Summary(00:45) Michael’s family’s settlement in Brooklyn -- (2:42) Parents’ professions -- (3:30) Siblings -- (4:27) Grandparents’ immigration from Italy -- (5:29) Grandmother’s funeral -- (7:03) Holiday traditions with grandparents -- (8:15) Growing up in Brooklyn -- (11:14) The Great Depression years -- (13:31) Father’s career as a fireman -- (15:24) Attending Brooklyn public schools -- (17:22) Childhood business selling shopping bags -- (18:45) Watching double features -- (19:19) Teenage jobs as a busboy and telegram delivery boy -- (21:35) Investing in first stocks -- (22:24) Trumpet lessons -- (24:00) Experiences in the Navy during World War II -- (32:07) Taking a year off postwar and spending time at Coney Island -- (34:05) Elizabeth’s family’s immigration from Italy to Pennsylvania -- (35:01) Moving to New York -- (36:31) Selling shopping bags in the Bronx -- (37:21) Working in the Van Heusen Shirt Factory -- (38:20) Enjoying the outdoors -- (39:26) Small family holidays -- (40:02) Meeting Michael at a roller rink and their courtship -- (40:37) Activities while dating -- (41:11) Their wedding -- (41:54) Living in the Bronx with her mother as newlyweds -- (42:22) Moving to Brooklyn to start a family -- (43:13) Double dates with their siblings and their partners -- (43:59) Converting the house into apartments and sharing with multiple tenants -- (46:12) Incorporating television into their homes -- (48:15) Hearing about Pearl Harbor over the radio -- (49:53) News reels at the movies -- (50:21) Impact of television on movie theaters -- (51:27) Employment during early years of their marriage -- (52:31) Working part-time jobs outside of the Fire Department -- (53:40) Working in the same firehouse as his father -- (58:06) Learning how to cook at the firehouse -- (1:00:27) Seeing Michael fight fires near their home -- (01:02:10) Sledding and roller skating with their children -- (1:03:22) Going to the beach on Long Island -- (01:04:14) Taking lessons on the electric organ -- (01:05:19) Taking their kids to Coney Island and Freedom Land -- (01:05:53) Visiting the World’s Fair -- (01:08:34) Spending time with extended family -- (01:10:27) Children’s education -- (01:11:08) Deborah’s teaching career -- (01:12:00) Michelle’s illustration career -- (01:12:57) Moving to Long Island
NoteAudio interview conducted on November 20, 2014, by Megan Margino at the home of Elizabeth and Michael LoFaro in Mount Sinai, New York. Collected through Our Streets, Our Stories, an oral history project of Brooklyn Public Library. This project is a partnership with Services for Older Adults and the Brooklyn Collection.
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TitleOral history interview with Elizabeth LoFaro and Michael LoFaro on 2014 November 20.