The Papa Family Podcast: Recent Episodes
Sam Anderson
Aunt Josephine and Uncle Frank recall early memories of the Papa family roots in Brooklyn. Aunt Jo shares experiences with her own grandparents, and what it was like for the family to move to New Jersey.
Sam interviews Al Papa about growing up in Clifton, becoming a small business owner, and the struggle of dealing with corrupt New Jersey Mayors. Al shares some stories about being shipped off to Vietnam and the challenges of being an infantryman in a combat. Al also reflects on his time spent in San Francisco, Monterey, and San Diego. As the black sheep of the family, it's clear Al lived life to the fullest.
Sam interviews Bob Papa about his life growing up in Clifton with his brothers and sisters, playing on the football team, his marriage to Aunt Betsy, and the challenge of losing his dad at a young age. Bob shares some funny stories about visiting his relatives in Brooklyn, how his mom learned to drive, and the time Aunt Lynn handed him a resignation letter because he didn't give her a raise. He also shares the incredible experience of finding his long lost daughter, who was given up for adoption as a baby, but reunited with the Papa family as an adult.
Sam interviews Uncle Tony about his life, his childhood, and growing up in Clifton. This episode starts with Tony telling us about a pastrami recipe he learned about on youtube. Then we get into some stories about Aunt Lynn. He also tells some funny stories about dealing with the mean Catholic nuns at school. Tony gets his brother Tom to chime in once in a while and tell some of his own stories. This interview was recorded at Tony's house on March 26, 2019.
Sam interviews Aunt Camille about growing up with her sister Linda, and what it was like for Linda to struggle with her disability. As Camille approaches her own death, she reflects on her long life and the lessons she learned from Linda about how to deal with adversity. "No money in the world can buy good health," Camille remembers Linda saying, "you're always rich when you have good health." Note* Sam's questions were not recorded for this interview.