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Archived Stories |
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Past Florida Stories |
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| Alice Babosuk in 1945. Alice would later marry Army Air Corps pilot Robert J. Ramer. |
Alice "Ensign Babs" Babosuk (Alice Ramer)
Alice Babosuk was a first year nursing student in Buffalo, New York when she learned that the Japanese had bombed Pearl Harbor. On that day in 1941 she committed herself to completing her education so that she could serve her country in World War II. Alice speaks with her son Robert about her enlistment in the Navy Nurse Corps Reserves.
(First aired July 6, 2007.)
 Listen now.
Music Credits: Nocturne, by Artie Shaw and his Orchestra, Personal Best, Bluebird Records,
re-released on BMG |
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Robert J. Ramer
in 1945 |
Robert J. Ramer
Robert J. Ramer was a college student at Purdue University on December 7th, 1941. An early interest in flight led to his enlistment in the Army Air Corps, the precursor to today’s Air Force. Robert Ramer talks with his son Robert Bruce Ramer, first about his induction into the Air Corps and his early cadet training.
(First aired June 29, 2007.)
Listen now.
Music Credits: Flyin’ Home performed by Lionel Hampton and his Orchestra, The Lionel Hampton Story, Proper UK Boxed Sets |
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Phyllis Lorelli and
Tom Bryant
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Phyllis Lorelli and Tom Bryant
In 1992, Jerry and Phyllis Lorelli were living in Bradenton. Through a series of unexpected circumstances, Phyllis was reconnected here in Florida with a childhood friend from Pennsylvania. The story picks up in the year 2000, with Phyllis telling friend Tom Bryant about the regular visits she and her husband Jerry had with friend Judith Viner and Judith’s husband Ed.
(First aired June 22, 2007.)
Listen now.
Music Credits: Waltz, Op. 8, No. 3, by Lily Afshar, performing the music of Agustin Barrios Mangore, Possession, Archer Records |
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The Dersch children: Nick Dersch (17), Cherie Lavertue (20),
Bobby Arnold (12),
Eric Dersch (13) and
Ethan Dersch (7)
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The Dersch Family
Joe and Sally Dersch live in Winter Haven. When you meet them, you’ll find that the two often use the word "blended." It’s a word that best describes their life choices both inside and outside the home. This is the second marriage for both of them and "blending" also describes the process of combining their households and their two families after they married in 1999.
Listen now. (First aired June 15, 2007.)
Music credits: Momma Gotta, The Heatersons, The Heatersons, Pogo Records |
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Linda Goldstein and Helen Gordon Davis
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Linda Goldstein and Helen Gordon Davis
Helen Gordon Davis arrived in Tampa in the late 1940's, and quickly became involved in local politics and social issues. From the League of Women Voters to the Florida House and later the State Senate, Helen explains how she pursued a personal mission to help the less fortunate.
Listen now. (First aired June 8, 2007.)
Music credits: Movement 2 from Four Bagatelles, Antonin Dvorak – arr. by Quartetto Gelato, Quartetto Gelato, Neapolitan Café, Silva Classics Recordings |
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Valerie Wojciechowicz
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Valerie Wojciechowicz
Valerie Wojciechowicz was born and raised in New Jersey. Today she lives in Sarasota and working as personal trainer and an HIV/ AIDS awareness educator. Valerie's outlook on life wasn’t always what it is now. She explains how unexpected events shaped her life in a way she could not have anticipated.
Listen now. (First aired June 1, 2007.)
Music credits: Finer Days, Smog, Red Apple Falls, Drag City Records |
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Bill Buerger
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Bill Buerger
Bill Buerger was born in 1939 and raised in Westwood Ohio, just outside Cincinnati. Bill discusses the impact World War II had on his family, how he viewed the nation’s perception of the war effort and how it shaped his overall outlook on life. This is the first in a series of reflections on World War II.
Listen now. (First aired May 25, 2007.)
AUDIO SLIDESHOW
Learn more about Bill Buerger's childhood growing up in Westwood, Ohio. |
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Music credits: Piano Sonata No. 23 in G minor, Alfred Brendel, performing the music of Franz Joseph Haydn, Alfred Brendel - Recital, Philips |
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Lars Dohm and his
son David
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Lars and David Dohm
Lars Dohm was born in Denmark. He spent his early life traveling aboard the sailboat Restmor, on a round-the-world sea voyage which delivered his family to Europe at the brink of the second World War. Lars tells his son David that what some might consider an almost fairy-tale childhood later found him longing for a different family experience.
Listen now. (First aired May 18, 2007.)
MORE AUDIO: Lars Dohm discusses childhood memories of gunfire along the South coast of Spain during the Spanish Civil War in 1936. Listen now
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Music credits: 1. Movement 1 from Nielsen’s Little Suite in A minor, performed by the Swedish Radio Symphony, Nielsen: Symphony No. 1, CBS Records; 2. Movement 3 of Nielsen’s Symphony No. 1 in G minor, performed by the Swedish Radio Symphony, Nielsen: Symphony No. 1, CBS Records |
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Susan Adger and Isobel Keithley-Harwell
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Susan Adger and Isobel Keithley-Harwell
Susan Adger’s mother Isobel Keithley-Harwell was born and raised in Tampa. She recounts childhood memories from her school days, and the great era of dance bands in the 1930’s. It all begins with a description of the first family home on Washington Street, in what is now downtown Tampa.
Listen now. (First aired May 11, 2007.)
Music credits:Menuet from Le tombeau de Couperin, Robert Casedesus, piano, National Public Radio – Milestones of the Millennium, Sony Classical; Peckin’, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra – The Harry James Years, Vol. 1, Bluebird, re-released on RCA; Camel Hop – take 2, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra, Benny Goodman and His Orchestra – The Harry James Years, Vol. 1, Bluebird, re-released on RCA |
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Ethel Altman
and Sylvia Gross |
Ethel Altman and Sylvia Gross
Ethel Altman was born in Brooklyn, New York, and moved to Miami with her family in 1940. Ethel's father taught her to play the mandolin at age 7, and she had an early career as a performing musician. As a teen, however, her life moved away from the stage. Now retired in Sarasota, she tells her friend Sylvia Gross that sometimes the music just won’t let you go.
Listen now. (First aired May 4, 2007.)
Click here
to watch a slideshow about Ethel's lifelong love affair with her 1924 Gibson American mandolin. |
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Ethel Altman talks about her father and performs
"The Soul of Russia,"
a folk medley he taught her how to play on the
mandolin as a girl.
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Music credits: Overture from The Magic Flute, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, arr. by Modern Mandolin Quartet, The Nutcracker Suite, Windham Hill Records
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Millie Small and
George Robinson
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Millie Small and George Robinson
Longtime friend Millie Small interviews Dr. George Robinson about his early days as a physician who made house calls day and night, rain or shine. Dr. Robinson attributes his success to his parents and living a good life from a boyhood in Massachusetts to medical school in Pennsylvania to retirement in Florida.
Listen now.
(First aired on July 14th, 2006, rebroadcast April 27, 2007.)
Music credits: Minor Swing; After You’ve Gone by Django Reinhardt and Stephan Grappelly, Djangology 49, Bluebird Records |
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Bobbie O'Brien and
Earl Quenneville
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Bobbie O'Brien and Earl Quenneville
WUSF Reporter Bobbie O'Brien interviews her husband, Architect Earl Quenneville, about the love-at-first-sight momentum that has sustained them through 28 years of marriage. Listen in as they share their dreams and fears for the future, including the memories they hope will be longlasting for their grandchildren.
Listen now.
(First aired on August 25th, 2006, rebroadcast April 20, 2007.)
Music Credits: Beautiful by Gordon Lightfoot, Gord’s Gold, Warner Brothers Records |
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Beth and Jillian
Leytham
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Beth and Jillian Leytham
Mother and daughter, Beth and Jillian Leytham of Tampa, talk about the strength of their relationship as a single parent with an only child. Beth shares her focus on successfully raising an independent daughter, while juggling societal expectations, career, family and personal choices. Jill relates how her dreams and aspirations for college evolved as she grew up.
Listen now. (First aired on April 14th, 2006, rebroadcast on April 13, 2007)
Music credits: J'ai Dormi Sous L'Eau by Air, Premiers Symptomes, Astralwerks |
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Willow Wright
and JoAnn Briggs
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Willow Wright and Jo Ann Briggs
Willow Wright’s voice soars with pride and admiration when talking about her late mother, Dorris, with friend JoAnn Briggs. Willow happily recalls “cloud flying’’ with her mother at the controls, skimming the tops of the Rockies with her parents in their tiny Cessna and finally landing safely in California with her "heart in my mouth." The New York family’s trips across America are among Willow’s fondest memories. Life gives as much as it takes away, but in the end, Willow learns from her mother, “there’s nothing left but love." Listen now. (First aired on March 31, 2006, rebroadcast on April 6, 2007)
Music credits: Where I Go by Natalie Merchant, Tigerlily, Elektra Records |
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| Learn more about StoryCorps |
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StoryCorps and WUSF in Sarasota
The History of StoryCorps: Recording America |
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StoryCorps Information on NPR |
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StoryCorps Website |
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