These two interviews from StoryCorps represent two different stories of three females who paved the path for women as pilots in the U.S.
The first interview I chose is called “Mama was a Daredevil: the firefighting pilot who blazed a path for women.” Mary Barr, was the first woman to fly for the U.S. Forest Service. Although Mary Barr is the subject of this interview, the people who are sharing her story are her daughters. This was a compelling component because it reveals Mary Barr’s lasting impact on another generation. During the story, the tone of voice from the daughters, Molly Barr and Nevada Barr shows how excited they were to share their moms story. In parts of the conversation, they helped finish each others sentences which I thought was interesting because they both had different things to add to parts of the story. Something the sisters said that stuck with me was “Any time a woman goes out and does what she wants to and succeeds, it makes it easier.”
The second interview I chose is called “The First and Second in Flight-Two Black Women Make Coast Guard History.” In 2005, Jeanine Menze became the first black female pilot in the U.S. Coast Guard. She discusses how it felt to be the first black female pilot, but she felt out of place until La’Shanda Holmes joined the U.S. Coast Guard becoming the second black female to earn her wings. This interview between the two women is set up as a conversation sharing their experiences and respect they have for one another during the time they shared in the U.S. Coast Guard. I thought it was interesting how the interview did not involve someone asking them questions like normal interviews usually do. This showed how their story only needed to be told through their lenses and did not need a basis of questions from someone else to tell readers and listeners what was important. However, they would also ask each other questions throughout the interview. In the beginning of this video, there is heartfelt music played while someone briefly introduces the story about to be told. This introduction gave me an understanding of what I was about to hear and I could tell it was going to be sentimental based on the music choice as well.