Diane Campbell has heard many stories from her parents over the years – reflections on her father’s time as a soldier in World War II, that they were children of the Depression, and her mother’s reflections on having her at 40, which is unusual for the time.
But when the longtime San Anselmo resident lost her father in 2017, just a few years after her mother’s death, she made a stunning discovery — she had no written or recorded stories from them, except for one video of her father sharing how acquired a German luger while soldiering. Even though it meant a lot to see him tell a small piece of his life, she wished there was more.
This inspired her to create Homegrown Histories in 2019, in which she interviews people and helps create an audio-visual legacy to pass down to future generations. She does similar work as a volunteer at the Marin Historical Museum, interviewing people through the museum’s oral history program. She will discuss her work and tips for recording your own or someone else’s stories at 1:00 pm on May 16 at the San Anselmo History Museum. More of her work can be found at hghistories.com.
Q What helps you get these stories out of people?
A I really love hearing who people are, what they do, how they got where they are and what their journey is. It’s really interesting to me and I think it puts them at ease because I don’t judge, I listen and ask questions. When you start asking out of interest—genuine interest—it matters and helps people open up.
Q Who is a unique person you have spoken to?
A One woman I interviewed was a pioneer in being one of the first female doctors. It was super interesting, but to be honest, for me it was more about things like how her relationship was with her father. Those are the things that I think really add juice to people’s lives, and it’s really people, not necessarily have done something that other people might consider great or noteworthy. I want people to understand not only where they come from, but who they come from, because it helps us know ourselves better and helps us become better people in the world.
Q How did the loss of your parents inspire your career change?
A I happened to be the executor of my father’s will and just going through all his papers and my siblings and I going through all their stuff just really reinforced to me that if you have the opportunity to ask and record their story then you should do . Sorry I don’t have more detailed stories. My dad was a storyteller so I have a lot of memories, but I’m 54. My memory isn’t what it used to be. It would have been so much sweeter if we had recorded it.
Q Have you made records for your children?
A When I interview people, one of the things I ask them is, “Do you have any life lessons you’d like to share?” Last weekend I said to my husband, “I’ve got to practice what I preach.” I’m an open book with my kids. , so they know so much of my past and yet I fall into the same trap, so I told my husband, “I’m going to interview you and then I’m going to interview myself because we can’t be part of this group that wanted us to be did.
Q What inspired your work with the museum?
A I’ve volunteered my whole life, so that’s a big part of me, but I’ve always done more in the social service field. I really wanted to volunteer because of my interest in local history and learning how things are, how they have changed for the better or for the worse and understand that. I started helping them with some of their collections and then they asked me if I was interested in oral histories and I jumped at the chance.