Maria Paulina Custódio Interview
Item
Title
Maria Paulina Custódio Interview
Interviewee, Interviewer
Custódio, Maria Paulina
Morris, Lorenzo Orozco
Relation
Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute
Date
11/18/2019
Identifier
SCUAD_pbbi_00023
extracted text
1
00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:04,920
Speaker 1: Cool. Um, so what's your full name?
2
00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:08,830
Speaker 2: Maria Paulina Barcelos Custodio
3
00:00:09,340 --> 00:00:10,780
Speaker 1: Oh, that's super long.
4
00:00:11,410 --> 00:00:13,600
Speaker 2: Custodio came in because I got married so custodio.
5
00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:13,990
Speaker 1: okay
6
00:00:13,990 --> 00:00:14,530
Speaker 2: Came in.
7
00:00:14,690 --> 00:00:21,830
Speaker 1: I was gonna say that's like four different five different
names. Yeah, my name is pretty. My name is Lorenzo Roscoe Morris. I have
a pretty long.
8
00:00:21,860 --> 00:00:22,940
Speaker 2: Okay, so that's pretty long too.
9
00:00:22,970 --> 00:00:28,970
Speaker 1: yeah, I've a pretty long name too. Were you named after anyone
like the story?
10
00:00:29,570 --> 00:00:31,130
Speaker 2: I was named after my godmother.
11
00:00:31,190 --> 00:00:31,760
Speaker 1: Your godmother?
12
00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:37,010
Speaker 2: Yeah. So all of my mom had six children and we all were named
after our godparents.
13
00:00:37,100 --> 00:00:37,670
Speaker 1: Oh.
14
00:00:37,750 --> 00:00:38,290
Speaker 2: yeah.
15
00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:39,580
Speaker 1: That's interesting.
16
00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:49,140
Speaker 2: So our middle name, I should say, because Maria was like after
my mom, and all of our middle names were after her godmothers. So my name
is Paulina. So my godmother is Paulina.
17
00:00:49,500 --> 00:00:58,890
Speaker 1: Wow. Interesting, oh man. Yeah, I was named after my dad. I'm
the I'm the third. So it's just like three generations of Lorenzo's.
18
00:00:58,920 --> 00:00:59,640
Speaker 2: Oh wow.
19
00:00:59,670 --> 00:01:01,140
Speaker 1: Yeah. Where were you born?
20
00:01:01,500 --> 00:01:03,150
Speaker 2: In Santa Barbara, Azores
21
00:01:03,180 --> 00:01:04,380
Speaker 1: Santa Barbara Azores?
22
00:01:04,380 --> 00:01:04,890
Speaker 2: Yeah.
23
00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:09,480
Speaker 1: When were you born?
24
00:01:09,780 --> 00:01:11,550
Speaker 2: In 72.
25
00:01:12,540 --> 00:01:15,420
Speaker 1: Yeah. My dad was born in 1975.
26
00:01:15,900 --> 00:01:16,860
Speaker 2: Okay. That's a little..
27
00:01:16,860 --> 00:01:24,870
Speaker 1: Three year apart. What early memories do you have as a child
in the Portuguese American community or in Portugal?
28
00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:56,820
Speaker 2: Well, I came over here when I was three. So I was born in 72.
We came over here in 75. So I really don't have any recollection there
until we went back to visit. So I remember coming over
here. My dad worked in dairies. So I remember we moved to a couple of
dairies. We started in Tulare lived in Hanford and Layton, and then I got
married and I moved to Fresno. But it was pretty much
always on a dairy that's where we've always li
29
00:01:56,000 --> 00:01:59,120
Speaker 1: Wow, interesting a lot of cows.
30
00:01:59,990 --> 00:02:00,800
Speaker 2: Yeah.
31
00:02:01,190 --> 00:02:07,340
Speaker 1: When did when did your family immigrated to the United States?
When did you immigrate to like U.S.?
32
00:02:08,110 --> 00:02:10,060
Speaker 2: April 6 of 75.
33
00:02:10,420 --> 00:02:10,720
Speaker 1: 75?
34
00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:15,400
Speaker 2: Yeah. And there was five of us as my mom and dad, me my
brother and sister.
35
00:02:15,640 --> 00:02:16,270
Speaker 1: Okay.
36
00:02:16,390 --> 00:02:18,190
Speaker 2: So I'm the youngest
37
00:02:18,520 --> 00:02:19,000
Speaker 1: youngest?
38
00:02:19,090 --> 00:02:31,420
Speaker 2: of them. Yeah. We my mom actually had six kids, but three of
them passed away when they were little back in the island. And so only
three of us came, and so I'm the youngest. I am 47.
39
00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:32,980
Speaker 1: Young.
40
00:02:34,090 --> 00:02:44,410
Speaker 2: And my brother is the oldest and he is 61. Then I have a
sister in between there. So there's a big age gap because of the three
that passed away.
41
00:02:44,590 --> 00:02:46,780
Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm so sorry to hear.
42
00:02:47,380 --> 00:02:54,280
Speaker 2: Never got to meet them. They were all you know, gone before I
came around. So yeah.
43
00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:57,870
Speaker 1: Oh Damn, why did your family leave the Azores?
44
00:02:58,650 --> 00:03:27,750
Speaker 2: Better Life, I think that's what they would always say, you
know, everybody said it was better over here and my dad did come over
here before he brought us to work and then went back and
got us. I don't know exactly what year that was. Obviously it was maybe
74 the year before 73. But he did come over here to for I think about a
year and then he went back and then that's when the
whole family came.
45
00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:28,920
Speaker 1: Oh Okay, okay.
46
00:03:29,370 --> 00:03:29,970
Speaker 2: Yeah.
47
00:03:31,620 --> 00:03:40,770
Speaker 1: You kind of already answered this one. It says, this is where
did your family settle? Why there actually, it was partially answered.
48
00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:42,060
Speaker 2: From there you are saying?
49
00:03:42,180 --> 00:03:42,660
Speaker 1: From here?
50
00:03:42,750 --> 00:03:47,730
Speaker 2: From here. So we came over here, I believe who came in to San
Francisco.
51
00:03:47,730 --> 00:03:48,480
Speaker 1: San Francisco.
52
00:03:48,780 --> 00:03:53,820
Speaker 2: And then we settled in Tulare, couple of different dairies
there.
53
00:03:53,900 --> 00:03:56,720
Speaker 1: you just moved you settled here because the dairy like work?
54
00:03:56,750 --> 00:04:02,600
Speaker 2: yeah and I and it's where my parents had their families. some
of their siblings already here. So I think that
55
00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:03,530
Speaker 1: It was just easier.
56
00:04:03,590 --> 00:04:05,720
Speaker 2: they just chose to come here. Yeah.
57
00:04:05,810 --> 00:04:18,350
Speaker 1: Oh man. Did your parents or grandparents ever tell you what it
was like to adjust to life in the new country? What stories were passed
down to you regarding their early experiences?
58
00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:30,870
Speaker 2: Okay my grandparents? No, because they did come over here they
stayed there, my parents I don't know.
59
00:04:30,870 --> 00:04:30,900
Speaker 1: Oh.
60
00:04:30,900 --> 00:04:42,300
Speaker 2: Okay, see, that's really I mean, that's kind of what our
journey was. We came over here we work. They worked on a dairy. And
that's pretty much what my dad did. You know, his whole life.
61
00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:43,080
Speaker 1: Yeah.
62
00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:43,800
Speaker 2: Really.
63
00:04:46,410 --> 00:04:57,000
Speaker 1: You're a member of first, second third generation of your
family to be born in the United States. How important was it to your
parents, that you'd be raised with a strong Portuguese
identity?
64
00:04:57,900 --> 00:05:27,030
Speaker 2: Well, I was actually born there. So I wasn't born here. And
for that was a big thing. Like, even Yeah, like we wouldn't there's
Portuguese celebrations, there's a whole bunch of Portuguese
different functions we would be involved in. And I try to carry that on
to my kids, too. I mean, that's there. My kids obviously were born here,
but I, you know, we're Portuguese. We're American. You
guys are American, but we're Portuguese. That it's a strong thing that we
try.
65
00:05:27,050 --> 00:05:28,250
Speaker 1: You don't want to let it go.
66
00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:29,500
Speaker 2: Yeah. You know.
67
00:05:30,310 --> 00:05:37,270
Speaker 1: How was it? How was this identity expressed through language,
foods, traditions and festivals. Like,
68
00:05:37,450 --> 00:06:01,330
Speaker 2: Unfortunately, we do not speak Portuguese at home too much. So
we can't we're trying to kind of do some now which we should have done.
You know them growing up. My daughter is actually
taking Portuguese at City this year. But one of my sons actually does
know a little bit just from him talking and being in the celebration and
hearing people speak.
69
00:06:01,330 --> 00:06:01,870
Speaker 1: Oh okay.
70
00:06:02,140 --> 00:06:07,780
Speaker 2: Regarding foods, I do make portuguese foods at home so they
kind of know that part of it.
71
00:06:07,900 --> 00:06:09,580
Speaker 1: You guys have different festivals and stuff?
72
00:06:09,630 --> 00:06:20,010
Speaker 2: We do have different festivals, especially here at this hall.
There's quite a few of them that we have throughout the year. There's
mostly regarding saints. So there's I don't know if
you're a Catholic.
73
00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:20,250
Speaker 1: Okay.
74
00:06:20,250 --> 00:06:29,040
Speaker 2: Whatever. But there's the St. Anthony celebration. There's the
Holy Ghost celebration. There's Our Lady of Fatima celebration here.
There, St. Peter's.
75
00:06:30,810 --> 00:06:31,230
Speaker 1: Wow.
76
00:06:31,260 --> 00:06:47,310
Speaker 2: That's it. So we actually do throughout the year. There's a
lot of celebrations there. So they consider of a mass and then a per
session, and lunch chair for everybody. Okay, that comes in.
It's open to anybody really, that wants to come. It's not just kind of an
invitation. It's just whoever wants to stop by.
77
00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:48,230
Speaker 1: It kind of far out.
78
00:06:49,680 --> 00:06:50,820
Speaker 2: It's really not.
79
00:06:50,850 --> 00:06:55,920
Speaker 1: It's not really that far. This is like, because you don't
really see the time like this, like right on.
80
00:06:55,950 --> 00:06:58,440
Speaker 2: It's not like right off the freeway to where you see it.
81
00:06:58,470 --> 00:06:59,880
Speaker 1: Yeah I was like where is it?
82
00:07:00,300 --> 00:07:02,790
Speaker 2: Yeah, you kinda have to know where you're going to get out
here.
83
00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:09,290
Speaker 1: What? What cultural traditions have you maintained? Why has it
been important to you to maintain them?
84
00:07:10,250 --> 00:07:24,680
Speaker 2: Well, like I said, going to the celebrations, it's important
because I don't want my kids to lose it. I, you know, I want them to try
to carry on when they eventually have families. Yeah.
And so we want that our heritage to keep going. You know? Yeah.
85
00:07:25,070 --> 00:07:29,180
Speaker 1: Um, how have you been back to the Azores? What was the
experience like for you?
86
00:07:29,540 --> 00:08:04,190
Speaker 2: I went back my first time we went, we came in 75. We went back
in 78 which I was still young, so I don't really recall too much. I went
back in 98, which I was already married for a couple
of years. And that was amazingly great. That was really the first time to
I could say I remember and my parents went with me and my in laws. So it
was nice to have them there to explain things and
show us where our house was and where my grandparents lived and all the
stuff where things happen.
87
00:08:04,220 --> 00:08:05,360
Speaker 1: Yeah that's great..
88
00:08:05,510 --> 00:08:21,620
Speaker 2: And then we went back three years ago with our kids, and kinda
took them around to where our house was my grandparents house, and we
still have family there. So we visited them and stayed
at their house. And we were there actually for a month.
89
00:08:21,830 --> 00:08:22,220
Speaker 1: Wow.
90
00:08:22,250 --> 00:08:23,240
Speaker 2: So yeah.
91
00:08:23,240 --> 00:08:24,620
Speaker 1: You go periodically? like.
92
00:08:24,690 --> 00:08:31,110
Speaker 2: well, we're hopefully we're gonna go next year again. So we'll
see. But yeah
93
00:08:31,260 --> 00:08:32,460
Speaker 1: Interesting, that's great
94
00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:48,600
Speaker 2: It was nice to take the kids so they could see where we come
from, and how things were there. I think that was our focal point this
time was to kind of explain to them and there's different
islands. So I'm from one my husband's from a completely different one
95
00:08:48,750 --> 00:08:50,580
Speaker 1: So your husband is from the Azores as well?
96
00:08:50,610 --> 00:09:00,660
Speaker 2: He is from the Azores as well. He's from a different Island
though, so you have to take a ferry boat that takes a few hours to get
from one island to the next.
97
00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:03,840
Speaker 1: What are the odds of? Yeah, that's crazy.
98
00:09:04,320 --> 00:09:13,620
Speaker 2: But bigger odd is that we both came over here when we were
three. And so we came over here in April, and they came over here in
August.
99
00:09:14,490 --> 00:09:19,890
Speaker 1: Wow. So you guys came like a few months apart. That's, that's
insane.
100
00:09:19,890 --> 00:09:20,700
Speaker 2: Yeah it is.
101
00:09:23,820 --> 00:09:31,410
Speaker 1: Trace, if you will, some of your experiences growing up in the
Portuguese American community in the valley throughout your life, like
how was it?
102
00:09:31,740 --> 00:10:09,540
Speaker 2: Uhm, it was great I mean, like I said, we would do
celebrations. Got to meet other families, you know, that. Not that my
parents knew from that, from the islands that we would actually meet
here that were Portuguese too. It was great just to have that heritage
just to and that's what my like my parents, they never learned how to
speak Portuguese. Your parents. Yeah, they both passed away
now. But we were I mean, like I said, We've been here since 75. And they
never my dad passed away 11 years ago, my mom two years ago, and they've
never learned to speak English. It was just
Portuguese. That's what we spoke.
103
00:10:10,110 --> 00:10:11,430
Speaker 1: So how was it working?
104
00:10:12,230 --> 00:10:22,280
Speaker 2: So I went to schools when I had to learn English, which was
very difficult because at home all you spoke was Portuguese. So, but
obviously, eventually, It
105
00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:22,340
Speaker 1: Wow
106
00:10:22,340 --> 00:10:24,290
Speaker 2: worked out. But yeah,
107
00:10:24,300 --> 00:10:26,100
Speaker 1: that's insane no way.
108
00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:44,870
Speaker 2: It's kinda like, first generation, you know, it's like, my
kids. I didn't have my parents at home to where it goes to where they
could help me with homework or something. You know, they
didn't know any of that stuff. Compared to now. You know, you guys go
home. I I'm already you know, I been through everything here. So it's,
it's a completely different lifestyle.
109
00:10:44,870 --> 00:11:16,640
Speaker 1: Wow. It's crazy. Of all you have accomplished. What are you?
What are you most proud of? What proud moments do you remember in the
Portuguese American community?
110
00:10:56,100 --> 00:11:49,770
Speaker 2: I'm very proud for being Portuguese. I am actually, I am here
very illegally. I've never gotten my American citizen papers. So I'm not
necessarily an American citizen. I still am a fu
l Portuguese citizen. So I still have to get my Portuguese passport and
go through all that different lines compared to American passport. But
I'm like, Yeah, very proud of that. They keep this stu
f going, the celebrations, and all of this stuff that they did back
there, the killing of pigs, you know, just different things that
111
00:11:21,790 --> 00:11:22,180
Speaker 1: wow.
112
00:11:25,480 --> 00:11:48,400
Speaker 2: They do back in the old country, compared to where I don't
think people used to do here. And they just kind of brought it and
that's, you know.
113
00:11:48,970 --> 00:11:51,280
Speaker 1: Killing the pigs, what is that you mind me asking?
114
00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,720
Speaker 2: You can kill a pig and you butcher it and it.
115
00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:55,740
Speaker 1: What kind of people?
116
00:11:56,680 --> 00:12:21,730
Speaker 2: Well, your family members, your friends and people you invite
you I mean, it's not a celebration of it. Like that's something they
would do you know, like here people people buy their meat
at the stores. Well, they over there, that's what they knew is to kill
their own animals and butcher them and wrap them and freeze them. Well,
that's what they did over here to instead of going to the
store, they would buy the whole animal and butcher it up and then phrases
so.
117
00:12:21,730 --> 00:12:22,120
Speaker 1: Sounds interesting.
118
00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:26,170
Speaker 2: So just different things like that. That's like tradition that
we just kept
119
00:12:26,170 --> 00:12:26,230
Speaker 1: Wow.
120
00:12:26,530 --> 00:12:35,590
Speaker 2: We obviously do not do that. I did not keep that tradition
going. But it was really neat to grow up still in that my parents would
do.
121
00:12:35,740 --> 00:12:46,060
Speaker 1: That's pretty interesting. To what extent do you believe being
Portuguese American has shaped the way you have moved through life, both
professionally and personally?
122
00:12:46,060 --> 00:13:35,800
Speaker 2: I think here, there's a lot more opportunity here than there
is in the islands. Obviously, it's bigger. Islands, you're, you know,
it's a small island. There's only so many jobs there.
There's only so many places to go. So obviously you obviously have a
bigger opportunity. I'm a stay at home mom now. So I have not worked in a
few years we had kids and I just we chose to stay home
and take care of our own kids and raise them. So I did not go to college
here just graduated high school and started working and then eventually
got married and had kids and I just but for people that
do come over here and end up going to college and stuff, there's a lot
more opportunity here for jobs compared to back in the islands.
Definitely.
123
00:13:37,160 --> 00:13:40,130
Speaker 1: What does being what is being Portuguese American mean to you?
124
00:13:41,680 --> 00:13:56,440
Speaker 2: I'm very proud of my heritage. Being American is great, too.
There's a big opportunities here compared to the islands, like I said,
that would be.
125
00:13:56,470 --> 00:13:57,220
Speaker 1: Yeah that one is difficult.
126
00:13:57,220 --> 00:13:59,620
Speaker 2: really just stay there.
127
00:13:59,660 --> 00:14:02,270
Speaker 1: How do you See the Portuguese American community today?
128
00:14:05,300 --> 00:14:07,790
Speaker 2: I see it actually getting smaller,
129
00:14:07,820 --> 00:14:08,480
Speaker 1: smaller?
130
00:14:08,510 --> 00:14:34,640
Speaker 2: smaller just because of the new generation. They some of say
my generation is not passing it on to their kids. So a lot of kids are
just, you know, the generations they're are not they're
not moving on. So a lot of it is just falling back. So that's why we're
trying to you know, the ones that do want to be involved are trying to
pass it on to their kids and hoping that they keep it
going.
131
00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:37,760
Speaker 1: Nice nice. Is there anything we didn't cover you would like to
share?
132
00:14:38,900 --> 00:14:39,710
Speaker 2: I don't think so.
133
00:14:40,730 --> 00:14:41,990
Speaker 1: That will conclude our interview.
134
00:14:42,020 --> 00:14:42,320
Speaker 2: Thank you.
135
00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:44,030
Speaker 1: Thank you so much. I appreciate you.
136
00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:46,520
Speaker 2: You were perfect for that.
00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:04,920
Speaker 1: Cool. Um, so what's your full name?
2
00:00:06,280 --> 00:00:08,830
Speaker 2: Maria Paulina Barcelos Custodio
3
00:00:09,340 --> 00:00:10,780
Speaker 1: Oh, that's super long.
4
00:00:11,410 --> 00:00:13,600
Speaker 2: Custodio came in because I got married so custodio.
5
00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:13,990
Speaker 1: okay
6
00:00:13,990 --> 00:00:14,530
Speaker 2: Came in.
7
00:00:14,690 --> 00:00:21,830
Speaker 1: I was gonna say that's like four different five different
names. Yeah, my name is pretty. My name is Lorenzo Roscoe Morris. I have
a pretty long.
8
00:00:21,860 --> 00:00:22,940
Speaker 2: Okay, so that's pretty long too.
9
00:00:22,970 --> 00:00:28,970
Speaker 1: yeah, I've a pretty long name too. Were you named after anyone
like the story?
10
00:00:29,570 --> 00:00:31,130
Speaker 2: I was named after my godmother.
11
00:00:31,190 --> 00:00:31,760
Speaker 1: Your godmother?
12
00:00:31,760 --> 00:00:37,010
Speaker 2: Yeah. So all of my mom had six children and we all were named
after our godparents.
13
00:00:37,100 --> 00:00:37,670
Speaker 1: Oh.
14
00:00:37,750 --> 00:00:38,290
Speaker 2: yeah.
15
00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:39,580
Speaker 1: That's interesting.
16
00:00:39,600 --> 00:00:49,140
Speaker 2: So our middle name, I should say, because Maria was like after
my mom, and all of our middle names were after her godmothers. So my name
is Paulina. So my godmother is Paulina.
17
00:00:49,500 --> 00:00:58,890
Speaker 1: Wow. Interesting, oh man. Yeah, I was named after my dad. I'm
the I'm the third. So it's just like three generations of Lorenzo's.
18
00:00:58,920 --> 00:00:59,640
Speaker 2: Oh wow.
19
00:00:59,670 --> 00:01:01,140
Speaker 1: Yeah. Where were you born?
20
00:01:01,500 --> 00:01:03,150
Speaker 2: In Santa Barbara, Azores
21
00:01:03,180 --> 00:01:04,380
Speaker 1: Santa Barbara Azores?
22
00:01:04,380 --> 00:01:04,890
Speaker 2: Yeah.
23
00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:09,480
Speaker 1: When were you born?
24
00:01:09,780 --> 00:01:11,550
Speaker 2: In 72.
25
00:01:12,540 --> 00:01:15,420
Speaker 1: Yeah. My dad was born in 1975.
26
00:01:15,900 --> 00:01:16,860
Speaker 2: Okay. That's a little..
27
00:01:16,860 --> 00:01:24,870
Speaker 1: Three year apart. What early memories do you have as a child
in the Portuguese American community or in Portugal?
28
00:01:25,440 --> 00:01:56,820
Speaker 2: Well, I came over here when I was three. So I was born in 72.
We came over here in 75. So I really don't have any recollection there
until we went back to visit. So I remember coming over
here. My dad worked in dairies. So I remember we moved to a couple of
dairies. We started in Tulare lived in Hanford and Layton, and then I got
married and I moved to Fresno. But it was pretty much
always on a dairy that's where we've always li
29
00:01:56,000 --> 00:01:59,120
Speaker 1: Wow, interesting a lot of cows.
30
00:01:59,990 --> 00:02:00,800
Speaker 2: Yeah.
31
00:02:01,190 --> 00:02:07,340
Speaker 1: When did when did your family immigrated to the United States?
When did you immigrate to like U.S.?
32
00:02:08,110 --> 00:02:10,060
Speaker 2: April 6 of 75.
33
00:02:10,420 --> 00:02:10,720
Speaker 1: 75?
34
00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:15,400
Speaker 2: Yeah. And there was five of us as my mom and dad, me my
brother and sister.
35
00:02:15,640 --> 00:02:16,270
Speaker 1: Okay.
36
00:02:16,390 --> 00:02:18,190
Speaker 2: So I'm the youngest
37
00:02:18,520 --> 00:02:19,000
Speaker 1: youngest?
38
00:02:19,090 --> 00:02:31,420
Speaker 2: of them. Yeah. We my mom actually had six kids, but three of
them passed away when they were little back in the island. And so only
three of us came, and so I'm the youngest. I am 47.
39
00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:32,980
Speaker 1: Young.
40
00:02:34,090 --> 00:02:44,410
Speaker 2: And my brother is the oldest and he is 61. Then I have a
sister in between there. So there's a big age gap because of the three
that passed away.
41
00:02:44,590 --> 00:02:46,780
Speaker 1: Yeah, I'm so sorry to hear.
42
00:02:47,380 --> 00:02:54,280
Speaker 2: Never got to meet them. They were all you know, gone before I
came around. So yeah.
43
00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:57,870
Speaker 1: Oh Damn, why did your family leave the Azores?
44
00:02:58,650 --> 00:03:27,750
Speaker 2: Better Life, I think that's what they would always say, you
know, everybody said it was better over here and my dad did come over
here before he brought us to work and then went back and
got us. I don't know exactly what year that was. Obviously it was maybe
74 the year before 73. But he did come over here to for I think about a
year and then he went back and then that's when the
whole family came.
45
00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:28,920
Speaker 1: Oh Okay, okay.
46
00:03:29,370 --> 00:03:29,970
Speaker 2: Yeah.
47
00:03:31,620 --> 00:03:40,770
Speaker 1: You kind of already answered this one. It says, this is where
did your family settle? Why there actually, it was partially answered.
48
00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:42,060
Speaker 2: From there you are saying?
49
00:03:42,180 --> 00:03:42,660
Speaker 1: From here?
50
00:03:42,750 --> 00:03:47,730
Speaker 2: From here. So we came over here, I believe who came in to San
Francisco.
51
00:03:47,730 --> 00:03:48,480
Speaker 1: San Francisco.
52
00:03:48,780 --> 00:03:53,820
Speaker 2: And then we settled in Tulare, couple of different dairies
there.
53
00:03:53,900 --> 00:03:56,720
Speaker 1: you just moved you settled here because the dairy like work?
54
00:03:56,750 --> 00:04:02,600
Speaker 2: yeah and I and it's where my parents had their families. some
of their siblings already here. So I think that
55
00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:03,530
Speaker 1: It was just easier.
56
00:04:03,590 --> 00:04:05,720
Speaker 2: they just chose to come here. Yeah.
57
00:04:05,810 --> 00:04:18,350
Speaker 1: Oh man. Did your parents or grandparents ever tell you what it
was like to adjust to life in the new country? What stories were passed
down to you regarding their early experiences?
58
00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:30,870
Speaker 2: Okay my grandparents? No, because they did come over here they
stayed there, my parents I don't know.
59
00:04:30,870 --> 00:04:30,900
Speaker 1: Oh.
60
00:04:30,900 --> 00:04:42,300
Speaker 2: Okay, see, that's really I mean, that's kind of what our
journey was. We came over here we work. They worked on a dairy. And
that's pretty much what my dad did. You know, his whole life.
61
00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:43,080
Speaker 1: Yeah.
62
00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:43,800
Speaker 2: Really.
63
00:04:46,410 --> 00:04:57,000
Speaker 1: You're a member of first, second third generation of your
family to be born in the United States. How important was it to your
parents, that you'd be raised with a strong Portuguese
identity?
64
00:04:57,900 --> 00:05:27,030
Speaker 2: Well, I was actually born there. So I wasn't born here. And
for that was a big thing. Like, even Yeah, like we wouldn't there's
Portuguese celebrations, there's a whole bunch of Portuguese
different functions we would be involved in. And I try to carry that on
to my kids, too. I mean, that's there. My kids obviously were born here,
but I, you know, we're Portuguese. We're American. You
guys are American, but we're Portuguese. That it's a strong thing that we
try.
65
00:05:27,050 --> 00:05:28,250
Speaker 1: You don't want to let it go.
66
00:05:28,000 --> 00:05:29,500
Speaker 2: Yeah. You know.
67
00:05:30,310 --> 00:05:37,270
Speaker 1: How was it? How was this identity expressed through language,
foods, traditions and festivals. Like,
68
00:05:37,450 --> 00:06:01,330
Speaker 2: Unfortunately, we do not speak Portuguese at home too much. So
we can't we're trying to kind of do some now which we should have done.
You know them growing up. My daughter is actually
taking Portuguese at City this year. But one of my sons actually does
know a little bit just from him talking and being in the celebration and
hearing people speak.
69
00:06:01,330 --> 00:06:01,870
Speaker 1: Oh okay.
70
00:06:02,140 --> 00:06:07,780
Speaker 2: Regarding foods, I do make portuguese foods at home so they
kind of know that part of it.
71
00:06:07,900 --> 00:06:09,580
Speaker 1: You guys have different festivals and stuff?
72
00:06:09,630 --> 00:06:20,010
Speaker 2: We do have different festivals, especially here at this hall.
There's quite a few of them that we have throughout the year. There's
mostly regarding saints. So there's I don't know if
you're a Catholic.
73
00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:20,250
Speaker 1: Okay.
74
00:06:20,250 --> 00:06:29,040
Speaker 2: Whatever. But there's the St. Anthony celebration. There's the
Holy Ghost celebration. There's Our Lady of Fatima celebration here.
There, St. Peter's.
75
00:06:30,810 --> 00:06:31,230
Speaker 1: Wow.
76
00:06:31,260 --> 00:06:47,310
Speaker 2: That's it. So we actually do throughout the year. There's a
lot of celebrations there. So they consider of a mass and then a per
session, and lunch chair for everybody. Okay, that comes in.
It's open to anybody really, that wants to come. It's not just kind of an
invitation. It's just whoever wants to stop by.
77
00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:48,230
Speaker 1: It kind of far out.
78
00:06:49,680 --> 00:06:50,820
Speaker 2: It's really not.
79
00:06:50,850 --> 00:06:55,920
Speaker 1: It's not really that far. This is like, because you don't
really see the time like this, like right on.
80
00:06:55,950 --> 00:06:58,440
Speaker 2: It's not like right off the freeway to where you see it.
81
00:06:58,470 --> 00:06:59,880
Speaker 1: Yeah I was like where is it?
82
00:07:00,300 --> 00:07:02,790
Speaker 2: Yeah, you kinda have to know where you're going to get out
here.
83
00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:09,290
Speaker 1: What? What cultural traditions have you maintained? Why has it
been important to you to maintain them?
84
00:07:10,250 --> 00:07:24,680
Speaker 2: Well, like I said, going to the celebrations, it's important
because I don't want my kids to lose it. I, you know, I want them to try
to carry on when they eventually have families. Yeah.
And so we want that our heritage to keep going. You know? Yeah.
85
00:07:25,070 --> 00:07:29,180
Speaker 1: Um, how have you been back to the Azores? What was the
experience like for you?
86
00:07:29,540 --> 00:08:04,190
Speaker 2: I went back my first time we went, we came in 75. We went back
in 78 which I was still young, so I don't really recall too much. I went
back in 98, which I was already married for a couple
of years. And that was amazingly great. That was really the first time to
I could say I remember and my parents went with me and my in laws. So it
was nice to have them there to explain things and
show us where our house was and where my grandparents lived and all the
stuff where things happen.
87
00:08:04,220 --> 00:08:05,360
Speaker 1: Yeah that's great..
88
00:08:05,510 --> 00:08:21,620
Speaker 2: And then we went back three years ago with our kids, and kinda
took them around to where our house was my grandparents house, and we
still have family there. So we visited them and stayed
at their house. And we were there actually for a month.
89
00:08:21,830 --> 00:08:22,220
Speaker 1: Wow.
90
00:08:22,250 --> 00:08:23,240
Speaker 2: So yeah.
91
00:08:23,240 --> 00:08:24,620
Speaker 1: You go periodically? like.
92
00:08:24,690 --> 00:08:31,110
Speaker 2: well, we're hopefully we're gonna go next year again. So we'll
see. But yeah
93
00:08:31,260 --> 00:08:32,460
Speaker 1: Interesting, that's great
94
00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:48,600
Speaker 2: It was nice to take the kids so they could see where we come
from, and how things were there. I think that was our focal point this
time was to kind of explain to them and there's different
islands. So I'm from one my husband's from a completely different one
95
00:08:48,750 --> 00:08:50,580
Speaker 1: So your husband is from the Azores as well?
96
00:08:50,610 --> 00:09:00,660
Speaker 2: He is from the Azores as well. He's from a different Island
though, so you have to take a ferry boat that takes a few hours to get
from one island to the next.
97
00:09:00,720 --> 00:09:03,840
Speaker 1: What are the odds of? Yeah, that's crazy.
98
00:09:04,320 --> 00:09:13,620
Speaker 2: But bigger odd is that we both came over here when we were
three. And so we came over here in April, and they came over here in
August.
99
00:09:14,490 --> 00:09:19,890
Speaker 1: Wow. So you guys came like a few months apart. That's, that's
insane.
100
00:09:19,890 --> 00:09:20,700
Speaker 2: Yeah it is.
101
00:09:23,820 --> 00:09:31,410
Speaker 1: Trace, if you will, some of your experiences growing up in the
Portuguese American community in the valley throughout your life, like
how was it?
102
00:09:31,740 --> 00:10:09,540
Speaker 2: Uhm, it was great I mean, like I said, we would do
celebrations. Got to meet other families, you know, that. Not that my
parents knew from that, from the islands that we would actually meet
here that were Portuguese too. It was great just to have that heritage
just to and that's what my like my parents, they never learned how to
speak Portuguese. Your parents. Yeah, they both passed away
now. But we were I mean, like I said, We've been here since 75. And they
never my dad passed away 11 years ago, my mom two years ago, and they've
never learned to speak English. It was just
Portuguese. That's what we spoke.
103
00:10:10,110 --> 00:10:11,430
Speaker 1: So how was it working?
104
00:10:12,230 --> 00:10:22,280
Speaker 2: So I went to schools when I had to learn English, which was
very difficult because at home all you spoke was Portuguese. So, but
obviously, eventually, It
105
00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:22,340
Speaker 1: Wow
106
00:10:22,340 --> 00:10:24,290
Speaker 2: worked out. But yeah,
107
00:10:24,300 --> 00:10:26,100
Speaker 1: that's insane no way.
108
00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:44,870
Speaker 2: It's kinda like, first generation, you know, it's like, my
kids. I didn't have my parents at home to where it goes to where they
could help me with homework or something. You know, they
didn't know any of that stuff. Compared to now. You know, you guys go
home. I I'm already you know, I been through everything here. So it's,
it's a completely different lifestyle.
109
00:10:44,870 --> 00:11:16,640
Speaker 1: Wow. It's crazy. Of all you have accomplished. What are you?
What are you most proud of? What proud moments do you remember in the
Portuguese American community?
110
00:10:56,100 --> 00:11:49,770
Speaker 2: I'm very proud for being Portuguese. I am actually, I am here
very illegally. I've never gotten my American citizen papers. So I'm not
necessarily an American citizen. I still am a fu
l Portuguese citizen. So I still have to get my Portuguese passport and
go through all that different lines compared to American passport. But
I'm like, Yeah, very proud of that. They keep this stu
f going, the celebrations, and all of this stuff that they did back
there, the killing of pigs, you know, just different things that
111
00:11:21,790 --> 00:11:22,180
Speaker 1: wow.
112
00:11:25,480 --> 00:11:48,400
Speaker 2: They do back in the old country, compared to where I don't
think people used to do here. And they just kind of brought it and
that's, you know.
113
00:11:48,970 --> 00:11:51,280
Speaker 1: Killing the pigs, what is that you mind me asking?
114
00:11:51,000 --> 00:11:54,720
Speaker 2: You can kill a pig and you butcher it and it.
115
00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:55,740
Speaker 1: What kind of people?
116
00:11:56,680 --> 00:12:21,730
Speaker 2: Well, your family members, your friends and people you invite
you I mean, it's not a celebration of it. Like that's something they
would do you know, like here people people buy their meat
at the stores. Well, they over there, that's what they knew is to kill
their own animals and butcher them and wrap them and freeze them. Well,
that's what they did over here to instead of going to the
store, they would buy the whole animal and butcher it up and then phrases
so.
117
00:12:21,730 --> 00:12:22,120
Speaker 1: Sounds interesting.
118
00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:26,170
Speaker 2: So just different things like that. That's like tradition that
we just kept
119
00:12:26,170 --> 00:12:26,230
Speaker 1: Wow.
120
00:12:26,530 --> 00:12:35,590
Speaker 2: We obviously do not do that. I did not keep that tradition
going. But it was really neat to grow up still in that my parents would
do.
121
00:12:35,740 --> 00:12:46,060
Speaker 1: That's pretty interesting. To what extent do you believe being
Portuguese American has shaped the way you have moved through life, both
professionally and personally?
122
00:12:46,060 --> 00:13:35,800
Speaker 2: I think here, there's a lot more opportunity here than there
is in the islands. Obviously, it's bigger. Islands, you're, you know,
it's a small island. There's only so many jobs there.
There's only so many places to go. So obviously you obviously have a
bigger opportunity. I'm a stay at home mom now. So I have not worked in a
few years we had kids and I just we chose to stay home
and take care of our own kids and raise them. So I did not go to college
here just graduated high school and started working and then eventually
got married and had kids and I just but for people that
do come over here and end up going to college and stuff, there's a lot
more opportunity here for jobs compared to back in the islands.
Definitely.
123
00:13:37,160 --> 00:13:40,130
Speaker 1: What does being what is being Portuguese American mean to you?
124
00:13:41,680 --> 00:13:56,440
Speaker 2: I'm very proud of my heritage. Being American is great, too.
There's a big opportunities here compared to the islands, like I said,
that would be.
125
00:13:56,470 --> 00:13:57,220
Speaker 1: Yeah that one is difficult.
126
00:13:57,220 --> 00:13:59,620
Speaker 2: really just stay there.
127
00:13:59,660 --> 00:14:02,270
Speaker 1: How do you See the Portuguese American community today?
128
00:14:05,300 --> 00:14:07,790
Speaker 2: I see it actually getting smaller,
129
00:14:07,820 --> 00:14:08,480
Speaker 1: smaller?
130
00:14:08,510 --> 00:14:34,640
Speaker 2: smaller just because of the new generation. They some of say
my generation is not passing it on to their kids. So a lot of kids are
just, you know, the generations they're are not they're
not moving on. So a lot of it is just falling back. So that's why we're
trying to you know, the ones that do want to be involved are trying to
pass it on to their kids and hoping that they keep it
going.
131
00:14:34,760 --> 00:14:37,760
Speaker 1: Nice nice. Is there anything we didn't cover you would like to
share?
132
00:14:38,900 --> 00:14:39,710
Speaker 2: I don't think so.
133
00:14:40,730 --> 00:14:41,990
Speaker 1: That will conclude our interview.
134
00:14:42,020 --> 00:14:42,320
Speaker 2: Thank you.
135
00:14:42,320 --> 00:14:44,030
Speaker 1: Thank you so much. I appreciate you.
136
00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:46,520
Speaker 2: You were perfect for that.