Ernesto Martinez

English 11: Period 7

Mrs. Jewell

February 21, 2022

The Elder Interview

Initial Information:

● Interviewer: Ernesto Martinez

● Interviewee: Jorge Santoyo
● Relationship to Interviewee: Uncle
● Year Interviewee graduated from High School: High School dropout
● High School Mascot: N/A
● Date of Interview: February 20, 2022
● Mode of Interview: Choose one: Phone Call, Video Call, In-Person
Introduction:
● Opening Greeting: What’s up Unc, how have you been since we last saw each other?
● Opening Conversation Starter: I’ve chosen to do this interview with you because I
feel like you have been a big influence in my life since I was a little kid, but the main
reason is because I know all the ups and downs you’ve been through.
● Purpose of Interview: The purpose of this interview is to get to know you more than I
already do and also to share your stories with many others.
● Explain class module Generation to Generation: This module is how our past
generation has influenced us in such an impactful way and just about how things have
changed from your generation to mine.
● Tell them a little about Two Old Women: Two Old Women is an Alaskan legend about
survival and courage.

Q&A Period:
● When and where were you born ?
My uncle was born on July 13, 1975 in a small town in Guanajuato, Mexico named Irapuato,
where he was the oldest out of 3 brothers and 1 sister. My uncle also mentioned how he was
really close to my father as they were like brothers growing up in the same neighborhood.
● What was it like?
My uncle said he grew up with not a lot of money as he came from a middle class family who
always had food on the table, but wasn’t the richest and didn’t go out spending money as much.
He mentioned how he would always play outside with all the other kids from his neighborhood,
including my father, since they didn’t have any technology back then he would always be
playing soccer or playing on the dirt. My uncle also told me how growing up was challenging for
him because of all the bad influences he had to avoid, like not becoming a drug addict or
alcoholic like many of the people that he was close with.
● When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
My uncle told me that when he was a child he would dream of one day becoming a professional
soccer player for his country. He always dreamed of joining the professional soccer team that
was from the city he grew up in. When he was around 17 years old he mentioned that he got
selected to play for a lower division soccer team that wasn’t well known at the time, he told me
that he would get paid to play for them because everyone knew how good he was. His dreams
shattered when he had to start working to provide for his newborn kid and wife.
● How did you meet your spouse/ partner?
When my uncle was only 15 years old he would meet what he said was “the girl of his dreams”,
my aunt and uncle would meet in middle school since they lived not too far from each other and
went to the same middle school. My uncle was really close to my aunties friends so one day they
got introduced to each other and since that day he knew they were meant for each other.
● Describe the work that you did?
Since my uncle’s family wasn’t rich nor did my uncle have any money when he had his first kid,
he started working at a young age doing anything possible to gain money. My uncle said that he
promised himself to never go through the wrong path and always have clean money. He
mentioned that his first job was helping his dad build fences, houses, and anything else the
clients wished for them to get done.
● What lessons has your work life taught you?
He told me that work life has taught him many things, the most important is that whenever you
wanna achieve something or get a better position at any job you have to demonstrate it with your
actions not by talking or choosing the easy way of earning something. He also said that work life
has taught him that there isn’t anything better than preparing yourself and going to college.
● When in life have you felt most alone?
Not too long ago my uncle moved from Santa Ana, Ca to Antioch, Ca, but the process of moving
wasn’t easy. He lived with me and my family for about 3 months and left his wife and kids in
Santa Ana, the reason behind this was so he could settle down and look for somewhere to live.
My uncle mentioned that this moment in his life was when he felt the most alone he has ever felt.
He told me that he felt like something in him was missing, so approximately like 3 or 4 times he
would ditch my dad and his job to go back to Santa Ana to see his family. My dad would then
have to drive back and forth to pick him up because my uncle had work the next morning and
couldn’t miss another day.
 ● Who has been the biggest influence in your life?
My uncle revealed that the biggest influence in his life has been his cousin, which is my father.
My uncle said that even though he is older than my father he has always respected him and will
always respect him because of everything he helped him overcome as an adult. One main reason
my uncle said he chose my father as his biggest influence was because when he and his family
were at their lowest point my father helped them and never gave up on them until they were able
to come out of that situation.
● Was there a teacher or teachers who had a particularly strong influence on your life?
One teacher my uncle said he will never forget is his middle school teacher who recently passed
away. He told me that this teacher was like his second mom because when my uncle wouldn’t
have anything to eat or any money to buy something at school, he said that this teacher would
buy him something to eat and would never ask for him to repay her in any way. He mentioned
how this teacher made him want to be something important in life, but because of his and his
family's money problem he never got the chance to stay in school and decided to drop out.
● How would your classmates remember you?
His classmates will always remember my uncle as an energetic person who was always in a good
mood and never had problems with anybody. He would always get along with his teachers and
was never the type to disrespect or bully anyone.
● As a kid, what did you do for fun?
My uncle mentioned that where he grew up there weren't any amusement parks or pools so he
and all the neighborhood kids had to come up with their own things. For example, the most
popular thing he would do was playing soccer on the street and setting up the goals with two big
rocks. He would also play simple things such as tag or cops and robbers and things like that.
● Tell me what motivates you to keep going in life?
My uncle mentioned that the things that motivated him to keep going in life have always been
his kids and his family. He told me that the death of one of his best friends he grew up with and
was the closest with as a kid has also motivated him to keep going in life and to never give up
because God has a plan for everybody in this world.
● What was the most significant thing that has happened in your life ?
The most significant thing that has happened in my uncle's life was always getting hit by his
father at a young age. My uncle mentioned that whenever he would get home past his curfew his
father was already waiting for him to hit him for being late. He also said this was the most
significant thing that has happened in his life because this made him mature at a young age and it
made him become a better father for his own kids. He addressed how he will never have any hate
towards his father because even though he was abusive towards him, his father taught him how
to work and because there was always food on the table for him and clothes on his back. The last
thing my uncle mentioned on this topic was that he will always remember this significant thing
because his mother would only watch and never help him whenever he was getting in trouble, so
this stuck with him for the rest of his life.
 ● Do you believe in God?
My uncle said that God has been the most important thing in his life since he was young because
he always took care of him and led him through the right path in life.
● If you could work anywhere now, what would it be?
My uncle mentioned how he worked at many jobs throughout his life, some harder than others,
but he let me know that if he could work anywhere now it would be at any type of desk job
indoors. He said the reasoning behind this is because it’s much easier than working outside and
sometimes even paid better.
Close: It has been a pleasure talking and learning more about all the things you’ve been through.

Follow-through: I will follow through by continuing to visit my uncle and cousin every
weekend like how I’ve been doing since they moved here.

After the Interview: A Quick Reflection

Conducting this interview has helped me realize how blessed I am to have everything I have in
my life right now. This interview has also made me closer with my uncle because I now know
things I didn’t know before. I also feel more connected to my uncle because I could relate to
some of the things he told me while doing this interview, for example, how he wanted to become
a professional soccer player when he was a child. This experience has also opened my eyes and
showed me how important family really is and how when nobody is willing to help family will
always be there for you.