Interview with Brenda Sue Bell, February 1, 1991

Partial Transcript: So um, why don't we just start by you giving your name a--your full name and when and where you were born.

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about her life prior to college, her parents' background, and her awareness of the conditions and people in eastern Kentucky.

Keywords: Awareness; Church involvement; Eastern Kentucky; Family background

Subjects: Transylvania University

Partial Transcript: It was at um, Transylvania that you first became interested in being--

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about her initial involvement with the Appalachian Volunteers while she was still in college, mentioning some of the weekend projects she participated in. She also talks about the motivations behind her working with the Appalachian Volunteers.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Influences; Involvement; Motivations; Social awareness; Weekend projects

Subjects: Transylvania University

Partial Transcript: You were going to tell me what you were doing on some of those weekends.

Segment Synopsis: Bell tries to recall details about weekend projects, remembering some people she worked with. She also talks about looking at her yearbook that has pictures of her and others who worked with the Appalachian Volunteers.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs)

Partial Transcript: So, how long did you do the weekend things before you started um...

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about a meeting that she attended in Berea, Kentucky. She goes on to discuss the events leading up to her first summer volunteering with the Appalachian Volunteers, mentioning that she doesn't remember a lot about the orientation.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Atmosphere; Organizing meeting; Orientation; Summer volunteers

Subjects: Berea (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: So, so where did they send you then?

Segment Synopsis: Bell discusses the insider-outsider dynamic between the summer volunteers, mentioning that through experience she realized her identity as a southerner. She talks about her living conditions, mentioning the family she lived with and that it was difficult to adjust to her new surroundings. Bell also mentions some of the work the volunteers did at a one room school in the area. She also talks about the way she dressed as a volunteer.

Keywords: Attire; Cross cultural experiences; Living conditions; One room schools; Personalities; Quicksand Creek; School renovation; Southern identity; Sylvie Thomas

Subjects: Knott County (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: Want to talk about, um, that, that, very issue of, of uh, the--most of the, the leaders being field-men and most--you know more volunteers being women.

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about the relationship between female and male Appalachian Volunteers, mentioning that most of the volunteers were women and the field-men (AV staff) were men. She also talks about the relations between female AVs and men in the community.

Keywords: AV field-men; Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Lois Combs Weinberg; Relations; Social aspects; Treatment of women; Women volunteers

Subjects: Women

Partial Transcript: So how would you say that that first summer, um, changed you?

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about her experiences the first summer as a summer Appalachian Volunteer impacted her life. She tells a story about staying the night with a family (The Terrys) that lived on Quicksand Creek, mentioning that their living conditions were very different than what she had previously experienced. She goes on to talk about her interactions with The Terry family. She mentions going back to Knott County, Kentucky after decades away from the area.

Keywords: "Separateness"; "The Terrys"; Attitudes; Changes; Empowerment; Interactions with locals; Lula Drewes; Perceptions; Quicksand Creek

Subjects: Knott County (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: Did you, um, pretty much know the whole year long that you were going to do it the following summer too?

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about how her involvement in the Appalachian Volunteers caused tension between her and her family in Harlan County, Kentucky.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Extended family; Tension

Subjects: Harlan County (Ky.)

Partial Transcript: So where did you live that summer?

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about how living in Cinderella in Mingo County, West Virginia was different from living on Quick Sand Creek in Knott County, Kentucky.

Keywords: Coal camps; Living conditions; Relations with community

Subjects: Mingo County (W. Va.); Williamson (W. Va.)

Partial Transcript: Here's an interesting picture from the first summer, I guess.

Segment Synopsis: Conversation in which Bell is describing various photographs and articles relating to her Appalachian Volunteer experiences to the interviewer Margaret Brown. She talks about a child who ate with her hands instead of using silverware and the company store in Cinderella, WV.

Keywords: Cinderella (W. Va.); Coal camps; Company stores; Houses; Storytelling

Partial Transcript: The article about you being anti-war demonstrator in, um, Nashville makes me think well how, how did these experiences work in your life then?

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about her decision to join the Peace Corps. She talks about deciding not to go to graduate school or pursue a Appalachian Volunteer staff position. She goes on to talk about leaving the Peace Corps early.

Keywords: Experiences; Graduate school; Leaving early; West Africa

Subjects: Peace Corps (U.S.)--Senegal

Partial Transcript: I came back from the Peace Corps. I, uh, I lived in Nashville...

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about different employment opportunities she had after returning from the Peace Corps, including working at Motive Magazine. She also mentions her involvement in the women's movement. She goes on to talk about how her experiences with the Appalachian Volunteers have influenced different aspects of her life.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Attitudes; Easy going; Experiences; Influence; Motive Magazine; Perceptions

Subjects: Nashville (Tenn.)

Partial Transcript: If you--I mean I'm sure that you've thought about this a little bit over the years...

Segment Synopsis: Bell reflects upon the Appalachian Volunteers, talking about the use of college students, need for better planning, and their legacy.

Keywords: Appalachian Volunteers (AVs); Benefits; Legacies; Use of college students

Partial Transcript: So we have to talk about this last theme that's worked through your life--

Segment Synopsis: Bell talks about raising her family in rural Tennessee.

Keywords: Changes; Countryside; Home improvements; Living conditions; Living situations

Subjects: Rural conditions