The Ethnic Life Stories is Back!
LISTEN ON ANCHOR LISTEN ON SPOTIFY
The United States is truly a nation of diversity thanks to the melting pot created by people from all around the world. Jim Mauldin of Springfield, Missouri, became interested in the American immigrants after his time serving in WWII, and he started the Ethnic Life Stories Project in 2000 to celebrate the ethnic diversity we are so fortunate to have right here in the Ozarks.
In 2018, he donated over $61,000 to Friends of the Garden for the long-term care and maintenance of the trail of trees. Black Gum trees are the longest-lived hardwood tree species in the eastern United States and can live about 700 years.
The Ethnic Life Stories Project reached Friends of the Garden at Nathanael Greene/Close Memorial Park in 2012. Tribute black gum trees were planted at the northern border of the park to immortalize these storytellers.
And now Friends of the Garden has brought the stories back in a new form! You can listen to audio versions of each story online to continue the celebration of these community leaders on Anchor or Spotify!
On your next stroll around the Springfield Botanical Gardens, Friends of the Garden invites you to listen to the immortal stories from the Ethnic Life Stories Trail of Trees Project.
You can also read the original stories archived at the Springfield-Greene County Library HERE.
Episodes feature:
- 34 storytellers from
- 30 different home countries
- 22 native languages
Acknowledgments
- The Ethnic Life Stories project was led by Jim Mauldin, and it is thanks to his generous donation that the Springfield Botanical Gardens could plant tribute black gum trees. Jim Mauldin passed away December 13, 2021 at the age of 101. If you would like to learn more about his incredible life and legacy, you can read the wonderful story written by the Springfield News Leader here.
Jim Mauldin at the Rose Garden dedication in May 2021.
- The audio versions of the Ethnic Life Stories: Trail of Trees episodes were edited, recorded, mixed and published by Diana Dudenhoeffer.
Jim Mauldin and Diana Dudenhoeffer
