Personal History Project Sampling

A select sampling of Choose Your Words’s projects follows. Would you like to join our list of satisfied clients?

Title		Family or Group’s Name
If You Don’t Try, You Don’t Get		Larry and Muriel Goodman
Still Serving		Willa B. DeLay
Veva Mann		Veva Mann
My Life’s Journey with Special People		Lloyd Jones
Journey to Freedom		Lonnie R. Bunkley
Jake’s Mom by René Babich Dumas		Jill Maurer Campbell
Shine On, Crazy Diamond		Paul Gill
It Will Be All Right		Jackie Linneman with Mary Ann Mayers
They Tried to Tell Us We’re Too Young		Judy Stock with Milt and Phyllis Newman
James D. Loebl Memorial Book		Loebl Family
Martha Schaffer		Schaffer Family
Bill Schneider		Saticoy Historical Society
Oxnard: The History of a Coastal Sugar Town		Heritage Media
Forward Ever, Backward Never		Burrell D. Plucknett

Chapter One: Roots
Monterville, West Virginia

          “Twas the night before Christmas,
            And all through the house,
            Not a creature was stirring,
            Not even a mouse. . .”
                                    Clement Moore

           On Christmas Eve, 1924, seven-year-old Willa Blanche Swecker stood before the entire congregation of Point Mountain Presbyterian Church and recited all 24 verses of the Clement Moore poem, “The Night Before Christmas,” that she had memorized. The adults were amazed, and Willa remembers that evening to this day.

           The church and her love of God have played major roles in Willa’s life since childhood. Now 82 years old, she says, “The Lord has sustained me in this life. I could not have endured what I did without my faith and the knowledge that Jesus is always there for me.”

           Willa was born on a farm in Monterville, West Virginia, on May 28, 1917, to George Bryan Swecker and Vanessa Lee Hevner Swecker. She’s not sure why her parents chose Willa for her first name, but her middle name, Blanche, came from her maternal grandmother. Willa was always close with her parents. She loved, honored and respected them, as she was taught. “They were the greatest parents any child could have,” she says. “They stood by me throughout their lives. In times of joy and times of sorrow they were always there.”

            As the youngest of her parents’ three children, Willa arrived nearly two years after the tragic loss of their first son, Lawrence C. Swecker, who died a month short of his sixth birthday. Her other brother, Neddie Earl Swecker, was four years old at her birth.

            “We were brought up the Christian way: to love everyone and to do no harm to anyone. My parents participated in all aspects of community life. My mother served as the town’s midwife, ushering all the neighbors’ children into the world. The Hogans, who lived next door, had three sons. Two of their sons, Wesley and Bruce, each fathered 16 children, and my mother delivered them all. She never lost any babies! I helped with some of her last deliveries, so from an early age I experienced the miracle of birth.

            “I also learned about death because my father worked as the town’s mortician, arranging for people’s earthly departures and preparing them for the next life. When someone died, the family would call my father and he would hurry over to bathe the deceased person and cover the body with a sheet. He’d put quarters over the dead person’s eyes.

            “When I was nine, I went along to help him. My father left the room for a few minutes, and while I was waiting for him, the quarters fell off the person’s face and the sheet moved. I ran through the house screaming, ‘Daddy, that man isn’t dead,’ and headed for home. When he caught up to me, he explained that the body moved because the dead person’s muscles were relaxing. The person really was dead.

            “Another time, the dead person sat straight up in his casket twice during his funeral service. Again, my father explained that the man’s muscles were just relaxing, but this incident really scared me. I was only nine or ten years old. I began to wonder if people could be buried alive.”

“I was only nine or ten years old, and I began to wonder if people could be buried alive.”

Family History: Excerpt from If You Don’t Try, You Don’t Get; © 1999, Libby J. Atwater and Lawrence Manche Goodman III
Preface
The Goodman Recipe: Combining the Right Ingredients

If there’s a recipe for success, Larry Goodman and his wife Muriel followed it exactly. The couple combined the right ingredients – ingenuity, timing, hard work and love – to create a successful business and a devoted family. It wasn’t easy, and all the ingredients didn’t blend well at times, but the final product brought rewards that far exceeded the financial compensation most entrepreneurs treasure.

The Goodman recipe began to take shape on June 16, 1939 in Los Angeles. Larry was working his nightly shift at a Union Oil service station on Wilshire Boulevard when his good friend, Chuck Stein, pulled up.

           “Hi, Larry,” called Chuck. “I’d like you to meet Muriel Flam.”

            “Hello, Muriel,” Larry smiled, as he eyed the pretty brunette seated next to Chuck. What a girl, thought Larry, as he busied himself servicing Chuck’s car.

            The couple drove off, but shortly afterward Larry began driving Muriel home from high school. He became an avid suitor, vying for Muriel’s affection and showering her with attention.

            Fifty-four years later Larry still showers Muriel with attention. The love song begins promptly at seven each weekday morning. Muriel and Larry Goodman arise and welcome another day in their spacious Pacific Palisades home with dramatic ocean views. Their children are grown now, with families of their own, but Muriel and Larry have remained in the home they built to accommodate their growing brood back in the 19choose your wordsds.

Bird Roofing & Waterproofing Inc.

            It may be coincidental that Bird Roofing & Waterproofing Inc. was founded in 1976, the year the United States celebrated its 200th anniversary. But company founder Tony Reyes deliberately chose the American flag and the eagle, America’s national bird, for his company’s logo. Reyes established Bird Roofing & Waterproofing Inc. after learning the roofing business from his father and uncle. The moniker “Bird” comes from Reyes’ childhood nickname, and the eagle conveys the firm’s strong presence and powerful reach.

            Like an eagle spreading its wings and taking flight, the Oxnard-based commercial roofing company has expanded its services and its job locations over its 24-year history. What began as a sole proprietorship in Redding, California, has grown into a corporation with 75 full-time employees conducting business throughout the Golden State, the nation and the world. The corporation also includes a construction company—BRW Construction—and a pest control service in addition to its roofing services.

            Some of Bird Roofing & Waterproofing’s initial success is attributed to the federal government’s 8A Program that helps fledgling, minority-owned businesses establish themselves. As a Hispanic-owned business, Bird received assistance obtaining new jobs and partnered with established firms in its early years. After almost a decade, the company took flight, setting its own course.

            "Years ago children born with congenital heart disease did not live to be adults," said Joseph Perloff, M.D., "but thanks to research and new technology we now have an adult population who has survived congenital heart disease. Their needs and care differ from individuals who developed heart disease later in life, and that's why the UCLA Adult Congenital Heart Disease Center was formed."

            Currently in the United States there are well over 500,000 congenital heart disease patients whohave reached adulthood. Each year at least 20,000 open heart operations are performed for congenital malformations of the heart and circulation. Of an estimated 25,000 infants born annually in the United States with congenital heart and circulation problems, more then 85 percent will reach adulthood. From these statistics it became clear that adult congenital heart disease should be considered an area of specialized cardiovascular interest.

            The UCLA Adult Congenital Heart Disease Center, the first of its kind, was formed in the early 1980s, yet few people in the community are aware of its existence. The center combines the resources of UCLA's Departments of Medicine, Pediatrics and Surgery at the UCLA Center for Health Sciences and Medical Plaza outpatient facilities. Its patient population includes individuals, age 18 and over, who may have undergone reparative cardiac surgery, who may be awaiting surgery or re-operation, and those who are inoperable except for organ transplantation. Several issues are unique to this patient population; specifically insurability, both health and life insurance, employability and numerous psychosocial concerns. Some medical problems unique to young women born with congenital heart disease are conception and childbirth when they become adults.

            Because some adults with congenital heart disease cannot obtain health insurance, the center assures treatment to such individuals regardless of their ability to pay.

The Marshall School of Business was founded in 1963 as the School of Business Administration and renamed in 1997 for benefactor Gordon S. Marshall, who bestowed the largest gift ever given to a U.S. business school at that time. This generous contribution will help the school keep pace with changing technology, recruit top faculty and initiate new programs. While the school incorporates innovation in its programs, it remains dedicated to providing the same quality business education for which it receives accreditation from the American Assembly of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB).

As the oldest business school in Southern California, Marshall plays a prominent role in the area’s business community. Located two miles south of downtown Los Angeles, the school links business leaders with faculty and students to provide experiential learning opportunities.

Memoir: Excerpt from My Three Moms: The Holy Trinity

My hands shook as I touched the telephone keypad, carefully inserting the ten digits that would connect me with someone I had been waiting my entire life to meet—my birth mother. Only one day earlier, I had sent out six e-mails before lunch. The message read:

I am a personal historian seeking information on Angela Scalia, who lived in New Jersey, in the late 1940s. I found your name through the Google search engine and thought you might help me with this project. If you have any information that might help my search, please reply via email or telephone me at the number listed below. Thank you.

Within an hour I received a reply from a man named Jerry Scalia. It read:

I know this person. What kind of information are you looking for? For whom and why?
Thanks.
Jerry Scalia

I wrote back immediately.

Thank you for responding to my query. The reason I am seeking this information is for my own personal history. I was born in New Jersey in 1948, and my birth mother is listed as Angela Scalia. I was given up for adoption shortly after my birth, and I have always wondered about my birth mother. My adoptive parents died in 1962 and 1963, when I was a teenager. I was afraid to seek my birth mother and family for many years, unsure of what I would find. However, I would really like to know my history for a number of reasons. I have had some health problems that may have biological links, and I have two grown sons who share my heredity. It would also be very nice to meet my birth family, if, and only if, they feel the same way. I hope the information I have provided will not shock or upset you. I would really appreciate your help.

The reply came back within minutes.

Yes, it is a little shocking, and I am investigating this with a few family members. I will get back to you ASAP.
Take care,
Jerry

After this reply, I became nervous—afraid I would not hear from Jerry again, and I volunteered some additional information that I had been given about my birth. I heard nothing for the remainder of the day.

The next morning I opened my e-mail immediately. The note from Jerry read as follows:

You are definitely a member of our family. The circumstances of your birth are a little different from what you were told—except for the Italian part. I am your first cousin. My father, your uncle, will talk to his sister today and ask her if she’d like to meet you. Please send me a phone number and the times you can be reached, and I’ll call you later. Whether or not she wants to talk to you, you have a right to know.

            I was so excited, I felt I could fly, and no one was around to share my news. I would not leave the house, afraid I’d miss Jerry’s call, but eventually it came—at 5:30 p.m. “You have a mother, a brother, and a sister who all want to meet you. Unfortunately your father died in August 2003, but the rest of your family is alive and very happy that you found them. Here are their phone numbers.”
And now I was dialing the phone. I listened as it began to ring—once, twice, a third time—and then a woman picked up. “Hello,” she said.”

            “Is this Angela?” I asked. “I’m your daughter.”

            “How are you?” she replied. “I always wondered what happened to you. It’s been more than 56 years.”

            “I’m fine,” I answered. “I’m really fine, thank you. I’ve wondered about you all my life.”