Not All of Them

This mysterious woman was motherly toward 15 year-old Uncle Raymond

When discussing racism, it is important to recall that no matter what the time period, there were good people of every race, religion, and color, quietly going about their lives, completely ignored by history.

When we arrived at this photo, I teasingly asked Uncle if this was another of his girlfriends. “Oh no, not her!” Uncle then explained that she was the wife of the farm owner for whom he worked when he first arrived in Mt. Eden and that she was “very good, like a mother to us.”

I asked Uncle her name, which he told me. Her surname was unusually, Uncle even spelled it for me. I was certain I would remember it but I promptly forgot. Despite the generous assistance of Diane Curry, Curator of the Hayward Area Historical Society, I have not been able to re-learn her identity.