Interviewee’s present life circumstances
James E. was born Feb. 24, 1936, which has him at the time tested age of 81. James is an African American male and is married to his lovely wife Margret. He has 4 children of his own and with that comes 9 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. James currently resides in a single family home located in laurel, MD. Nearby family members come by to visit nearly every week for dinner and quality time.
James keeps himself busy by running his nonprofit after-school program that tutors kids from kindergarten through middle school. This program also turns into a summer camp during the summer providing kids a place to go while parents are away at work. When James isn’t taking care of business at the program, he is supporting his family by attending dance shows for his granddaughters along with sporting events for his grandson. Having put so many work hours in as a Physical Education teacher has paid off because James was able to retire from multiple school districts and receive money from each. This money combined with saving and other things have allowed James to live comfortably and also have allowed him to help out family members that were in times of need and struggle. Currently, James has very few complaints about his current health status. Outside his lingering digestive issues and some typical joint pain, he is in rather good health and physical shape. Keeping up with the kids during aftercare and summer camp does contribute to keeping him in such good shape. He is able to get around with ease and able to do many things I see 60-year-olds struggle with- like lifting heavy items and walking or driving long distances. Origins and family history James and his family originate from the south as many black families do. He grew up in Columbus, Georgia as did his parents. Also, like many black people, he doesn’t really know his true country of origin due to the slave trade, all he knows is that most of his family was taken from some African country during the times of the slave trade. Furthermore, his grandfather was a native American born in the United states. James’s father and mother both worked in a paint factory that exposed them to toxic fumes. They barely made enough money to support their 9 children and lead to a poor childhood. His father graduated from high school while his mother only made it up to the 10th grade. All 9 kids lived under one roof along with his mother and father- James is the second oldest out of 9 children. The living situation was rough with that many kids in one house. The house was a small single family bungalow with only a few rooms. James lived in that house until his late teens where he was kicked out. From then on he lived with his aunt and from there lived on campus in college. Positive …show more content…
He instantly fell in love with sports and noticed it was something he was good at and could enjoy. Often times James could go off with friends and sort of getting away from a struggling household with sports. It seemed like it was his only outlet of fun at that age especially since he was already working a job since the age of 9 making 3 dollars a week.
Finding sports could be described as a life changer because it really did change his life from then on forward. This new found love really put new opportunities on the map for James. Since that moment from childhood, his love for sports has only grown and is still very strong to this day.
Negative Childhood …show more content…
His father was very strict and was a diabetic who would go into fits of rage. The father would often spew negative comments on the regular basis to his son James saying that “you will never amount to anything”. Of course, these words came with many sad and fearful moments for James as a child. Even at football games watching James play, his father would never really be happy for him or give words of encouragement. Throughout James’s life, he has tried to be the opposite of what his dad was and be a positive person who consistently gives out words of
James E. was born Feb. 24, 1936, which has him at the time tested age of 81. James is an African American male and is married to his lovely wife Margret. He has 4 children of his own and with that comes 9 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. James currently resides in a single family home located in laurel, MD. Nearby family members come by to visit nearly every week for dinner and quality time.
James keeps himself busy by running his nonprofit after-school program that tutors kids from kindergarten through middle school. This program also turns into a summer camp during the summer providing kids a place to go while parents are away at work. When James isn’t taking care of business at the program, he is supporting his family by attending dance shows for his granddaughters along with sporting events for his grandson. Having put so many work hours in as a Physical Education teacher has paid off because James was able to retire from multiple school districts and receive money from each. This money combined with saving and other things have allowed James to live comfortably and also have allowed him to help out family members that were in times of need and struggle. Currently, James has very few complaints about his current health status. Outside his lingering digestive issues and some typical joint pain, he is in rather good health and physical shape. Keeping up with the kids during aftercare and summer camp does contribute to keeping him in such good shape. He is able to get around with ease and able to do many things I see 60-year-olds struggle with- like lifting heavy items and walking or driving long distances. Origins and family history James and his family originate from the south as many black families do. He grew up in Columbus, Georgia as did his parents. Also, like many black people, he doesn’t really know his true country of origin due to the slave trade, all he knows is that most of his family was taken from some African country during the times of the slave trade. Furthermore, his grandfather was a native American born in the United states. James’s father and mother both worked in a paint factory that exposed them to toxic fumes. They barely made enough money to support their 9 children and lead to a poor childhood. His father graduated from high school while his mother only made it up to the 10th grade. All 9 kids lived under one roof along with his mother and father- James is the second oldest out of 9 children. The living situation was rough with that many kids in one house. The house was a small single family bungalow with only a few rooms. James lived in that house until his late teens where he was kicked out. From then on he lived with his aunt and from there lived on campus in college. Positive …show more content…
He instantly fell in love with sports and noticed it was something he was good at and could enjoy. Often times James could go off with friends and sort of getting away from a struggling household with sports. It seemed like it was his only outlet of fun at that age especially since he was already working a job since the age of 9 making 3 dollars a week.
Finding sports could be described as a life changer because it really did change his life from then on forward. This new found love really put new opportunities on the map for James. Since that moment from childhood, his love for sports has only grown and is still very strong to this day.
Negative Childhood …show more content…
His father was very strict and was a diabetic who would go into fits of rage. The father would often spew negative comments on the regular basis to his son James saying that “you will never amount to anything”. Of course, these words came with many sad and fearful moments for James as a child. Even at football games watching James play, his father would never really be happy for him or give words of encouragement. Throughout James’s life, he has tried to be the opposite of what his dad was and be a positive person who consistently gives out words of