Memories I Can't Let Go of

"We walked to school. In the wintertime I remember as a very small child, when it was snowing and the wind was blowing very, very hard, Daddy would carry me so I would be facing south, and he would take the wind and carry me to school."
Alma Roso Hunter
What do we remember as we look back on a lifetime? When 78-year-old Alma Roso Hunter was interviewed in 2003, the memory of her father sheltering her from a cold north wind remained vivid. It's a lovely recollection, full of meaning not just for Alma Roso Hunter's family, but also for her hometown of Tontitown, Arkansas, and for anyone who recognizes the importance of preserving stories of "everyday" life.
Alma Roso Hunter's life story is one of 48 oral history interviews collected as part of the Tontitown Preservation Project, founded in 2002 by a group of volunteers who wanted to assist the Tontitown Historical Museum in its efforts to document and preserve the community's Italian heritage. The folks interviewed range in age from 56 to 93; most are in their late 70s and early 80s. They relate their memories with a refreshing candor that often comes with age. Most of them are first generation Italian Americans. Their everyday lives still contain many direct ties to their Italian roots. Most of them grew up during the Great Depression. They describe the hard times that were known to most all rural Ozark families during those years.
In Memories I Can't Let Go Of, the Tontitown Preservation Project interviews are presented as narrative stories, weaving together memories of grandparents and parents, home and community life, foodways, school days (with nuns as teachers), grape festivals and holiday traditions, marriage, and raising a family. Common themes emerge: a strong work ethic, the importance of family, and a genuine love for fun and fellowship.
Susan Young is the outreach coordinator at the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History in Springdale, Arkansas. She is the author of So Big, This Little Place: The Founding of Tontitown, Arkansas, 1898-1917.