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Disclaimer: In the story below, the interviewee requested to remain anonymous. For storytelling purposes, we will be referring to her as “Anne.” Anne described her childhood as a wonderful one. As an only child, she received her parents’ undivided attention and never wished for siblings. Some of her favorite memories were simple ones, like afternoon walks with her father to the ice cream store; her favorite flavor is chocolate. She grew up surrounded by her loving parents, gr

In 1940, Mary was born in West Virginia and later grew up in Akron, Ohio. As an only child, she spent a lot of time with her cousin in Cleveland and her grandmother. Mary was very close to her grandmother and they traveled to Marietta, Ohio every summer. In Akron, Mary was a part of a marching parade and she also engaged in tap dancing. Mary’s biggest challenge was getting her GED; when she began working at a cotton factory, she also started to plan for her GED. She started a

Parmila grew up in the hills of Himachal Pradesh. Until the fifth grade, she lived with her parents, before moving to a village to live with her grandmother. Her grandmother discouraged her from pursuing an education beyond eighth grade, but Parmila persisted on attaining an education; She continued her studies and eventually received her nursing degree, despite disapproval from her family. In 1969, she married Vir Bhanu, a Sanskrit teacher, and they had two children. In her