History is Her Story

Deb Moore of Grand Rapids launched her second career as a personal historian in 2003, after spending 30 years as a special ed teacher. It all started back in 1973 when her oldest daughter, Sara, was born. The hospital gave her a little book to commemorate the birth, and in it was a family tree. Once Moore began filling it out, she became more curious about her ancestors. Her hobby soon turned into a passion, and the rest, as they say, is history.

One of her first big projects was writing the history of her church parish, Immaculate Heart of Mary. (She’s also their archivist.) Since then, Moore has written many histories for both companies and individuals. She also just completed interviewing some of Grand Rapids’ top philanthropists for a documentary that’s being produced to air later this year on PBS.

A member of the international Association of Personal Historians (who have declared May as Personal History Month) Moore believes preserving our individual stories is a way to not only connect to our past, but to one another. She sat down with Rapid Growth Media to field a few questions about her work and our city.

Why do you think it’s so important for people to tell and preserve their stories?

Your memoir is a way to leave your mark on the world, to say that you were here. By recording your experiences, your children, grandchildren and even your great-grandchildren will be able to see the past through your eyes. It keeps your story alive – and gets the facts straight for the future. You will be more than a name on a family tree -- you will be a living, breathing, feeling human being.

They say stories about people only last for two generations, and then they die out. For example, you would tell your kids about your mom and dad and maybe your grandparents. But your kids are not going to tell their kids stories about your grandparents; that will be long gone. Just think how thrilled you’d be to have a book your grandmother had written about her life that you could read.

Beyond the preservation part, writing a memoir is so much fun! One of the first stories I wrote in my own was about ice skating at Mulick Park. We’d go every night after supper, and it was just a blast. So you put yourself back there, and you start thinking about who was there, what games you played…and the more you put yourself in that time, the more you remember, which is just really fun.

One of your client’s stories, about his mother’s escape from the Nazi invasion, was so moving – and so dramatic. But I would think most people would say their lives are boring, that they don’t really have any stories worth telling.

Everybody’s story is interesting! For example, a man raised during the Great Depression told me: "People did a lot of 'horse-trading' in those days. To pay for my dental work, Mother convinced an East Grand Rapids' dentist to care for my teeth in exchange for yard work. Every Saturday, I rode my bike from the Chicago Drive-Burlingame Avenue area to East Grand Rapids and back to cut his lawn and trim his bushes." Now, what kid today would do that?

How can these individual stories work into the bigger picture of helping Grand Rapids preserve its history?

To me the word “story” is the most important part of “history.” It’s just like the history of the United States or the history of the world; the history of Grand Rapids is not what road was opened or what building was built. It’s really about the people behind each of those events, the regular people who make up the neighborhoods and communities. It’s everybody going about their everyday lives and contributing their part that makes Grand Rapids what it is today.

What about companies, why is it a good idea for them to do histories?

Beyond having the story for posterity, it’s a great way for employees to make a contribution. Good companies value their employees; they know they’re a vital part of their success. And they know their stories are important, too. When they make the employees feel that they’re a part of their company’s history and tradition, employees take pride in that. Plus, companies want deep roots in the community, just like a family does. The more they can identify their company with their town, the more that contributes to its atmosphere of success and excellence. Of course, if the business is family-owned, their own history is very much woven into the history of the company.

Tell us about the documentary on Grand Rapids philanthropists. What’s that all about?

Pam Daugavietis, who was at Spectrum Health at the time, came up with the idea of getting the stories from some of these major donors while they were still alive: Why did they give so generously? We interviewed 30 people; I did about a third of them.

What did you learn from them?

We found that the philanthropists all love this community and have a great sense of pride about it. Many came from very humble beginnings; they were quite flabbergasted and pleased that they achieved such monetary success, and they wanted to give back. For most, that philosophy started with the church and tithing 10 percent of their income each week.

As you know, we have a lot of buildings named after major donors and you sometimes hear people in the community complaining about that. They don’t look at the fact that if the person wouldn’t have given the money for that building, we wouldn’t have our arena or our cancer center. And what’s interesting about that whole thing is that back when (Amway co-founders) Rich DeVos and Jay Van Andel were renovating the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, Rich felt it was important for the person to tie their name to the building because it would spur others in the community to give, too. And that’s exactly what’s happened.

Any advice for anyone thinking about writing their memoirs?

I tell people when they’re first starting out to pretend that they're a screenwriter making a film about their life and to list 10 scenes that should be included in the movie. As you list these important events or turning points of your life, think of what has challenged you, formed you and influenced you to be the person you are today.

The next step is to start writing one of these scenes. Don't worry about how it sounds. Write from your heart, not your head, as if you were telling this story to a close friend or a grandchild.

As you write, think of the details that will make your story come alive for the reader. Once you get started, you’ll be amazed at how quickly the memories start coming back. For an older person, it’s a great way to keep the mind sharp. It sure beats watching TV!