Charlene Simon
Q: Did you ever protest the Vietnam War?
A: No, I had recently married and I was starting a family…but I think if I was single, I would have.
Q: Would you consider yourself as a hawk or a dove?
A: Definitely a dove, I always believed we should understand each other.
Q: What did you think of Richard Nixon?
A: He wasn’t my cup of tea. He wasn’t trustworthy. Not the right man for the right time.
Q: Did your community ever receive benefits from Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society?
A: Not that I can remember.
Q: What do you remember about the moon landing in July of 1969?
A: It was exciting. It was amazing to see something like that on TV. Everyone was for the mission. It’s a shame we don’t anything like that now -a-days.
Bill Lund
Q: What was your reaction to the Watergate Scandal?
A: No surprise. Both parties were trying to find out things about each other. It wasn’t even needed because Nixon won by so much. The problem was he tried to cover it up till he got impeached. He looked like a crook. I was more disgusted.
Q: Tell me about your reactions to the Cuban Missile Crisis. Were you afraid?
A: At that particular time, not that afraid but when I think of it now I realize how close we were to a nuclear war and how bad of a situation it was. Luckily Kennedy was in there even though I’m a republican. It was a bad time. I hope we never get that close again. It was very scary. We were as crazy as the Russians.
Jackie Lund
Q: Where were you when JFK was killed? How did you hear? What was your reaction? What were the following days like?
A: I was at my dad’s house in Hawaii. I was cleaning. We were listening to the radio. I was shocked. It was so horrible. I couldn’t believe what I heard. The following days were filled with sorrow. I was practically glued to the TV wanting to hear more.
Q: Do you remember anyone from your town or school that was killed or was missing in action in Vietnam?
No, not personally but I knew that we shouldn’t have been in the war. The veterans were treated horribly. The soldiers were dying. The war was absolutely horrible. The veterans were treated horribly by the American public. I do know now, my son’s wife’s father was in the war and is a veteran. He has many issues now because of it and wasn’t given respect for his duties. The war was a mistake.
Q: Did you know people who did drugs in this era?
No, but everyone was doing it. It started in San Francisco but it was all the flower children. They talked about free love and drugs. They would do whatever they wanted. Free birds.
heycullinan 