planning, when women feel respected or disrespected. The war and living in refugee camps-memories of fleeing Laos, of refugee camps, difference in treatment of men and women in the camps. Adjustments since coming to the U.S.-skills needed to adjust, learning English, skills from Laos and Thailand that are adaptable or useable in the U.S., citizenship, leadership roles for women in the U.S. versus Laos, public contributions by Hmong women, cultural clashes. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: The interview was conducted predominantly in Hmong. The Hmong transcript and an English translation are bound together for this interview.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

197. Interview with Bounlorm Soumetho

Creator:
Soumetho, Bounlorm
Date Created:
2012-09-22
Description:
Bounlorm Soumetho grew up in Laos but escaped to Thailand after his land was taken from him at the end of the Vietnam War. He was a former president of Lao Community of Worthington, Minnesota, and at the time of the interview was chairman of the Lao Buddhist Organization of Southwest Minnesota. Subjects discussed include: Family, marriage, financial struggles, education, unemployment, immigration to Thailand and the United States, Vietnam War, Minnesota's Lao community.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

198. Interview with Brother Simon-H

Creator:
Phan, Brother Simon-H
Date Created:
2010-10-22
Description:
Brother Simon-H=a Phan was born in Saigon, Vietnam. Phan left Vietnam near the end of the war by helicopter from the U.S. embassy before the country fell to the Communist Party. Phan and his family sought refuge in Colorado and California. He later made his way to Minnesota to join the Benedictine monastery and completed college in the seminary. He then acquired a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting and a Masters of Fine Arts in film. He teaches at St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota. Subjects discussed include: Family background - Vietnam War - immigration - childhood memories - family business - seeking refuge from the Communists shelling the air force base - warfare and traumatic experiences - education - Asians in Vietnam and America - film and art - religion - celebrating Vietnamese culture - feeling discrimination as a minority - Vietnam Culture camp - being bilingual in Vietnamese and English - and the Vietnamese community.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

199. Interview with Carlos and Marcelina R. Urvina

Creator:
Urvina, Carlos; Urvina, Marcelina R.
Date Created:
1975-07-08
Description:
Carlos Urvina was born Nov. 11, 1922, in Piedad, Michoac_n, Mexico, and came to the United States under a contract to lay railroad tracks when he was eighteen years old. He also worked for a streetcar company. At the time of the interview he worked for the Mason Booth Company. Marcelina Urvina was born Feb. 1, 1918, in Dallas, Texas. Although she was a U.S. citizen, her family had difficulties working in the fields. At age twelve she came to Minnesota with her mother and worked the beet fields near St. Clair, Minn., and at the Green Giant Company in Le Sueur, Minn., until she was sixteen. She is now working for Harrison Elementary School as a nurse's aide. Subjects discussed include: Carlos Urvina describes coming to the United States - working for the railroad and as an iron and metal worker - and the beauty of knowing two languages. Marcelina Urvina describes coming to Minnesota - troubles her mother had as a result of not speaking English - working in beet fields - bringing up their children - the importance of a good education - and Mexican customs in the home. Both emphasize the value of education and bilingualism. COMMENTS ON INTERVIEW: In Spanish, transcribed into English.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories

200. Interview with Carlos Mariani Rosa

Creator:
Mariani Rosa, Carlos
Date Created:
2010-07-26
Description:
Carlos Mariani Rosa was born in Michigan and grew up in Chicago. Rosa moved to Minnesota to attend Macalester College and soon married. He worked at the Minnesota Council of Churches and is now the executive director of the Minnesota Minority Education Partnership. He is currently a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives since 1990 and chair of the House K-12 Education Policy Committee. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Family background - jobs held - racial tension in Chicago - diversity - importance of education - networking - factory work - scholarship for college - Minnesota weather - racial differences from Chicago and Minnesota - traveling - community outreach - racism - farmer issues - social issues - church - Hispanic Directors Association - National Institutes for Health - Chicanos Latinos Unidos En Servicio - politics - funding - Latino community - Cinco de Mayo - Lake Street - non-profit organizations - and community involvement.
Contributing Institution:
Minnesota Historical Society
Type:
Sound Recording Nonmusical
Format:
Oral histories
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