Lynn's Passions
Former flight attendant, Lynn Rippelmeyer, tells of her passion for flying in the 1970s that propelled her ambition to become one of the first female commercial pilots in the USA.
Lynn's Path to the Sky
Former flight attendant Lynn Rippelmeyer describes the combination of sheer determination and luck that gave her the chance to become to a commercial pilot in the 1970s, at a time when many believed women were incapable of the job.
Zoe's Push for Equality
Activist Zoe Nicholson describes her desire for equality between the sexes that drove her to take part in a 37-day hunger fast in 1982, in a campaign for women to be part of the US Constitution in the Equal Rights Amendment or ERA.
Lynn's Search for Records
Pioneering female pilot Lynn Rippelmeyer delves into the Illinois Department of Transportation records to try to track down the female captain who inspired her own historic aviation career.
Episode 6 Preview | The Fight for Women’s Rights
Join Ann Curry as two women search for friends and colleagues who forged a path for equal rights. One of the first female commercial pilots wants to thank her mentor, and an advocate hopes to find the woman who inspired her to join a movement.
Growing up in Cuba
Nelson Figueras describes his childhood in Cuba during the 1950s. The son of a revolutionary, Nelson describes living under Castro’s oppressive regime and his father’s eventual execution for crimes against the state. This horrific event was the catalyst for Nelson and his younger brother to be sent without their parents to the US in 1962 in Operation Pedro Pan.
Clues on Captain Hooper
Juan meets fisherman George Gardner, a colleague of Captain Hooper, the skipper who brought him to safety in 1980 during the Mariel Boat lift from Cuba.
Episode 5 Preview | Escape from Cuba
Join Ann Curry as two men search for the people who helped them settle in the U.S. when they fled Castro’s Cuba. One hopes to find the family who took him in as a boy while another looks for the shrimp boat skipper who brought him to safety.
Remembering Mr. and Mrs. Maltos
Nelson Figueras describes the loving Mexican American family who in Washington State fostered him and his brother after they’d been sent to the US from Cuba as Pedro Pan children. Despite being with the family for less than a year, Nelson has thought of the couple and their kindness often for the past 50 years. He yearns to find his long-lost foster parents to thank them.
Jim's Enlistment in the Marines
Jim Owen had a difficult upbringing and in 1950 sought solace in the camaraderie of the United States Marines. He enlisted just as the war in Korea broke out and was quickly sent to serve on the front lines.
Remembering TJ
While stationed on Hospital ship HSS Consolation, 21-year-old naval corpsman Tony Ybarra grew to rely on fellow corpsman TJ Wilkes to get through the gruelling long hours dealing with casualties from the front line. On the first hospital ship with a helipad, the wounded were airlifted from the battlefield within 15 minutes of injury.
The Heroic Lieutenants
Defending the 38th Parallel, gunner Jim Owen describes being marooned under heavy artillery attack from Chinese troops in 1951. There he witnessed an act of heroism that has stayed with him for nearly 70 years.
Searching the National Archives
Jim Owen begins his search for the two lieutenants that inspired him during the Korean War at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland. There Jim finds a vital clue among military records.
Episode 4 Preview | Korea Brothers in Arms
Join Ann Curry as Korean War veterans search for their brothers in arms. One wants to show his gratitude to two lieutenants who inspired him to be brave in battle, and the other hopes to thank a friend who boosted his spirits aboard a hospital ship.
Searching for Gretchen
Michele is at the Bellingham County Library where she is shown yearbooks and her long lost friend Gretchen’s high school photos. Librarian Suzanne Carlson-Prandini has found Gretchen’s marriage certificate and uses this information to search a database to find Gretchen’s current address and phone number in Seattle.
Looking for Clues on a Long Lost Friend
Danny drives to the Washington State Archives where he meets librarian Kathryn Devine to see articles about his friend Bucky and family.
The Day of the Earthquake
Danny Kendall describes how on the day of the earthquake his buddy Bucky was nowhere to be seen, so he hung out with older boys Dennis and Stanley. Together they went to Valdez port to see the supply ship SS Chena that had docked that day.
Episode 3 Preview | Great Alaskan Earthquake
Join Ann Curry as two Alaskans try to track down childhood friends who also survived the state’s massive 1964 earthquake. A woman wants to thank a friend and her mom for shielding her from harm, and a man searches for a former Little League teammate.
Surviving the Earthquake
Michele Wiley was watching TV at her friend Gretchen Young’s house in Turnagain, Anchorage, when the earthquake struck. She describes the intensity of the quake that seemed to go on forever, "like ten freight trains going through the house at the same time."
Journey to the US on the USS Henry Gibbons
Ben Alalouf describes arriving with his family in Naples in 1944 having been on the run for three years from the Nazis. There he was lucky enough to get a place on the USS Henry Gibbons, an American troop carrier that had been sent to rescue nearly a thousand refugees.
Supported by
