Roger Atoruk: Interview Outline: Section 1 Introduction, Roger talks about his family Tape Reference Number: H2002-09-07 Roger Atoruk talks with Bill Schneider, Hazel Apok, and Eileen Devinney in Kiana, Alaska on February 27, 2002

Bill Schneider: Today is February 27th, 2002. I'm Bill Schneider. Eileen Devinney is here, too. We have the pleasure -- pleasure today of beginning a project here in Kiana, project is run by Hazel Apok.

Hazel Apok: Uh-hum.

Bill Schneider: And our first interview is with Roger Atoruk. And so thank you both. This is exciting. We're -- we're off and running with our -- with our first -- first interview. And I guess what I need to do is, is focus this camera on both of you before we start picturing. So stay still as you are, you're doing fine, but go ahead and tell us which picture you want to start with, Roger, and then I'll -- I'll work on this.

Roger Atoruk: Maybe I'll start with this one, huh?

Bill Schneider: Uh-hum.

Roger Atoruk: Can I start now?

Bill Schneider: Yes. By all means.

Roger Atoruk: Okay. This picture was taken in somewhere around 19 -- 1937 or '38. That's my family picture. That's my father, Peter.

Bill Schneider: Just a sec here.

Roger Atoruk: And my mother.

Bill Schneider: Okay. You can go ahead and point to them now.

Roger Atoruk: That's my father, Peter. Peter Atoruk. And my mother, Nellie. And this my older brother, Tommie Sheldon. And the next one is Elwood, my older brother, he's two years older than I am. And that's me right here. I must have been about age 7 or 8 years old. And that's my sister here. She now lives in California, in San Francisco. Stella. And that's the first picture.

Bill Schneider: Would you point to Stella again.

Roger Atoruk: This one here, this little girl here, that's Stella.

Bill Schneider: Oh, she's kind of hiding.

Roger Atoruk: Uh-hum.

Bill Schneider: Okay. Good. And where was that picture taken?

Roger Atoruk: Over in the old village. Do you remember that we were telling you about the old village over there. It's about a mile over, three-quarters of a mile maybe over that way. That was an Eskimo village. But there's nobody living there now. There is just one or two old houses over there.

Bill Schneider: Uh-hum.

Roger Atoruk: That's where the Eskimos used to live, in that little village. That was in the '30s. '30s and '40s. Then around 1940 -- 1948, '49 maybe, they start moving down here to the -- we call it down town. That's where the -- that's where the miners used to live, and the store was there.

[Top]