Homer Wilson grew up in Madison County. He earned a certificate in forest from Fort Valley State College. In this interview, he discusses how he began working in his father’s barbershop, Wilson’s Styling Shop, in downtown Athens, Georgia. He talks…
Bennie McKinley was born in Athens, Georgia in 1945 and grew up in segregated neighborhoods in Athens. She attended Reese Street School and Athens High and Industrial School. In this interview, she discusses her early experiences with segregation,…
Archibald Killian was born in Athens, GA in 1933. He studied at the Burdett School of Business in Boston, and served as a police officer overseas in the U.S. Air Force. In this interview, Killian discusses the process of desegregation of the…
Gwendolyn Ingram O’Looney grew up on St. Simon’s Island, graduated from the University of Georgia, and has worked in human service positions throughout her career. In this interview, she talks about her public service career in local politics, as a…
Gwendolyn Ingram O’Looney grew up on St. Simon’s Island, graduated from the University of Georgia, and has worked in human service positions throughout her career. In this follow-up interview, O’Looney discusses more specifically the initiatives…
Anne Brightwell grew up in the small town of Union, Missouri, outside of St. Louis. She graduated from Lindenwood College, and was involved in social activism relating to race and integration alongside her husband Frank. After moving to Athens,…
Lemuel LaRoche, also known as a Life The Griot, is a poet, community activist, and founder of the Athens non-profit, Chess and Community. He grew up in New York, and moved to Georgia where he attended Gordon College and later transferred to the…
Carol White was born in Jericho, Vermont. White received a degree in political science from Southern Mississippi and a Master’s degree from Florida State University. She became one of the assistant coaches for a high school football team, and she…
Hattie Heflin was born in Oglethorpe County, Georgia in 1954. She grew up on a family farm in Comer, Georgia as one of eleven children. Heflin’s family moved to Athens while she was in the fourth grade. She came to attend the then recently-integrated…
Broderick Flanigan was born in Athens, Georgia in 1983. He attended Gaines Elementary School and later Clarke Central High School. During this time, Flanigan lived in the Nellie B neighborhood, a historically prominent neighborhood in Athens.…
Antonio Ramirez vivió en Mexico D.F. hasta que se mudó a Athens, Georgia en 1995. Después de trabajar en la construcción, él y su esposa abrieron un restaurante familiar, llamado Tlaloc El Mexicano, en 2007. En esta entrevista, Ramirez habla sobre el…
Florinda Arroyo se nació en el estado de Michoacán en México y se mudó a Athens, Georgia con su esposo, donde abrieron el restaurante Tlaloc, El Mexicano. En esta entrevista, ella habla sobre aprendiendo de cocinar como niña, la idea de abrir el…
Alonso Haro creció en Zacatecas, México, después de que regresó para los Estados Unidos en 1992, donde eventualmente se estableció en Athens, Georgia. Haro trabajó en el restaurante de su padre, La Taqueria La Parrilla, donde actualmente es uno de…
Aída Quiñones nació en Puerto Rico, pero se trasladó a la Universidad de Georgia para estudiar. Ella trabajó por un año como maestra de educacción especial, después de que trabajó con la comunidad hispana en várias papeles en escuelas y…
Noe Ramirez se nació en Morelia, México y actualmente vive en Athens, Georgia donde trabaja como cocinero y desarrollador del menú para el restaurante Taqueria la Parrilla. Él habla sobre sus primeras experiencias cocinando, experimentando con…
Lili Robert se nació en Guadalajara, México y se mudó a Athens, Georgia en 1996, donde trabaja actualmente como gerente en el restaurante Taquería La Parrilla. Entre otras cosas, ella discute su trabajo en el restaurante, su filosofía acerca ser un…
Miriam Hernandez grew up in Athens, Georgia and currently works at her uncle’s restaurant, Tlaloc El Mexicano. In this interview, she talks about her family, her stepfather’s deportation, working from an early age, and becoming a young mother. She…
Adela Rosales se nació en México y se mudó a Athens, Georgia en 2000 con su esposo. Ella habla sobre el cambio, criando sus hijos, e encontrando acceso a recursos y apoyo a través de organizaciones comunitarios como Athens Latino Center for Education…
Smothers relates her own educational experiences in traditional schools to her experience at the Freedom to Grow Unschool, an alternative school outside of Athens, Georgia. She discusses the "unschooling" philosophy, how it's applied at Freedom to…
While enrolled at the University of Georgia, Iliana Rodriguez recalls becoming informed about the Georgia ban on undocumented students to public colleges and universities, which prompted her involvement in Freedom University. She discusses…
Neal Lester is a professor of English at the University of Arizona focusing on African-American literature and theater. He discusses growing up in the South, his increasing awareness of race with age, and his views regarding white allyship,…
Jill Jayne Read attended both Wesleyan University and the University of Georgia where she got a Bachelor’s of Music and a Master’s in Public Administration, respectively. After marrying and moving to Athens, Georgia, Read served in a number of public…
Jeff Montgomery grew up in Louisville, Kentucky and attended college at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. After college, Montgomery moved to Athens, Georgia in the 1980s to take advantage of the local music scene. In this interview,…
Russ Hallauer was first exposed to the Athens music scene while he was a student at Clemson University in the early 1990s. He moved to Athens in 1995 and worked at Flagpole Magazine. In this interview, Hallauer talks about the creation and…
Melissa Link moved to Athens, Georgia in 1993 where she attended the University of Georgia as a graduate student of art history. She has served in various positions in media, community organizations, and government throughout Athens. Currently, she…
Alicia Nickles works as the publisher and advertising director for Flagpole Magazine and serves on the executive committee for AthFest Educates. In this interview, Nickels talks about AthFest Educates, the management and creation of AthFest, and the…
David Barbe was first introduced to music by his parents who were professional musicians. He played the bass for the band Mercyland, and became a freelance music engineer. In this interview, Barbe talks about his contribution to the AthFest music…
Troy Aubrey was born in Louisville, Kentucky and came to Athens to attend the University of Georgia. Aubrey took over his brother’s booking agency Georgia Booking Associates, and also worked as the booking management agent and stage manager for…
Jill Helme was born in Florida, and attended the University of Florida to become a teacher. After teaching high schoolers in Florida and Venezuela for a time, she went to the University of Philadelphia where she earned a master's degree in nonprofit…
Sam Mixon talks about his early affinity for music, taking piano lessons, and teaching himself how to play drums, guitar, and the bass guitar. He remembers how working as a DJ for the local radio station and selling records in his father's store…
Eugene Willis, Jr., aka Blacknerdninja, talks about working at an early age doing odd jobs, drawing comics, and spending a lot of time in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Athens where his grandmother lived. He talks about starting to write raps,…
Larry Gresham, Jr., aka LG, grew up in Athens, Georgia, and fell in love with music very young, when he sang in the church choir and was influenced by his father's music tastes. He started writing his own songs around 1996. Gresham recalls trying to…
Carlos Jones, who performs under the name Lo' Down, talks about his early performances in Athens, releasing his first album Between the Hedges with friend Ken Richardson (Duddy Ken), and leaving college to pursue his music career in Atlanta. Jones…
Ismeal Cuthbertson talks about the culture shock he experienced when moving to Athens, Georgia, and compares the violence between Athens versus the other big cities he's lived in. He talks about his early hip hop influences like Canibus and Fort…
Andrew Rieger talks about becoming a music fan at a young age, his first band, and starting the band Elf Power when he moved to Athens, Georgia for school. He talks about choosing to do home versus in-studio recordings, collaborating briefly with…
Frank MacDonell talks about growing up in the suburbs, taking guitar lessons, forming his high school band, Aftermath, and getting his first Les Paul guitar. MacDonell working for a real estate company after graduating high school, and getting…
Montu Miller talks about growing up in a culture of hip hop, his early involvement in the Athens hip hop scene, and while in college founding the group Dreaded Mindz which hosted weekly poetry and rap events in his apartment. Miller discusses the…
Benjamin Edwards, who performs under the name Big Body, talks about his childhood in the West Athens neighborhood of Newtown, his early hip hop influences, and starting to record music in college. He talks about dropping out of school, going to…
Earl Arnold, aka Big Earl, talks about his early life in Harlem, collaborating with rapper Big Al, living in the Bethel Homes apartments (known as B-Town) in Athens, Georgia, and releasing music with the group Big Earl and the Twin boys. He compares…
Darrison Ellison was born and raised in Athens, Georgia. He discovered hip-hop and rap while in middle school, where he was active in school performances. Ellison served in the military from 1989-1995, after which he was involved in the Athens music…
Ken Richardson was born in Athens, Georgia and grew up in the Nelly B neighborhood on the eastside of Athens. He wrote his first rap while in middle school and later adopted the performance name Duddy Ken, through which he wrote and produced music…
Walter Allen, Sr. grew up in Allendale, South Carolina, in the era of Jim Crow. The area was a close knit farming community, and Allen recalls learning principles of responsibility and discipline from his parents, neighbors, and teachers at Allendale…
Creston Spiers was born in Monroe, Louisiana. He studied orchestra and performance percussion at John Hopkins University and later moved to Athens. Spiers played guitar and drums in the bands Weasel Stick and Harvey Milk. In this interview, Spiers…
Peter Alvanos grew up playing the drums and guitar in Charleston, South Carolina. He went to college in Charleston and played drums in the band, Lines Thicken. After his pursuit of acting in New York, Alvanos moved to Athens, Georgia where he toured…
Kevin Sweeney grew up in Marietta, Georgia. After high school, Sweeney moved to Athens, Georgia where he formed his first band, Window Pane. Sweeney later played guitar in other bands such as A-Ditch and Hayride, and toured with Sunshine Fix. In this…
Rowe grew up in New Jersey around the 1970s. He grew up listening to artists such as Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen. Rowe learned how to drum as a teenager and later moved to Athens to attend the University of Georgia. While in Athens, Rowe toured…
Dave Marr grew up in Chicago, Illinois in the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a teenager, Marr had an interest in punk-rock which inspired him to learn guitar and played for the band Mantis after high school. Marr later worked as a DJ for WNUR,…
Jill Carnes grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, where her mother encouraged her to pursue the arts. In the 1980s, Carnes moved to Athens, Georgia where she worked as a dishwasher at The Grill and was introduced to local musicians. During this…
Paul Trudeau grew up in Providence, Rhode Island. He later came to Athens in 1988. Paul was interested in drumming growing up and played in a band called Basix as a kid. Upon moving to Athens, Trudeau recorded and toured with the band Hetch Hetchy.…
Lynda Stipe, sister to Michael Stipe of R.E.M., moved to Athens, Georgia in 1980 as a high school senior. A year later, she attended the University of Georgia as a sculpture major, during which she formed the band Oh-OK. Stipe worked as the band’s…
During college at Fitchburg State University, Ken Starratt gained an interest in the variety of music of the 1970s. Starratt came to Athens in the mid-1970s where he became involved in the Athens music scene. Starratt played the guitar in many bands…
Bill Shipp interviews Griffin Bell about his career and his tenure as U.S. Attorney General (1977-1979). Bell comments on the integration of Georgia schools and the University of Georgia, the Kennedy presidential campaign in Georgia, and Martin…
Charles Campbell interviews Anthony Alaimo about his experiences as a prisoner of war in Germany during World War II, his time as an attorney in Atlanta, and his tenure as a judge in the U.S. District Court (Southern District of Georgia). Judge…
Donald Stewart discusses his education, his work with the Soil Conservation Service and the idea for Sandy Creek Park. He comments on watershed programs in Athens including dams and flood control. Stewart also discusses Athens-Clarke County's…
George Chandler discusses his early life and career and how he became involved and Sandy Creek Park. He discusses the phases the park has gone through, from original planning to landscaping and natural area conservation. He comments on budgeting,…
Nancy Smith discusses her experience as director of Sandy Creek Park. She weighs in on recreational parks versus resource-based parks, and reflects on Sandy Creek Park's spillway and maintenance. She also comments on issues regarding the park such as…
Rick Kelly discusses Sandy Creek Park’s role in the Athens community, its budget and maintenance, and many aspects of the lake including security, lifeguards, and concern for patron safety. He comments on the merger of the city and county governments…
Rick Main discusses his previous work for the U.S. Forest Service and the Soil Conservation Service. He reflects on the budgeting and construction of Sandy Creek Park and discusses using inmate labor in the construction of the park. Main comments on…
Robert Farmer discusses his work with the Soil Conservation Service, priorities for the design of Sandy Creek Park, and the importance of setting, maintenance, and meeting citizens' desired uses for a park. He comments on the involvement of county…
UGA Political Science Professor Dr. Ieda Siqueira Wiarda interviews Margaret Bennett about her life in the diplomatic corps and as the wife of Foreign Service Officer and U. S. Ambassador William Tapley Bennett, Jr. Bennett discusses her experiences…
A Conversation with Pete Wheeler is a discussion, with Dr. William Stueck and Dr. James Cobb, of Wheeler's long career as Georgia's Commissioner of Veterans Services. Wheeler discusses his early life, attending Emory at Oxford and the University of…
Content Warning: This interview discusses details of sexual violence and murder.William R. "Bill" Shipp interviews Tom Watson Brown. Topics include Tom Watson (Brown's great-grandfather and national Populist leader), the Leo Frank case, Walter J.…
George Justice interviews Carl E. Sanders about his activities as a Georgia state senator, governor, and business leader. Sanders discusses his early life, his involvement with the YMCA, and the state of youth during the Great Depression. He recalls…
Richard B. Russell's niece Sally Russell Warrington interviews Charles Campbell about his work for Senator Richard B. Russell and Russell’s activities from 1965 to 1971. Campbell discusses growing up in Jackson, Georgia, and attending the University…
UGA History Professor Dr. Kathleen Clark interviews Lorena Weeks about her life and her discrimination case against Southern Bell in the 1960s. Lorena Weeks recalls how she started working at Southern Bell Telephone Company. She discusses her early…
Powell Moore interviews Eugene Methvin about his Georgia roots and his life as a journalist and writer and editor for Reader's Digest. Eugene Methvin discusses his early life in Vienna, Georgia, and his family history of journalism and newspaper…
Gussie Davis Phillips is interviewed by her niece, Mattie Davis Hubbard about her involvement with civil rights and community activism. Phillips discusses her brothers' involvement in the World War II effort. She recalls her brothers' fight for…
Zoller discusses her childhood in Columbus, Georgia. She recalls the desegregation of Columbus High School. Zoller reflects on attending the University of Georgia and subsequently working for Rich's (an Atlanta-based department store that later…
Martha Zoller discusses her early life, including her father's life and family history. She discusses her mother's opinion of integration, her family's attitude toward African Americans, and a walkout staged by the black students of Columbia High…
Bill Shipp interviews journalist and writer Robert Coram. Robert Coram recalls working on Cumberland Island first as a caretaker and then a park ranger. He comments on the preservation of Georgia's barrier islands and shark fishing. Coram discusses…
Dr. Robert Bielen, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania medical school, joined the Peace Corps in order to fulfil his military obligations. He was in the Dominican Republic in the 1960s at the time where the country was facing political…
Dr. Carl Hartrampf, Jr. is a distinguished plastic surgeon in the Atlanta Area. He is a native of Atlanta, and he attended Emory University and the University of Georgia. After his internships and residencies, Hartrampf established a medical practice…
Dr. Walter Allen, Sr. grew up in Allendale, South Carolina where he learned how to play the trumpet in his high school band. He began his music career as a teenager by playing in a variety of bands, including the military band during his service in…
Music promoters, Alex Cooley and Peter Conlon, along with Presidential aid, Tom Beard, talk about the development of the music scene in Atlanta. Cooley and Conlon talk about the several concerts and festivals they arranged over the years. And the…
Hugh Peterson Jr was born in Washington, DC to Congressman Hugh Peterson, Sr. and Patience Elizabeth Russell Peterson. Peterson spent half of his childhood in Ailey, Ga and Washington, DC. After going to Yale University and Harvard Law School,…
Eric J. Tanenblatt was born in 1966 in Long Island, New York. He graduated from Emory University with a degree in economics. He immediately started as a campaign worker for George H.W. Bush and organized college campuses. There, he met and worked…
W. Frank Barron was born in Rome, Georgia, and he graduated from Darlington School in 1948. In 1952, he graduated from Washington and Lee and enlisted in the U.S. Navy, serving on the USS Eversole DD789. Barron began his career at the Rome Coca-Cola…
Tom Crawford was born in Atlanta, Georgia and graduated from Clarkston High School in DeKalb County, Georgia in 1968. As a journalism student at the University of Georgia, Crawford worked at the student-led newspaper, The Red & Black, rising to rank…
George Washington “Buddy” Darden was born in Sparta, Georgia. He attended North Georgia College, and earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia in 1965. He was selected to serve in Senator Richard B. Russell’s patronage program in…
Rusty Paul discusses his early exposure to politics while growing up in civil rights-era Alabama and his involvement in Republican politics after moving to Georgia, including creating a statewide Republican Party newspaper. Paul recalls the political…
Bob Irvin grew up in rural North Fulton County in the 1950s and 1960s. He was elected as a Republican to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1972. He attended Harvard Business School, after which he came back to Georgia politics and was reelected…
Arthur (Skin) Edge IV is a former state senator representing the 28th senatorial district of Coweta, Pike, and Spalding counties. In 1993, Edge was appointed as chairman of the Senate Special Judiciary Committee as a Republican in a Democratic…
Galloway talks about the relationship of media to politics, how political reporting has changed since he entered the business, and comments on the role that technology has played in news reporting. He comments on factors for success of an elected…
Jane Kidd is the daughter of former Georgia Governor Ernest Vandiver and his wife, Betty Vandiver. She is a graduate of Grady College at the University of Georgia and became politically active on the Lavonia City Council as well as managing the…
Bob Barr grew up in California. He graduated from Georgetown Law School in 1977 and worked for the CIA from 1971-1978. He moved to Georgia to pursue a law practice and became involved in Republican party politics in Cobb County in the 1980s, where he…
John Padgett grew up as a Republican in Athens and has served in various roles in local and state party politics, including as Chairman of the Athens-Clarke County Republican Party, as Chairman of the 11th and 12th Congressional District Republican…
John Linder grew up in Minnesota and served in the U.S. Air Force from 1967-1969. He moved to Georgia to pursue a dentistry practice, and he settled in North DeKalb County where he became involved in Georgia Republican Party politics in the 1970s.…
Bob Bell grew up in Atlanta in the 1930s-1940s. He served in the U.S. Army from 1950-1952 and received his Bachelors of Business Administration from the University of Georgia's Atlanta Division in 1954. Bell ran as a Republican for the Georgia House…
Robert (Bob) J. Shaw was raised in Bronwood, Georgia and attended the Georgia Institute of Technology and Georgia State University before enlisting in the Air Force in 1950. Shaw served as the Chairman of the Development Authority of Fulton County as…
Eric Johnson was born in New Orleans, and moved to Savannah, Georgia with his wife. He studied architecture and has worked as a principal architect at Hussey, Gay, Bell and Deyoung International, as well as at North Point Real Estate. Johnson became…
Billy Lovett grew up in Dublin, Georgia in Laurens County. Lovett is a former Laurens County Commissioner and later served on the State Public Service Commission beginning the 1970s. In 1982, he ran as an unsuccessful campaign for governor and…
Jay Morgan grew up in Talbotton, Georgia in Talbot County and attended the University of Georgia in the early 1980s. Morgan was a regional finance director for the Republican National Committee before becoming the executive director for the Georgia…
Alec Poitevint grew up in Bainbridge, Georgia in Decatur County and attended the University of Georgia in the mid-to-late 1960s. Poitevint became chairman of the Decatur County Republican Party in 1975 and was later selected as Vice Chairman of the…
John Stuckey grew up in rural Louisiana and served five years in the military, primarily organizing military intelligence at the Pentagon. He attended Louisiana State University and obtained his J.D. from George Washington University. Stuckey became…
Roy Barnes grew up in rural Cobb County, Georgia in the 1950s-1960s. Barnes grew up in a Republican family but became affiliated with the Democratic Party. He graduated from the University of Georgia Law School in 1972, after which he moved back to…
Guy Millner grew up in Holly Hill, Florida and attended Florida State University. Miller moved to Atlanta for business reasons, and focused on growing his Norrell Corporation, a supplemental staffing business, during the 1960s and 1970s. Millner…
Saxby Chambliss moved around the southeast growing up, due to his father being an Episcopal priest. He attended the University of Georgia in the mid-1960s, obtained his J.D. from the University of Tennessee, and moved back to south Georgia after…
Joyce Carter Stevens was raised in south Georgia. She served as Vice-President of Sales and Marketing at Del-Cook Lumber Company from 1964-1981. Stevens' first major involvement with the Republican Party was in fundraising for Mack Mattingly's 1980…
Steve Anthony was raised in a political family in Bremen, Georgia and attended the University of West Georgia. He worked as an aide for several state legislators and their committees, and later was the Chief of Staff for Speaker of the House, Tom…
Bobby Kahn is a Democratic political strategist from Savannah, Georgia. He attended the University of Georgia Law School and afterwards worked as a trial lawyer in Atlanta. He served as Chief of Staff for Governor Roy Barnes from 1999 to 2003. He…
Chuck Clay is from a military family and moved frequently growing up. He attended the University of North Carolina, and obtained his law degree from the University of Georgia Law School. He moved to Marietta, Georgia in the 1970s for work and became…
Oscar Persons talks about his first interests in Republican politics in the 1960s, recalling in particular Barry Goldwater’s presidential run in 1964 and Bo Callaway’s 1966 gubernatorial run. Persons then describes how the Republican Party grew in…
Frank Strickland talks about his early life and becoming interested in Republican politics in 1966 due to Bo Callaway’s run for governor that year. Strickland afterward describes what occurred as the Republican Party grew in the 1970s and 1980s,…
Charles Bullock explains how he became interested in southern politics and then talks about the patterns that make southern politics distinctive, particularly in the areas of partisan realignment and demographic voting patterns. He then discusses the…
Harman discusses his early life, focusing on the events that became the foundation of his political views. He then talks about joining Sam Nunn’s senate staff and working his way up the ranks to become Nunn’s chief of staff. Harman also talks about…
Stuart Levenson was born and educated in Savannah, Georgia. He attended Armstrong College before working for the Social Security Administration for 36 years. Levenson talks about growing up visually impaired, emphasizing the changing role of…
Vashaun Jones was born in Portsmouth, Virginia. He describes being blind or visually impaired throughout his life. He talks about his career, emphasizing the importance of failure to achieving success.
Rita Harris was born in Good Hope, Georgia. She worked in the school system assisting children with disabilities before she became visually impaired due to retinitis pigmentosa. Harris describes adjusting to life as a visually impaired person. A…
Empish Thomas grew up sighted before losing her vision after college to uveitis, a condition that causes inflammation in the back of the eye near the retina. Thomas describes navigating the workforce while blind, discussing her careers in human…
Jarrett McNutt served in the army during World War II before becoming a minister and working for the Clinical Pastoral Care Organization. He talks about his family history and his career as a minister.
Bridgette Suttle was born in New Jersey, but she grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. She became legally blind as an adult due to complications from type 2 diabetes. Suttle describes managing her diabetes, having to have her foot amputated due diabetes, and…
John McCarty is an autistic, non-reliable speaker with impaired vision. In this interview, Joan McCarty reads her son, John McCarty’s, account of his struggle with communication before learning the Rapid Prompting Method (RPM), which enabled him to…
Chris Vandeford became blind as an adult due to diabetic retinopathy. He talks about losing his vision, going through vocational rehabilitation, and becoming involved in his community, both through his work at the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation…
Brian Mosely became blind, lost his sense of smell, and got epilepsy in an accident as an adult. Mosely describes how assistive technology has helped him retain his independence, mentioning the use of the Job Access With Speech (JAWS) screen reader…
Candace Rogers was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) which caused her to become legally blind and have issues with mobility. Rogers describes fighting for disability benefits, purchasing a house, and encouraging others people who have MS.
Daryl Rootledge is a vocational rehabilitation therapist and minister. He was born with aniridia, an illness that impacts the development of the eye during birth. Rootledge describes navigating the educational system and raising his daughter as a…
Anna Trotman was born in Montgomery, Alabama and experienced numerous health problems as a child that caused her to become visually impaired. In this interview, Trotman talks about her education and career as a braille instructor at various…
Alina Garcia Ravelo was born in Cuba and attended the University of Havana, graduating with a degree in industrial engineering. She eventually moved to the U.S. and currently lives in Bainbridge, Georgia, where she works at Georgia Industries for the…
Gaylon Tootle was born in Georgia and attended the Georgia Academy for the Blind, before attending the University of Georgia. After graduation, he worked for the U.S. Army at Fort Stewart and the Moody Air Force Base. Presently, Tootle works at the…
Luis Narimatsu was born in the Panama Canal Zone. He began losing his vision in college as a symptom of glaucoma. After his diagnosis, Narimatsu eventually found work in the 94th Signal Company as a telephone operator. Afterward, Naritmatsu moved to…
Robert Woodward grew up in Decatur County, Georgia. He worked in a variety of jobs, including as an ambulance inspector, food services inspector, and as an employee of Georgia Industries for the Blind (GIB). After retirement, Woordward opened his own…
Cornelius Butler was born in Dawsonville, Georgia and currently lives in Bainbridge, Georgia. At a young age, Butler was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, which has caused progressive loss in sight throughout his life and will result in eventual…
Maria Munoz was a Senior Airman in the United States Air Force from 2009 - 2013. In this interview she describes her MOS (military occupational specialty), her deployments to Afghanistan and South Korea. She discusses her transition to civilian life…
Edgar Miranda served in the United States Marine Corps from 2007 - 2015. In this interview, he discusses his MOS (military occupational specialty) and his deployments to Japan, and Afghanistan. He describes his transition from active duty to…
Steve Thompson served in the Alabama Army National Guard from 2010 - 2019. He describes his occupation as a Religious Affairs Specialist and about his deployment to Afghanistan. He discusses his experiences as a student veteran at the University of…
Guyton Lee Robinson has served as an Aviation Officer in the United States Army since May 2000. Throughout his interview, he recalls his deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and the responsibilities of an officer. He also describes attending West…
Hunter Holder has served as a Chief Warrant Officer in the Army National Guard since February 2011. Holder describes his occupation as a medical evacuation helicopter pilot, the extensive training he underwent at Warrant Officer Training School, and…
Lizette Busquets served as a intelligence analyst in the United States Army during the Cold War. She discusses her identity as a Puerto Rican woman in the military, her early training, and a deployment to West Germany. Busquets addresses public…
Marcus Garrison served in the United States Navy from 2010-2016. He discusses his occupation as an intelligence analyst and the job training that he underwent. Garrison describes his deployments to Syria and Germany, noting the work he did with…
Robert Paine was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1979-1980. He became a professor at the University of Washington in 1962, and he remained there for his entire career. In this interview he discusses his education, career, and…
Lawrence Bliss was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1982-1983. He was a professor at Bowling Green State University from 1956-1957, at the University of Illinois from 1957-1968, at the University of Alberta from 1968-1978, and…
Gordon Orians was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1995-1996. He was also a professor at the University of Washington. In this interview, he discusses his work with the Institute of Environmental Studies at the University of…
Orie Loucks was a member of the Ecological Society of America’s Applied Ecology and Certification Committees. He won the George Mercer Award in 1964 and was a professor at the University of Wisconsin and Miami University in Ohio. In this interview,…
Yaffa Grossman was a member of the Ecological Society of America and a professor of biology at Beloit College. In this interview she discusses working in the ESA’s public affairs office and talks about her involvement with the ESA’s report on the…
Jean Langenheim was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1986-1987. She wrote an autobiography, The Odyssey of a Woman Field Scientist: A Story of Passion, Persistence, and Patience, and was a professor at the University of…
Patricia Werner was a member of the Ecological Society of America as well as a professor at Michigan State University. In this interview, she talks about her research regarding disturbances on tree populations in the tropics of Darwin, Australia. She…
John Hobbie was President of the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO) from 1984-1986. He was also a member of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). In this interview, Hobbie talks about his career studying bacteria in…
James Brown was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1996-1997 and won the 2002 ESA Robert H. MacArthur Award. In this interview he recalls coining the term “macroecology,” discusses his ESA presidency, and shares his concerns…
Scott Collins was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 2012-2013, and he has also been a professor at the University of New Mexico. In this interview, he talks about his involvement with the National Center of Ecological Analysis…
Arthur Cooper was a professor at North Carolina State University (NCSU) and was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1980-1981. He was also the deputy director of the Department of Conservation and Development in North Carolina. In…
George Woodwell is the founder of the Woods Hole Research Center and was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1977 to 1978. In this interview, he talks about studying the effects of DDT at the University of Maine and the Brookhaven…
Margaret Davis was a professor at the University of Michigan, Yale, and the University of Minnesota, and she served as President of the Ecological Society of America from 1987 to 1988. In this interview, she talks about the role of women in science…
Stuart "Terry" Chapin III was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 2010-2011, and has taught at both the University of Alaska and the University of California, Berkley. In his interview, he talks about his work with the Peace Corps…
Marjorie Holland was the Director of the Ecological Society of America’s Public Affairs Office for six years, and is currently a professor in the biology department at the University of Mississippi. In this interview, she discusses her work during…
Simon Levin was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1990-1991 and a professor at Princeton University. He has also taught at Cornell University and the University of Maryland. In this interview he talks about the highlights of his…
Harold Mooney was the president of the Ecological Society of America from 1988-1989 and is a professor at Stanford University. In this interview, he discusses working with Dwight Billings, as well as his involvement with international science and…
Katherine McCarter has been the Executive Director of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) since 1997. In this interview, she explains how she became the Executive Director and what she has done during her time at ESA. McCarter describes the…
William Reiners was the Treasurer of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) from 1981-1984. He has also been a professor at the University of Minnesota, Dartmouth College, and the University of Wyoming. In this interview, he talks about his career…
Frances James was a professor at the University of Florida and a member of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). She explains how she entered the field of ecology and describes her ornithological research. Retired from the University of Florida,…
Gene Likens, a former professor at Dartmouth College and Cornell University, was the president of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) from 1981-1982. In this interview, he discusses his education and his path to studying ecology. He also talks…
Dennis Knight was a professor at the University of Wyoming. He served as the president of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) from 1989-1990 and has also served on the ESA's Historical Records Committee. He is the main interviewer for this…
Joy Zedler was a professor at San Diego State University and the University of Wisconsin, Madison where she worked on ecological conservation of wetlands and sedge meadows. She served on the boards of The Nature Conservancy, the Environmental Defense…
Jimmy Jones was born in 1936 in Henry County, Georgia. Upon moving to Spalding County, Georgia at an early age, Jones attended Broad Street Elementary School. Jones lived through the desegregation of Fairmont High School and later became involved in…
Johnny Goodrum was born in Griffin-Spalding County in Georgia during the years of segregation. As a child, Goodrum attended multiple schools in the area including Broad Street School, Cabin Creek Elementary and Fairmont High School. Goodrum later…
Jean W. Reid was born in 1935 in Griffin, Georgia and is the wife of the late Civil Rights activist Gary Reid. Jean Reid attended a segregated Fairmont High School, where she practiced cheerleading and was a majorette. In 1965, Reid participated in a…
Jean Walker-Harps was born in 1939 and grew up on a farm in Glenville, Georgia. She attended Morris-Brown College and in 1961, she moved to Griffin, Georgia where she worked as a teacher at Fairmont High School. During the Civil Rights Movement,…
Tommy Lee Harps grew up on a farm in Griffin, Georgia. As a child, Harps worked at the Georgia Experiment Station along with his father under Dr. H.P. Stuckley, during which he attended Mount Pleasant Church School and later Vocational High School.…
JoAnne Phinazee was born in Griffin, Georgia in 1943. Phinazee grew up during segregation where she attended Annie Shockley Grade School and later Negro Vocational High School. As an adult, Phinazee worked at Pomona Products. In this interview,…
Freddie Phillips was born in Spalding County in 1938. As a child, Phillips attended Anne Shockley grade school and later Fairmont High School where he was a member of the marching band and basketball team. Phillips was active in the Civil Rights…
Born in 1940, Haskell Ward grew up in the segregated Griffin, Georgia. Throughout his childhood, Ward was encouraged by peers and friends to attain an education. Ward has held a multitude of positions throughout his life including working as Peace…
Gail Reid Hackbart grew up in Griffin, Georgia as the daughter of Gary Reid, a prominent Civil Rights activist in Georgia. Gail attended Georgia Tech, where she started the Alpha Kappa Alpha chapter and participated in marches over the unfair…
Bill Bowen lives in Watkinsville, Georgia in Oconee County. He lives with his wife Eva Bowen and is the father of his only son, Billy Bowen, who was diagnosed with Asperger’s during the fifth grade. Bill works as a video editor for CNN. Bowen…
Tatiana Anthony was born in Decatur, Georgia and attends the University of Georgia as a full time student. Tatiana Anthony discusses living with her younger brother, Jacob, who was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. She gives insight into how…
Tom Graf reflects on his life work in providing change for those who suffer from mental disabilities. Graf describes his early life as a blue-collar worker, before his eventual change of path into providing care for the mentally disabled. Graf…
Eve Byrd talks about her and Tom Bornemann’s reaction to the series of exposé articles published in The Atlanta-Journal Constitution over the care of patients in Georgia mental state hospitals. Byrd describes her experience working with Dr. William…
Ruby Moore talks about her experience investigating the death of 14–year old Sarah Crider, who was under the care of a Georgia state hospital when she died. Moore talks about the settlement agreement reached between the State of Georgia and the…
Thomas Bornemann discusses his reaction to the series of articles published by The Atlanta-Journal Constitution. The interviewer, Lei Ellingson, and Bornemann discuss meetings held with advocates from the Georgia mental healthcare system with the…
Joshua Norris discusses the interactions between the Department of Justice and the Georgia Advocacy Office over the expośe articles written by The Atlanta-Journal Constitution concerning the treatment of patients at Georgia state mental health…
Doug Scott discusses the definition of Supportive Housing, and explains the status of chronic homelessness. Scott compares the societal cost of chronic homelessness vs. supportive permanent housing. Scott and the interviewer, Talley Wells, talk about…
Sue Smith, Sue Jamieson, and the interviewer, Cynthia Wainscott discuss their experience working together prior to the Georgia vs. Department of Justice hearing. Smith and Jamieson discuss the shortcomings of the settlement agreement that was reached…
Talley Wells talks about his work in the Disability Integration Project as part of Atlanta Legal Aid. Wells talks about the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's mandate for Georgia to develop an Olmstead Plan in order to adhere to the…
Gab Rich talks about her position at Atlanta Legal Aid as a paralegal in the Disability Integration Project. Rich recalls the early days of the Nick Project, a committee-led social project with the mission of providing services to people with mental…
Harriet Van Norte talks about how she came to work in the Department of Public Health as the admissions coordinator of the state mental health hospitals, and remembers the growth in community services in the early 1970s. Van Norte talks about how she…
Mack Mattingly was born in Anderson, Indiana on January 7, 1931 and had a career in both business and politics in Georgia for many decades. In 1980 he became the first Republican from Georgia to serve in the U.S. Senate since Reconstruction. In this…
Griffin Bell was born Americus, Georgia, on October 31, 1918 and received his law degree at the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University. In this interview, Bell discusses his early years growing up in Americus, his law career, his role as…
Leroy Reginald Johnson was born in Atlanta, Georgia on July 28, 1928. He attended Morehouse College, worked in the Fulton County Solicitor-General’s office, and served as a Georgia senator from 1963-1975, becoming the first black legislator in the…
Samuel Marvin Griffin, Jr. was the publisher of the Bainbridge Post-Searchlight from 1972 until 2008 and son of Georgia Governor Marvin Griffin, who held office from 1955 to 1959. In this interview he discusses the life and career of his father. Ben…
John Hardy "Johnny" Isakson was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on December 28, 1944 and has served in politics since his election to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1976. Since then, he has served in the Georgia senate and both houses of Congress,…
Clarence Saxby Chambliss was born in Warrenton, North Carolina on November 10, 1943. He attended Louisiana Tech University and the University of Georgia, earning a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1966. He received his law degree from…
Lera Catherine "Cathy" Cox was born in Bainbridge, Georgia, in 1958 and has served as a state representative, Secretary of State, and as the 21st president of Young Harris College. Cox discusses her early years in Bainbridge, Ga., and her career path…
David Gambrell worked as campaign treasurer during Jimmy Carter's campaign for governor, and was appointed to the U.S. Senate by Governor Carter after the death of Richard Russell. In this interview Gambrell discusses the highlights of his service in…
Nancy Schaefer served as a Republican senator for Georgia's 50th district from 2004 to 2008. She presided over Family Concerns, Inc., a conservative religious group. In this interview, Schaefer discusses her early years in Clayton, Georgia, and her…
Herb Mabry studied labor law at Woodrow Wilson College of Law in Atlanta and entered union politics in 1950 through his carpentry work with Sears Roebuck and his membership with the Union Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America. In 1969 he…
Tommy Irvin discusses his long career as Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture, a position he held from 1969 to 2011. Leading up to his service with the Department of Agriculture, Irvin served on the Habersham County School Board, directed the Georgia…
Terry Coleman was born in Dodge County, Georgia, and his legislative career began when he was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1972, where he served on the Appropriations Commitee. In this interview Coleman discusses his political…
Lauren "Bubba" McDonald grew up in Commerce, Georgia, and served as a commissioner in Jackson County before being elected to the state House in 1971, where he worked on the Industry Committee and the Appropriations Committee. He was later appointed…
