John Lizarraga and Lynn Lizarraga

Recorded November 23, 2019 Archived November 23, 2019 35:32 minutes

Id: mby019422

John Lizarraga (63) and his wife Lynn Lizarraga (64) discuss their upbringings, how they both became educators and how they met.

JL asks LL how her life has been different than what she imagined.

LL says her love of learning inspired her to become a teacher.

LL recalls her mother, a teacher, educating migrants during the summer and how it inspired her.

JL asks LL to talk about a time when teaching made her feel hopeful.

JL begins to describe his childhood.

JL describes how he and his siblings were separated and sent to foster care after their mother's death.

JL recalls identifying as more Anglo Saxon than Latino as a young child.

JL recalls moving to Memphis from California with his foster mother and her new husband.

JL recalls finding out at 8 that his biological father passed away.

JL recalls going to the "Free School" in California and how it helped him express himself through music and art.

JL describes meeting LL at work and connecting via love of music and education.

Yuma Art Center