Megan Burton

Into to Healthcare Delivery 1101

December 3, 2018

LIFE INTERVIEW OF MRS. F.

INTRODUCTION

The person that I chose to interview was Mrs. F. I knew she would be the best fit for this

project not only because of her life experiences but also since she is my grandmother. In order to

make sure she was most comfortable; the interview was conducted in her very own living room.

Comfort is key for this type of occasion in order to get the best answers possible. The interview

ensued for about an hour and fifteen minutes; however, I stayed over listening to her stories

much longer.

LIFE EVENTS – CHILDHOOD

Mrs. F.’s childhood was very different than anything that people experience in today’s society.

At a time when the second world war was in full force, she was forced to grow up worrying

about multiple family members who were away at war. Since she was on the younger end of

people alive at this time, she never had a full grasp on the magnitude of the situation until later

on in life. However, she does vividly remember the celebration of the end of the war that was

held downtown. Another celebration and her first ever memory was the Christmas parade the day

after Thanksgiving in downtown Dayton. At the age of five, Mrs. F. and her family got dressed

up in their nicest outfits and headed downtown for the parade along with the other families that

lived on her street. It was a big event accompanied by lights, music, and of course Santa Claus.

Mrs. F.’s teenage years also differ greatly from today’s standard teen. While there were some

similarities such as football games and Friday night hangouts, there are multiple differences.
First, no teenager was able to drive unless your family was rich. Having multiple cars was a sign

of extreme wealth. In fact, Mrs. F. didn’t learn to drive until she was thirty-two years old.

Second, Mrs. F. would never be allowed to do anything on the weekdays. The weekdays were a

time for homework, housework, and family. The weekends would be the time that she spent out

of the house with her friends. Lastly, Mrs. F. wouldn’t dare to use a curse word at any time. To

this day, in fact, Mrs. F. has never cursed in her life. This is a much different mentality than

today’s day in age where curse words are in music and television shows.

LIFE EVENTS – ADULTHOOD

In the United States, once children are eighteen years of age they are legally considered an

adult. However, many of today’s eighteen-year-old people are in college or still dependent on

their parents. Mrs. F. was truly an adult at the age of eighteen. Three months after she had

graduated high school she was married to Mr. F. Mrs. F. had met Mr. F. at Club Coyote, the

place where all of the Catholic school kids would hang out on Friday nights and have dances. At

first, she didn’t give him the time of day. However, Mr. F. was persistent and called her every

day for six weeks straight. Finally, Mrs. F.’s mother made her go on date with him. After that

first date, they were inseparable. Eventually, in September of 1954, the two were married at

Corpus Christie- the place where Mrs. F. had gone to school. The wedding had around three

hundred guests and still to this day is one of the happiest days of Mrs. F.’s life. Shortly after their

marriage, Mr. and Mrs. F. had their first child. Mrs. F. had always dreamt of having a big family.

Fortunately, she achieved just that by having nine children; seven girls and two boys. Not a day

went by when there weren’t the sounds of laughter or children running around the house. While

raising her children had its ups, it wasn’t all easy. Mrs. F. said that she often had to take care of

the children on her own. Back then, the men of the families were often the sole providers. This
meant long hours and time away from home in order to be able to provide. While this was

challenging at first, Mrs. F. eventually got the hang of it and became the strong and independent

woman she is today.

IDENTITY

Mrs. F. has many amazing qualities that make up who she is. First off, she is a very patient

person. This quality has always been something that Mrs. F. is proud of and helped her while she

raised her children. Another great quality of Mrs. F. is her kindness. No matter who a person

may be or what wrong they have done, Mrs. F. will always welcome them into her heart.

Genuinely kind people are hard to come by which makes Mrs. F. that much more special. Lastly,

Mrs. F. always puts others first. If she could have anything in her life, all she wants is a better

relationship with her sister. She has no desire for material objects or something that would solely

benefit herself; however, she chose something that benefits others as well. Also, when Mrs. F.

was younger she wanted to be a nurse. Unfortunately, she gave up this dream in order to be there

for her family. While some people may blame their family for the lost dream, she has no regrets.

Taking care of others is something she had always loved, and she still was able to do it in a

special way.

THE PRESENT

Even though Mrs. F. is no longer taking care of her children full time, she still stays very busy.

Mrs. F. is always out and about spending time with her friends, playing bridge, or going to the

numerous family parties that are held. Being around others and out of the house is what keeps

Mrs. F. so young mentally and physically. Mrs. F. is the only one of her friends that can still

drive at night time, so she is extremely popular in her friend group. The most important thing in

her life right now is her faith. Her faith is not only important because of the fact that she wants to
go to heaven and be reunited with her family and husband, but she also feels like she owes her

life to it. In her hardships and triumphs, her faith was a front player. Without her faith, Mrs. F.

would be lost in life. Faith is also necessary to Mrs. F. in the present time. When she was

younger, children would roam the streets, people were kind, and she didn’t fear much. However,

Mrs. F. says that the present the world is a darker place. She has seen many decades pass and

believes that society is not headed in the right direction.

AGING

Often times, people who are in the latter half of their life look back and wish they could go

back. People also often think of that perfect age and miss it dearly. This isn’t the case for Mrs. F.

Rather than dwelling on the past, she chooses to focus on the present. While it may not be

exactly what she imagined, it still is pretty great. The main thing that Mrs. F. is missing from her

life is Mr. F. At the age of sixty-five, Mr. F. passed away from Alzheimer’s. Mrs. F. always

thought that she and her husband would grow old together. Despite this not being the case, she

knows that he is looking over her. Her parents also had a similar situation ensue. Mrs. F.’s

mother died at the age of sixty-two. This was thirteen years before her father would pass. Her

father eventually got married to a woman who took Mrs. F.’s father out of her life. Having to go

through that in the middle of her life, she swore to herself that she would never remarry.

REFLECTION ON YOUR FAMILY HERITAGE

The ethnic group that Mrs. F. fits best into is Caucasian. In the year of 1834, Mrs. F.’s father’s

family came over to America from Germany. Her mother’s side was here long before with Mrs.

F. being the fifth generation to live in America. Before her mother’s family lived in Dayton, they

resided in Pennsylvania and Lancaster. They were well-known farmers in both areas, owning

thousands of acres in Lancaster. While the Pennsylvania Dutch heritage is a strong part of Mrs.
F.’s life, the German side is the most influential. Mrs. F.’s family is very well known for their

bright blonde hair and fair complexion. In fact, when a member of Mrs. F.’s family is out and

about Dayton, they often get stopped and recognized for belonging to the family. The looks

strongly resemble a German heritage, but there aren’t many German traditions in Mrs. F.’s

family. Since they have lived here for so long they have become almost completely

“Americanized”. They only thing Mrs. F.’s said that carries on the German heritage is her

family’s love for beer.

LIFE LESSONS AND LEGACIES

Having lived eighty-two years, Mrs. F. is very knowledgeable about life. The first thing she

advises to focus on is family. Family has been an extremely strong theme in Mrs. F.’s life since

the day she was born. In fact, it has been such a strong theme that she believes that it was her

purpose in life. Not only was she put on this Earth to bring others into it, but she also has a major

positive influence on all of her family and friends. She enjoys spending the holidays with her

entire family so she can see her purpose in life. Another piece of advice Mrs. F. has is to love

while you still can. Losing her husband so young was very hard on Mrs. F. Even if Mrs. and Mr.

F. were in a fight she still loved him unconditionally. This helped her grieving process because

she knew that when Mr. F. passed he would know that she still would still love him

unconditionally. Lastly, Mrs. F. ended with her most important discovery about life. If someone

is a good person, good things will happen to them. Of course, life will have its ups and downs,

but if they are a good person they will be happy with themselves and have no regrets.