Sarah May Campbell and Natalie Canella May

00:02 Hi, my name is Sarah Campbell. I am 46 years old today is March 12th, 2021 and I'm in Oxford Mississippi. My wonderful conversation partner is my fabulous mother Natalie May and I am so glad she's here take it away. Well, thanks for the introduction Sarah and my name is Natalie May and I am 73 years old and today's date is March 12th, 2021 and I am in New Baden, Illinois and I am speaking with my daughter Sarah Campbell who was just too far away and I would love for her to be nearby because she is my sweet, sweetheart and them.

01:00 We're looking forward to telling you our story.

01:04 Do I love that? We just started our talk mom and you've already got me. You know, I was just I'm so glad I'm only 5 hours away and I used to live in Houston, Texas. And I also was a Peace Corps volunteer in Nicaragua in San Jose. Is that are very much farther away from you than I am now. So I just inching closer and closer to you Mom that you may get your wish. I may live down the road one day a wonderful tree.

01:52 So it's been well over a year. I know that because of covid-19. I don't have the exact date in my head. But I know it's well over a year. Yeah, I think it was Thanksgiving not this past Thanksgiving gifts, but the one be Thanksgiving 2019 you and dad and grandma came over here at great meal. It was a lot of fun and coming off in the cute little split like and they weren't they were perfect like Martha Stewart should have taken from her. I mean, I'm serious.

02:52 Then she measured everything she tried to get it perfect to talk to you little bit about your side of the family today. They've always been so fascinating to me. All of our family members are amazing people wonderful people that your side of the family is kind of interesting because of the way that they came here if you want to start talking a little bit about that a little bit about your mom and then it may be a little bit about your dad. Just kind of like how our families got here. Well both sets of my grandparents came to the United States. My mother's parents came from Spain and my father's parents came from Sicily Italy and both of the men in the families came over because they wanted

03:52 A better life for themselves and for their families, my mother's father came over to work and make up make enough money so that he could bring my grandmother and their two children and I do know that my grandfather was able to go back to Spain to visit occasionally while he was working here in the United States, so,

04:31 When he got enough money, then he was able to bring my grandmother and both of his kids when Nita and Lewis and then later they had more children. There were six kids in the family.

04:52 And yes, it was and Maya dad's parents their stories a little different in that my dad's father came to the United States by himself, and he wasn't married at the time.

05:15 And he had sent for my grandmother's sister.

05:22 To come over because that was the one he was going to marry was my grandmother's sister. But as The Story Goes is I remember hearing it. My grandmother's sister was afraid to leave so my grandmother decided to take the ticket and go instead of her sister.

05:48 So that's the story of my dad's parents how they got here and my dad family there were seven children in the same for the woman who wasn't the first choice. Hahaha. I think that is really fascinating. You know, the reason why I really wanted to talk to you today is because I didn't learn that story for a long long time. Do you remember when you first actually told me that very powerful detail?

06:34 Well, I don't recall it real specifically, but I know you do and you told me that before you went to a piece for my bed. I went to be sore when I was 29. It was when I would 45 mom. Yeah, I was about to go to Sicily with my family and we started talking about our family and I remember just a little fragments of stories about are my grand my great-grandmother's you know, and I kind of mixed them up now and then you who came with children who came later if we're going to go to Sicily Mom. We're going to go visit the little village 45 minutes from Palermo San Guiseppe yato where our family came from we're going to go see these places to spend 17 days exciting.

07:33 To take Scott my twelve-year-old increase my husband and we're going to go we're going to see this place. I'm so excited and I cannot tell me tell me is if is the grandmother is great grandmother on the on the canal side that Sicilian grandmother. Is she the one who liked a lot of sugar in her coffee and that's when you said no no, no. No. No, that's that's the Spanish. That's that's it. That's what do you know about her and and you said well actually she wasn't supposed to be your grandma your great-grandmother and I was just like

08:17 And then you told me yeah, she just she was the one that took the ticket, but I was like, oh my gosh, it was like my whole world at that moment. Mom like the stars started to lineup. Like there was always this thing about me. I didn't quite understand like like why am I the way I am and I come from the women's to take I'm taking that ticket. I'm out of here. Let's do that. Okay, and you also are one of those people so you you grew up in this little town is a little tri-state area, Ohio, Pennsylvania West Virginia, and you didn't stay there everybody else lives here before and there they live there. They are right you didn't do that you took a ticket. So and then and then I didn't really do any of that. I'm this person been all over the place right now and I fell in love with Texas and fell in love in Texas, and then we came here to Mississippi.

09:17 What are you in the witness protection know what happened? I take these tickets to write we do this kind of what you think. The bigger story is cuz of the first question out of my mouth. Do you wise

09:35 When she got off the boat did he know she was going to be walking down the ramp?

09:41 Like in the great grandpa, no like or did he just go? Well, that's good enough that the sad story is that I don't know a lot of details about that story because I can't recall when I heard that story and who told it I can just kind of remember that like at some of our family gatherings, you know, you would hear little bits and pieces of things about the family and I think that's how I picked up that story just

10:23 You know just sort of casually and I got the time when I heard it. I wish I would have had enough sense to ask questions about it. But a lot of times growing up and like I said, I can't remember exactly when I heard that story if I was really young if I had been really young and heard that story you didn't really ask a lot of questions in your family. You just listened more more less, so

11:03 That was my friend when you were growing up, you know with a little bit about that, you know with first-generation parents. I mean like, you know groundhog, you know was born to be in a wonderful people who somehow fell in love either. Maybe maybe they were secretly in love and seem like yeah like away from the sister right? Maybe I don't know and then or maybe like she just said I'm going you're going to stay here. Somebody's got to use this thing. I'm going and then maybe she got off the boat and she was in love with him before night. Maybe she got off the bus and then she said what we're going to give it a try and then they fell in love.

11:52 It could just be like a million different version. We have come from people who are willing to take a chance like my mom and dad met because they were blind date your dad and I met because we were blind dates and start a my husband and I met online on eHarmony right at a coffee shop. I could have got a whole different way right 14 years later take a chance and

12:44 And I think because of that we've had a lot of fun in our family and I do also like that our family seems to just sprinkle in these really big details like this kind of nonchalantly along the way. Oh, yeah, you didn't know that such and such know I would never have known that I would never have known that it was the other sister.

13:21 Yeah, it's hard to know why you never heard that story till later. I don't know why you didn't but I was trying to think of moment when it might have been like it might have made sense, you know, LOL bath or that you know, when you even did a project with Grandma Canelo where you sent me all of them formation about the time. I think they came through in 1917 something like that. Is that right? Her mom and her brother Louis and Juanita came to the United States and I think about 1919. Okay dad hits. Like I said before nine years to get them here, right? Yeah. Yeah, but see he had he had also gone back to Spain in between different times.

14:20 You know, it wasn't like he had stayed completely but he hadn't had enough money till.

14:31 You know till then to bring his bride instead. I felt like he went grandma sent me like all the information about, you know her side of the family and then about Grandpa side and send it to a pretty good time maybe later to you and my son Scott and I we all went to New York and remember that you told me about something. I had no idea that it happened before my grandmother died before my grandmother died. She had done something very special for our family in New York do you want

15:31 About that cuz I'm surprised he didn't have the story happened at this point. So you remember where we went over what special place she had. She had their arrival dates and their names marked on plaques so that it would be there for all time. Remember what the wall of Honor on Ellis Avenue also helped pay for

16:07 You know the keeping up the Statue of Liberty that money would go to, you know, maintain it and and keep it so that was part of

16:20 Doing that. I think it was like somewhere in the 90s where I think they did a restoration project. And so they said two families if you had you know, who came over through Ellis Island and I were processed through Ellis Island would like to give you a chance to have their names and grades on this wall. And and so we we have pictures of their plaques write their names and I will be there where they came, you know, where they started a new life. It's really interesting, you know, and it's interesting to that. They feel like I said, they were willing to take chances. They they didn't stay right there in the yard they moved on.

17:18 By which I think is interesting because they have what least my dad. I know my dad had a cousin that lives in New York and New Jersey so late in the day, they did have to kind of built build their opportunity. Well, like we found out like my mom's father worked in the shipyards then he worked in the coal mine. Then he worked for the steel mill where that's where my mother was born in Weirton, West Virginia while she was born in Steubenville, Ohio across from where West Virginia, but that's where I lived in Paris, Pennsylvania.

18:18 About 10 miles circuit Circle or wait I might be wrong. Maybe she might have been born at home way back then. Yes, she was born she was born at home because I was the home that you lived in to my mother always recorded her birthday as

18:43 June 12th, okay 1925 well on her birth certificate, it's recorded June 11th, 1925 and my mother always went by the 12th because she said her mother told her that the doctor made a mistake on the date and she believes her mother because her mother Audino when she was born.

19:14 And we have a bunch of record-keeping issues. He should tell a little bit about that. That's really funny IRS social security thing and she did but anyway my fathers

19:33 Family his dad's last name. Canela is really spelled with two ends. And that is on his gravestone my grandfather and my grandmother they have their Greystone marked with two ends, but my father

19:55 Only has one because when he went to school the school records.

20:05 And the teachers there they wrote it with one ends. So he and his family all his siblings and they all went with one and

20:17 Mac and cheese at this is this is so fascinating to me. At the time. It just didn't you that they just were like sounds good one and two and sound to say let's go with that.

20:31 You know when they were official papers a lot of times were connected with their baptisms and their baptism papers their school papers have the one in wow, so that's why my father had one end and a funny story about when I went to college. I had a phonetic class and the teacher told me that I wasn't pronouncing my last name correctly.

21:02 And I suppose it's because the we would say it the right way, I guess but we didn't spell it correctly Perhaps Perhaps. I guess we've had a new hat. So you have a father and a son and your family who have different spellings of their name and then you have two brothers in the family on the Spanish side, right who have two different last name and their brothers all know. That's not that right. My my Aunt Juanita. Okay born in Spain on my mother. She's the one who my grandfather. My mother's dad had to work hard enough to bring over his wife and the two kids when was Lewis and one was Juanita. Well Juanita married,

21:57 A man from Spain here comes the United States to work and she you know it when she grew up she married him and he he came over with his brother, but when they came over and you know it in the recording of their names Spanish people use their mother's maiden name and their father's last name. So one brother got the name Lopez and the other brother the brother who might Aunt married. The name Trujillo.

22:40 And his brothers are brothers and they live in the same town.

22:47 In Weirton, but they had different last night. They flipped it and hi-five. I know you're my brother, but let's roll with it. What do you think that speaks your I mean is that is that about like a little bit of desperation? Like I don't care what you call me. I need to get to this country. Like what what do you think's going on there?

23:17 Well, I think some of it is, you know, they're here in America. They're glad to be in America. They wanted to be in America. They like I said, they all came over for a better life and they you know, when they came that most of them like the story of my uncle that's the little bit that I know of his story. He probably didn't come with a lot of money either like the same as my grandparents. So he probably didn't have a lot of money to try to fix any of the records or or his brother either, you know to try to fix how their name really should be because you have to go through all this legal stuff and

24:05 So I I just believe they just figured we'll just go with what's on the paper. You're legally so I thought I think that's what they just went with a good Shakespeare quote something like, you know, a rose by any name would smell as sweet or something right though. Any spelling is just as sweet and kind of starting with nothing and I think it's it's really incredible what happened particularly on the Sicilian side of the family, you know, grandfather's father. He came over anyting penniless move, you know to that area of tri-state area, Ohio.

25:05 You know with Grandpa and it was the first boy as the oldest oldest young man right in the family talk about how Grandpa has always have always looked up to him is the epitome of the American dream in bodies that so well, I know that my father had a fruit business a Wholesale Fruit and produce business he would sell

25:40 Fruits and vegetables to restaurants and I think they also went around into neighborhoods. That's what a lot of people did back then cuz I remember my mom saying that's where she grew up in Weirton. They would have trucks come by sell you milk, you know sell you vegetables and just said come by and sell things like that. And that's what my dad's father. Did he sold in Steubenville? He's sold produce to people

26:17 As I said like for restaurants or four, he would probably go into neighborhoods and sell that way as well and my dad.

26:27 Just went up to 8th grade because he had a large family and I know he had to help his dad. You do make money for the family. They weren't very rich. My dad was born in 1919 and his dad. I believe died in somewhere probably around it is 1942 his father died. So so my dad was in his twenties and he was the oldest boy so he had to help support his mom and his family after that happened and later on his brothers went into business with him and they did the wholesale and the wholesale produce business in Steubenville, Ohio and they grew

27:27 The business and then later my when my dad married, my mom may be a couple years after that. I'm not sure exactly when my dad started his own business. He opened up a Fruit Stand and produce stand in Weirton West Virginia, and then my dad just, you know ventured out on his own and his other two brothers worked the wholesale produce business in Steubenville, Ohio.

27:59 And then my dad after his business grew and where he decided to open up a

28:09 A grocery store in Wintersville, Ohio and that went real well and it was sold to a grocery chain and he had to sign a contract that he wouldn't open up a business 5 miles, you know in the radius of 5 miles from the store and later where the fruit market was in Weirton, West Virginia. He

28:38 Opened up another store there a grocery store. Yes. I remember I remember wrapping tomatoes with Grandma right to be done that I mean, like if it was it was a process and I don't think I ever got it right, but if you should really rethink how I'm doing this again, well what we talked about my mother making pies and they look perfect like Martha Stewart. Well my mother

29:20 Was a Very Organized person and she

29:26 She sort of taught us to keep our rooms growing up. I remember our rooms were organized. My drawers were organized and the and I could always tell if my sister got into my drawer because I could tell if something got moved because our our drawers and everything had to be organized.

29:49 My sister and I shared a room. So it was fun to see if Sharon ever got into anything. I like doing that just for fun. Funny one stinking a little bit about your family Grandma and Grandpa working very hard together you and I had different strengths different Grandma had finished high school. She graduated from where they care very much about education and Grandpa maybe he didn't he wasn't able to continue but he cared about education. He talks about education and Mike.

30:36 Came from them. That's right. Well and my Mom and Dad my mom and dad sent all three of us are in my sister sent all of us to go to college and then so yeah, they did they they wanted us to get an education and one thing you have to remember to is that my parents grew up during the Depression and growing up during the Depression give them a real different mindset about the way to live. They they really believed in Saving and not wasting.

31:23 And trying to pay your death off as soon as you could.

31:30 And they like you said they did believe in education cuz they they knew that education would help you have a job have a good job. And that's what they wanted for their you know for us and also and I remember, you know growing up that because I remember my mom talking about how they did not have a lot to eat in her family during the Depression.

31:59 And because of that.

32:02 We never had a table. That was first we always had lots of food on our table and I think that's because of the way they grew up not having very much, you know, and

32:21 And you know, if you if you look at people who grew up during the Depression, I think that's a Common Thread through many of their lives as being very careful with what they have and not wasting anything else.

32:37 I agree but being good stewards are very good stewards of their you know, and things are precious and and you know, it's more about quality over quantity and would save the cellophane that she would wrap a banana bread in and then use it in the refrigerator. And why would we need to get a boulder tea when we can just use the drawer put cellophane on it and shove it back in there until the gas pump. Well, it was a big enough container going to come like this economy right like this every time well, like they didn't have an abundance to waste so that's why they were like that.

33:37 And if that's really great, I remember Grandpa always saying take care of your teeth. That was another big deal either really important because he had to have his teeth pulled and he hated his Dentures. That's why he sad 46 years and teeth are strong.

34:14 Well, he said that because food didn't the taste as good and it is harder to eat Meats especially now that's why he would tell you that he didn't want you to have to not enjoy a good meal. Here. She comes Miss America Sarah Palin. He just really well, and I don't know if you recall, you know, how you took ballet lessons to have good posture and you walked gracefully you didn't, you know, you didn't

35:14 Reason why he said that there are so I probably did have a little bit of an air about me. Yeah, I probably did. Yeah, and then we had a lot of boys around, you know that boys, you know, there's really just Sarah. So right now I just want to tell you thank you so much for you. No talking a little bit about family stories and little fragment the stories that I you know, like I said do tend to get tossed around and mixed up. You know, I do feel like it is a big big salad bowl what I think about it all these stories. I kind of get all mixed together. So it's so great to hear you talk about the people and the places and the movement and and just the the the big love story. That is our awesome family. I love it. Well, I wish I had better details for you, but I like it. I like it that you don't I'm always carry it. I want to know and I almost don't want to know what I want to know.

36:14 Imagine all the possibilities are family is Rich with such a mystery. I love it. That's right. That's right.

36:31 Oh, well, I'm glad you took this time to do this with me as well Sarah. I love you. I love you too, Sarah and maybe when somebody hears these stories that might encourage them to take a chance.

36:48 Because that's what the stories are all about taking a chance and believing in people believing in your family.

37:02 Well, if you were here, I'd give you a hug right now. I think we're going to see each other at least that will be careful. Yes it will we're looking forward to it.

37:17 Very much seeing you and seeing Scott that'll be a lot of fun.

37:26 And you'll get to see your