Your History Your Story

What do you do when adversity strikes? Do you see obstacles that can’t be overcome or do you see opportunity and the possibility to transform yourself? In this episode of Your History Your Story our guest is Robert Pardi . Robert is a transformational life coach , speaker and author of “Possibility in Action - A Journey to an Intentional Life”. Robert grew up with an alcoholic father and was force...

As many may know, the United States of America will be celebrating its 250th birthday on July 4, 2026. With that important date on the horizon, some will pause to think about the American Revolution and the great sacrifices made to gain our independence from Great Britain. New Jersey, one of the original thirteen colonies, played a critical role during the Revolutionary War as many battles were fo...

As children, brothers Robert and Vincent Gardino began to take an interest in historical people when their dad started bringing home autographs of famous patrons at the New York City restaurant where he worked as a waiter. The two boys then took it upon themselves to expand their collection of autographs by using resources at the public library to obtain addresses of other notable people such as p...

Halloween is almost here! It is time to put on our sweatshirts, admire the multi-colored leaves falling from the trees and spy the array of skeletons, orange lights and Jack-o-lanterns adorning our neighborhoods. It’s also the best time of year to settle in on a chilly evening with a glass of hot cider and a bowl of popcorn to watch a scary movie starring the classic horror movie icon, Vincent Pri...

Incorporated in 1838, Brooklyn, New York’s Green-Wood Cemetery is the final resting place of almost 600,000 people!  Designated a National Historic Landmark in 2006, Green-Wood contains stunning natural beauty and landscape design, unique architectural styles and a museum that displays artwork, maps and other interesting objects that belonged to some of the people interred at Green-Wood. Toda...

October 29, 2022 marks the 10th anniversary of the day Superstorm Sandy came ashore in New Jersey. This epic storm, which was the greatest natural disaster in the history of the Jersey Shore brought with it high winds, heavy rain and a tidal surge causing loss of life, power outages and widespread destruction of property. One of the hardest hit areas along the coast was Long Beach Island in Ocean...

In this episode of Your History Your Story , we will be speaking with Enrique “Ric” Prado , author of New York Times bestselling book “Black Ops, The Life of a Shadow Warrior”. Ric, who was born to a middle class family in Cuba, was ten years old when his family sent him alone to the United States to save him from the abuses of Fidel Castro’s Marxist regime. Ric’s parents, whose property and busin...

In the summer of 1960, nineteen year old Sandy Greenberg , the son of a Buffalo, NY junk dealer, was home on break between his sophomore and junior years at Columbia University. Sandy, who loved sports, also loved learning and was very excited about his future and the possibilities that lay ahead. However, while pitching in a baseball game that summer, Sandy’s vision suddenly became cloudy, requir...

It may come as a shock to many, that for every 106 people in New York City, 1 is homeless. Thankfully, The Bowery Mission which has been in existence since the 1870’s  continues to serve the hungry and homeless in New York, providing critical services to meet their needs and help transform their lives. In the year, 2021, in the midst of the Covid 19 pandemic, The Bowery Mission provided 255,0...

If you were to think about Philadelphia and its’ role in the early history of the United Sates, what or who would come to mind? Perhaps Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Ben Franklin or maybe Betsy Ross? When you think of Betsy Ross, you may remember her from a history book during your school days which showed an image of a woman sewing a flag or presenting it to General George Washington as th...

How can YOU brighten someone else’s day? It may be a thoughtful gesture, a kind word or simply sharing a smile.  Our guest on this episode of Your History Your Story is Michael Ray, founder of Smile Project Louisville , an organization created to affect attitude and behaviors through smiling and small random acts of kindness.  Over the years Michael’s life had been affected by some tragi...

It was the mid 1950’s in County Offaly, Ireland when seventeen year old Margaret (Peg) Holland discovered she was carrying a child and was already seven months along!  Learning of their daughter’s pregnancy, Peg’s parents brought her to an unwed mother’s home called Sean Ross Abbey in County Tipperary. It was there, after a difficult breach delivery, that Peg gave birth to a baby girl and she call...

In this episode of Your History Your Story , we will be speaking with retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Colonel Dan Hampton . Dan, who completed 151 combat missions as a fighter pilot in the Iraq War, Kosovo Conflict, and first Gulf War, is also a New York Times bestselling author.  Dan will be discussing his most recent book, “Valor: The Astonishing World War II Saga of One Man’s Defiance and Indom...

On December 7, 1941, nineteen year old college freshman, John Luckadoo was chauffeuring around a group of local kids in a Buick he had borrowed from a neighbor in his hometown of Chattanooga, Tennessee. John was not able to use his father’s car, because his father didn’t yet trust him behind the wheel! Suddenly, while listening to the car radio, a newsman interrupted the program to announce that t...

It was a hot July day in 1916 and eleven year old Lester Stillwell, along with a group of other boys, decided to go down to the Matawan Creek to swim, splash around and cool off.  Some people in the small NJ shore town of Matawan had already heard of two recent fatal shark attacks on ocean bathers in Beach Haven & Spring Lake, but no one worried about a shark in the Matawan Creek, as it was one an...

When George Washington became the first President of the United States in 1789, his wife Martha, like her husband, had no predecessor to model for her new role. Initially, she did not have a title, but soon became known as “Lady Washington”. It wasn’t until many years later that the term “First Lady” was used on a regular basis to identify the wife of the President and / or the White House hostess...

On June 29, 1933, at the Garden Bowl in Long Island City, New York, an imposing six foot six Italian boxer named Primo Carnera knocked out a smaller but highly skilled and more experienced Jack Sharkey to become the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion.  Primo was born in 1906 in a small village in the northeastern corner of Italy. A large baby at birth, Primo continued to grow at  an alarm...

On March 11, 2005, twenty two year old Kevin Berthia stood on a narrow pipe on the outside railing of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, 220 feet above the cold water of the bay. Kevin, who had struggled most of his life with a major depression disorder, woke up feeling hopeless that morning and could only think about stopping the pain he was feeling. A recent job loss and mounting bills had push...

In early 2021, life was really good for Brian and Dorothy Bayford. Married for over 20 years, they had a blended family of eight children, three of whom they adopted together. They also had many grandchildren. Dorothy was very active at her church and in her community and together with Brian had recently launched a new business.  Later in 2021 life changed for the Bayford’s when both Brian and Dor...

In this episode of Your History Your Story , we will be speaking with the last living US Triple Ace fighter pilot from World War 2, Clarence E. “Bud” Anderson. Bud, who celebrated his 100th birthday on January 13, 2022, began his fascination with airplanes after hearing about Charles Lindbergh’s famous flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927.  As a boy in rural California,  Bud spent ho...

Have you ever heard of Jefferson Davis? If so, perhaps you learned from a high school history book that he was the President of the Confederacy during the American Civil War.  In this episode of Your History Your Story , we will be speaking with Jefferson Davis’ great, great grandson, Bertram Hayes-Davis , who, along with his wife Carol, own Vicksburg Old Town Tours. The tours showcase histor...

December 7, 1941 and September 11, 2001 are two dates that will live in infamy. Although 60 years apart, they both represent defining moments in US History.   Our guests on this episode, Dorinda Nicholson and Lieutenant Colonel Robert Darling, United States Marine Corps (retired), were eyewitnesses (respectively) to the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the response of America’s leadership fro...

Six year old Karolyn Grimes was selected by director, Frank Capra for the role of Zuzu Bailey in the 1946 classic holiday movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, where she worked closely with Jimmy Stewart who played her father, George Bailey. As a child actress in Hollywood in the 1940’s and early 1950’s, Karolyn had the opportunity to appear in many other movies with stars such as, Cary Grant, Loretta Y...

Born in the mid-1950’s, Bob Gumson grew up on the bustling streets of Canarsie, Brooklyn, where, as a young boy, he loved to participate in a wide variety of sports and games with his neighborhood friends. Bob’s life was fun and uncomplicated. Then, following a routine kindergarten eye exam, Bob and his family learned that he had a progressive eye disease that would render him completely blind by...

The word “passion” can be defined as: “an intense desire or enthusiasm for something”. For some people, that may be gardening, for others it might be music, art or a host of other interests or hobbies.  Our guests, Rick Curti and Chris LaRosa have each reached out to Your History Your Story to share how they are each actively pursuing their passions, while inspiring others to do the same.&nbs...