True stories of everyday people

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Matthew Steward

After graduating from IU Bloomington with a degree in Political Science, Matthew Steward considered law school but applied to the Indianapolis Police Academy on a whim. Thirty five years later he has no regrets.

Wayne Roland Wellington

As a child Wayne Wellington was impressed by the manner and dress of his shop teacher. Those polished shoes lead him to the path to higher education, teaching, and a successful career as an administrator.

Ellen Marcy Rosenthal

Ellen Rosenthal tells of researching the history of her great-grandfather, Maurice Rosenthal, a Jewish peddler during the 1880’s; a challenging time for families living in the tenement apartments of New York City.

Dennis Paul Strickland

Beth, the babysitter, is nice but she does not know what four-year-old Paul wants for lunch when he asks for “Foffy.” So begins the quest for food and understanding.

Sherril Lyn Adkins

In the Summer of 1966 Sherril Adkins got a job as a waitress at Catfish King in Birmingham, Alabama. Having grown up on integrated military bases she had not yet experienced the racism of ordinary white folks of the South. When the restaurant would not serve an...

Mary Jo Huff

Storyteller and “50-yard-line-Momma” Mary Jo Huff tells about the different kinds of people and the many ways of expressing team spirit from the bleachers at I.U. Bloomington football games.

Michael O’Brien

Michael Obrien talks about training to go to India with the Peace Corps in 1973, how growing up in a large family on a Wisconsin dairy farm helped prepare him for that work and how stories and language affect our world view.

Doris Virginia Bond

In 1946 when Doris was eight years old her father had a travel trailer built and took the family on a six month journey from Canada, across the United States and back. Doris recalls the highlights.