About Us
The Boise Voices Oral History Project is a creative collaboration between youth and elders in Northeast Portland to record the stories of how the Boise neighborhood has changed over time.
How we got started
In the spring of 2009, thanks to a grant from the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods and Portland’s Office of Neighborhood Involvement, fifteen youth from the Boise-Eliot Elementary School and the Albina Youth Opportunity School teamed up with neighbor Apricot Irving and Erin Yanke, of the KBOO Youth Collective, to interview elders from our community. We were inspired by the Elder Storytelling events organized by Our United Villages, as well as organizations like Storycorps and This American Life.
We knew that there were stories worth hearing in our neighborhood, and everyone we talked to was excited about the project. Kay Newell, of Sunlan Lighting, kept a running list for us in her store. Every time someone walked through her door and said, "I remember when this neighborhood was..." she had them write down their names and contact information. From there, we were off and running
How it works
Once we have an interview with an elder lined up (we conducted the majority of our interviews in a quiet classroom or in the school library), the students use the interviewing skills that they have learned to prepare a list of questions. Working in teams of two, we sit down with each elder for a 45-minute interview, which we record and edit. Following the interview, each elder receives an audio CD with their complete interview; we also donate a copy to the Oregon Historical Society. Excerpts from these interviews are then added to the website, so that a wider audience can benefit from the collective wisdom of our elders.
The website is designed as a teaching tool. By enabling students to hear stories about WWII, Vanport, redlining and dance halls—as described by those who experienced them—we hope to connect young people with their history in a way that is both vivid and memorable.
We also hope that this project will inspire you to connect with your own community. Now it’s your turn: what questions will you ask your neighbors?