Wanda

My name is Wanda. I live over in the 19th ward now. Before I came back from Carolina, I lived over on Crombie. I met a lot of nice people.

I worked with the people in the free garden that they had. I met my neighbors. My neighbors were very nice. Especially the neighbors across the street. And I was a bad girl then, I got to know the bad people. But then after a while I started to go to church, especially when the people across the street, I became very good friends with. I became very good friends with the mother and she was very active in the church and a little boy came over one Sunday. I would cook every Sunday and he came over and I gave him a plate of food. He sat down with me—after I beat my cat down for eating my plate. Anyways, he came over and I took his mother a plate and I was sitting and talking with her.

And about two weeks ago I was at work and this lady came in and she says, “I know you.” And I'm looking at her like, okay. And then she said, “You used to live across the street from me on Crombie.” And I said, “Oh my God.” I was just floored to the fact that she remembered me. And that, well, we became very good friends, but she looked so much different. And I asked about her mother and she looked at me and tears came from her eyes and she said, “She's gone.” And I said, “Such a lovely lady, I was in Carolina for two years. I wish I had known because I would have come back just to pay my respects.” But very nice people. When I didn't have—

We had the guy across the street. Him and his family were very nice, they introduced themselves. They came over and got to be very good friends with me. The people give that place a bad name. I got another little friend that lives on First Street. They give that side of town a bad name.

Everybody over there is not bad. There's a whole lot of nice people over there. You just have to get to know them. You really do. And, like I said, that lady that touched me, that she passed away. But, like I said, I was glad to see her. I was glad to see her. But then I left and I went to Carolina. And I came back and worked at Walmart. And I'm back here now.

Almeta

And that's how we met. Yes.

Wanda

Yes, indeed.

Almeta

Yes. Because you and Lisa. Y'all my favorites. Oh, and Deb now. Yes.

Wanda

Yes. Yeah, we just rode by Walmart. It's packed.

Almeta

I'm rolling up in there this afternoon.

Wanda

Oh, it's packed. It's packed. Does anybody have any questions?

Almeta

Thank you, that was my next thing.

Max-Yamil

Yeah, I guess I got a question. You talked about the garden…

Wanda

Yes.

Max-Yamil

I guess what was that kind of effect for you? And what was that kind of effect for your community?

Wanda

Well, actually, I was skeptical about it because it was free and open to everybody. They had people that volunteer there and they help and they donate there, but it actually turned out to be pretty nice. You're always going to have a few crooks, okay? You're always going to have— but like I said, it was a lot of people over there that did things like that. They were able to give a plate of food to somebody. It's very nice.

Max-Yamil

And people respected it?

Wanda

Yes, to the most part, yes. You know, like I said, you're gonna have crooks.

Max-Yamil

Yeah, right.

Almeta

And she knows from experience. Excuse me, we know from experience.

Wanda

Right.

Faith

I have a question. Is the Garden still there?

Wanda

I'm not sure. I think so. I think so. I think I saw it on television. But I haven't been over there in a while, but like I said, I've been down south for two years, and I just got back. So I think so, I would believe so.

Almeta

Katie?

Katie

One of the questions that, we've been really interested in hearing answers for is, what about Northeast Rochester felt like home? How did the community/spaces show you care?

Wanda

Like I said, the lady came over and she helped me with food, when I didn't have food, when I didn't have a lot of things, because I was evicted from where I was. So she actually helped me. The man who, I was renting from, she helped me find him. And, helped me, like I said, with clothing sometimes. And where I could get some clothing. Because there is a lot of places, churches, some days of the week it's this church, and some days of the week it's this church. But they give out free food, free groceries, and stuff like that. Milk, eggs, bread, clothing. Yes. Because as a matter of fact, when I left, I donated a lot of my stuff, to some of them places.

Almeta

You said something about the little boy who came over years ago and asked you to go to church. Yeah. Tell that.

Wanda

Asked me would I go to church with him. That he didn't like what I was doing and that I was a nice person and he liked me. And would I please come go to church with him and his mommy, or his grandma.

Almeta

And that was the person who asked.

Wanda

Yes. And I started going. And that's when I came back, and I moved back over here at Jefferson, I started walking to church. And, I didn't have a car, and I would walk to church every Sunday. And then my aunt gave me a car, andI stopped going to church. And then I wrecked my car. And my daughter said to me, “Ma, I was so proud of you from where you—we came from,” because she lived with me for a while and she didn't like it over there and I wasn't acting the best of moms.

So she would come back over here and stay with her grandmother every summer and I would just keep her during the school year. But like I said, when I wrecked my car over here, when I lived down Jefferson, she says, “Ma, the Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away.” She says, “You came from over there. You weren't too good. You weren't the best of a mom.” She said to me, “But you came back over here and you got yourself together and you got a car. Then you messed it up. The Lord giveth and taketh away.”

Almeta

Thank you so much.

Wanda

Thank you very much.