Summary: Dorothy Walker was interviewed by Brenda Hepler on October 13, 2009. She had grown up in San Rafael, where libraries played an important role in her childhood. After her family moved to Lafayette in 1956 Dorothy went to Acalanes High School and then to UC Berkeley, where she became a teacher and stayed on […]
Oral History: Sally Bellenger — January 22nd, 2008
Summary: Sally Bellenger was interviewed by Nancy Sherman on January 22, 2008, during the time that construction of the Lafayette Library and Learning Center was under way. She arrived in Lafayette in 1971, choosing the community for its good schools and its values. In this interview Sally describes how a group of dedicated and hard […]
Oral History: Ann Meredith — November 5th, 2008
Summary: Ann was interviewed by Brenda Hepler on November 5, 2008. As the City of Lafayette’s Community Development Director, she was closely involved with the Library Project from 2001 onward. She played a major role in the selection and acquisition of the building site, the selection of the architect, creation of the consortium, development of […]
Oral History: Diane Kisner — May 14th, 2008
Summary: Diane Kisner was interviewed by Pat Riegg on May 14, 2008. As the co-founder and head of the Merriewood Children’s Center, which offered a variety of pre-school and after school programs, Diane was an important figure in the field of early childhood education in Lafayette. From the start she was an enthusiastic supporter of […]
Oral History: Anna Koch — May 27th, 2008
Summary: Anna Koch was interviewed by Brenda Hepler on May 27, 2008. She was born and raised in San Francisco, and became interested in reading and in going to the library at a very young age. After high school she enrolled in a library technology program and worked in a library part-time instead of pursuing […]
Oral History: Marge Dubbs — May 9th, 2024
Summary: Marge Dubbs was interviewed by Andree Hurst on May 9, 2024. Now at age 100, Marge has spent just over half of her life as a Lafayette resident. Her husband was a mechanical and safety engineer who traveled for work most of the time. Marge worked also, but always locally. She made use of […]
Oral History: Chris Young – April, 2024
Summary: He was born in 1950 and was raised in Burton Valley. His parents founded and ran a coin-operated laundry and dry cleaning business on Golden Gate Way called Sunshine Cleaners. Chris worked in the business while he was growing up after his father taught him how to maintain and repair the equipment. The business […]
Oral History: Chuck Baumann – March, 2024
Summary: Chuck Baumann was interviewed by Andree Hurst in March, 2024. He came to Lafayette in 1955 at age 6 when his father relocated the family to this growing community to establish and run a company that built swimming pools. He discusses growing up in the community with great schools and social activities and he […]
Oral History: Edith Hunt Shirling – June, 1983
Diablo Valley College History 155, covering Local History, has brought back memories of when I was a child of about nine years old. Our family, who lived in Pt. Richmond, Contra Costa County-which also is the city where I was born in 1908–became the proud owners of a new Dort automobile in 1917. It was […]
Oral History: Tony Lagiss – November, 2004
Summary: Tony Lagiss was interviewed by Julie Sullivan in November, 2004. A Port Costa native, his career in the sale and development of Lafayette real estate started when he was 25, in 1946, when he bought twenty acres of “billie goat land” on Deer Hill Road near Pleasant Hill Road. Tony’s timing was good, as […]
