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up and sometimes put themselves at risk. Where did you grow up? Go to college?

Later on I did the same. I grew up in Roseau, Minnesota—way up
north of the border. I went to the University of
So talk a little bit about that. What causes Minnesota in Minneapolis—the big campus.
have you been involved in where you thought Talk about culture shock! My hometown was

that you were able to make a difference? 2500 people. My freshman English class was
There were some skinheads who were over 5000.
running around physically hurting people Originally, I wanted to major in biological
waiting to go into a movie theater. And as the last research. I especially love genetics, and I still

person ran past us, I tripped him. He got up and understand a lot about it. I have the medical
came up to me. Thirty or forty people stepped books. However, college math and I took one look
forward. He took one look at them and ran with at each other and decided we couldn’t become
his tail between his legs. I mean, you just don’t friends. Years later, when I went back to college,

walk up and start elbowing and shoving people I got an A in math. Go figure.
indiscriminately, that does not work for me at all. I changed my major to communications. I
I have also physically gotten involved. I saw should have chosen English. If I had, I would
a woman being carjacked and a man trying to have been teaching—but instead I chose

help her. I just nodded to him, and then I came communications. I studied a lot about public
up behind the carjacker. I grabbed his arms, speaking, rhetoric and appreciation of poetry.
the man helping grabbed the car key, and the You name it. I have a Bachelor of Science in BS.
woman was able to escape. We held him until

the cops came. So what did you do with your degree? What
I’ve been involved with elder causes for quite happened next?
some time. I worked for a time in an upscale One of my first post-graduate gigs was a
retirement center and I really loved the people community job that took me to Texas and then

I worked for. They were all like walking stories. Iowa as a community organizer. I was a VISTA
You know, there was one of them. I used to see volunteer for awhile. I had several jobs. But I
her e month for almost four years before she found that I gravitated towards the ones where I
died. I held a memorial service for her because was doing a lot of work for community. I worked

her children wouldn’t and she knew that. I in a church in Minnesota and worked in a church
made a promise to her that I would so I did. In out here. It was the kind of work I liked the most.
the 1980s, I was a VISTA volunteer and Service It doesn’t pay much, but you get a lot of internal
to America. I worked on accessibility issues, reward. And that’s been my driving force.

personal care issues, hospice issues, all those were
really coming to bear? So that was something I As a community organizer, what did you do?
loved working on. I worked in neighborhoods. I was a
neighborhood organizer. We found out what

VOICES! | SEPTEMBER 2021 9