Sunday Soup and Stories: Brainchild of Harriet Castrataro and Vicki Pappas

Nearly 200 soups and nearly 100 stories have been shared at the Sunday Soup and Stories club in Bloomington, Indiana. The 20 or so members help choose the date, the host, and what they will bring: an appetizer, a soup,...

Jackson on the B-Line

Jackson Kilby Jr. was observing local art on the B-line. Graffiti artists were tagging the building that lines the trail. Jackson was there when we did the unboxing of the sound equipment for the recording project, so it was fun...

Mary S. (Puts) Costigan with two of her sons Joseph and Paul Costigan February 2022

Mary S. Costigan (nee Ensenberger) age 91 speaks with two of her sons about stories from her youth in Bloomington, IL and her rich family life.

Joseph Costigan

David Costigan (90) talks with two of his sons about growing up in Bloomington, IL. Also discussed life as teacher and coach in Quincy, IL and his family's legacy of service to the US.

Maxine 100 Years: Working for RCA and Getting Married

Iris Maxine Pontius worked at RCA starting in the late 1930s and continuing until her retirement in 1978. During WWII, she was part of a secret project building electronic devices to help the war effort. Later she helped build an...

Maxine 100 Years: Growing up in Bloomington, Indiana

Iris Maxine Pontius grew up during the Great Depression on a small farm outside Bloomington, Indiana. She and her eight siblings learned that working together made family life enjoyable even during hard times. They grew up in a two-bedroom farmhouse...

Become a biographer project

I only got to four questions out of six but one of the first questions that I asked got a very interesting response. All in all it was quite an informative interview about someone that I didn’t know too much...

Interview With A Previous COVID-19 Nurse's Assistant

Morgan Lee (17) converses with her brother, Braxton Lee (22) about what it was like working as a non-certified nurse's assistant during the COVID-19 pandemic, only two years into his career. They discuss family, future plans, and happiness.