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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/317fc84919c703fcad00e13092c2e044.pdf
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Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
Walter Urick Interview, May 26, 2016.
Total Time – (59:39)
Beginning
• Walter is the president of the Oceana Historical and Genealogical Society
• His family history goes back to Europe because he is a first generation American
o His father grew up in Belarus
o His mother grew up in Poland
Background on Walter’s Father – (1:08)
• His father migrated to America when he was 16 years old, following his cousin who had
migrated to Chicago
o His dad got a job in Chicago and went to school to learn English
o He then went through training to become a barber
• During the time of World War I, Walter’s father began migrating westward
o His father went to Spokane and ended up working at a valet shop in a hotel there
and then in Seattle
o President Franklin D. Roosevelt visited Seattle once, and his father was the
person who did President Roosevelt’s bowtie one day there
His Father and Mother’s Relationship – (4:56)
• Walter’s father went back to visit his parents in Europe for the first time in 1930
• On his second visit back in 1934, his father met his mother there
o On February 24, 1935 Walter’s parents got married
o After six weeks, Walter’s father returned to the U.S. but had difficulty getting his
wife there too because he wasn’t a citizen yet
o In 1938 Walter’s mother was able to come to the United States
• Walter’s father had moved back to Chicago and the immigrant community there
• His sister, Mary, was born in December of 1935
• Walter was born on June 3, 1939
1
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
Moving to Hart – (7:54)
• Walter’s father was in the dry cleaning business now
• His mother wanted to have a dairy farm and make a living that way instead of staying in
Chicago
• So his father took the bus to Wisconsin in 1939 and found a farm there
• His dad took a boat over to Ludington and got on a bus to return to Chicago
o The bus broke down in Hart and his dad started walking around there while
waiting
o He met a realtor who said that Hart needed a dry cleaning business
• Walter’s family moved to Hart in April of 1940
• His father started the cleaning business there in 1941, but had to shut it down with
World War II
o After the war, his father started Urick Dry Cleaners
Walter’s Siblings – (13:32)
• His sister, Mary, was born in 1935
• His sister, Lola, was born on December 16, 1940
• His brother, John, was born on March 7, 1944
• They all attended Hart Public Schools
• As a boy, Walter had some difficulty with languages and learning to read because his
mother spoke multiple languages
Working in Agriculture – (17:09)
• Walter’s family lived on a 27.5 acre farm, and they had about a half dozen dairy cows
• He had to do farm chores
• For a number of years, Walter, his sister Mary, and his mother would pick cherries by
hand at Marshall Spencer’s and the Jacobs’ cherry farms
• They started with strawberries in June, sweet cherries in late June, and then tart
cherries in the middle of July
• They also picked pickles during August at Norm Jensen’s farm
• Walter picked all of these until he was 16 years old, when he got his first formal job
working for Hart Cherry Packers and worked there for another 7 summers
o He made $1 an hour
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�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
•
•
o There were weeks when he worked 101 hours
He remembers how the cherries were processed at Hart Cherry Packers
Harold Morgan’s cherries were extremely large, and they got processed separately and
were sold for a higher price
Growing up in Hart – (24:39)
• Hart was a close-knit community while Walter grew up
• People did their shopping right in Hart at family-run businesses
• They were a faith-based community at that time
• Walter’s father was from a Russian Orthodox background in Belarus, who had many
fights with the Catholics there
• The English family in Hart invited Walter’s family to the Wesleyan church there
o He got involved in the church choir
• In high school, Walter was part of sports, drama, and the debate program
College – (32:06)
• Walter was offered scholarships for universities’ pre-law programs because of his
performance in the debate program
• After graduating high school in 1957, he went to Albion College
• He received the Sloan Scholarship for his last three years and graduated in 1961
o He had saved enough money to pay for law school at the University of Michigan
o He graduated from U of M in 1964
Beginning of Law Career – (34:18)
• In his last year of law school, Oceana County’s local circuit judge wanted to talk to
Walter before he accepted a position after graduation
• He had been offered a position at the largest law firm in Toledo and a few positions in
Grand Rapids
• Oceana’s judge warned him about possibly getting drafted into the army because of the
war in Vietnam
o If Walter took the job as the prosecutor for Oceana County, he could be exempt
from the draft
o So he accepted the job, but didn’t take the Bar Exam until September of 1964
3
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
Oceana County Judicial Setup – (39:10)
• On January 1, 1965 Walter became the Oceana County Prosecuting Attorney
• He did this for six years
• They had a justice of the peace system at that time
• The township board of supervisors ran the county financially
• Walter and the judge were the only two with college and professional training at the
time
Walter’s Wife – (43:18)
• Karen, who would become Walter’s wife, came to Hart in 1966 with a friend
• Karen became a junior high teacher there
• She joined the church choir that Walter was a part of
• They began dating and then were married August 26, 1967
o They had three children
o Now they have grandchildren as well
Legal Career Overview – (47:26)
• The first 6 years, Walter was the part-time prosecutor, and he started his law practice
• In 1976, he recruited young lawyers
o Walter hired Tony Monton and they eventually became partners
• In 1988, judgeship positions opened up
• Walter was elected and had an 18 year career as the family court judge for Oceana
County
• Overall, he had a 42-year career in law
The Brandel Case – (50:44)
• One of the big issues that Walter handled that had to do with farming and migrants was
the Brandel case
o Jerry Brandel had migrants working on his pickle farm
o Walter and Jerry succeeded in the case
4
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
Retirement – (53:20)
• Now that he is retired, Walter is active in his tennis club, his rotary club, his church,
Oceana Singers, and the Oceana Historical Society
Final Comments – (53:45)
• Karen and Walter built their home on Hart Lake in 1975
• Walter had formed a real estate company with a couple other men
o They had bought land to build apartments on, but then decided they wanted to
build their own homes there instead
• His sister, Mary, became a teacher and married Bruce Krueger
• His sister, Lola, also was a teacher, and she married Richard Bierschbach, who worked
for Steelcase
• His brother, John, is a veteran of the Vietnam War and now has a sawmill business, and
his wife is also a teacher
• Walter’s father died in 1985, and his mother died in 2006
5
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https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/0dde03689a0a68639360655de18fa0c1.pdf
335029e42ff8c07b350b75ec1e955769
PDF Text
Text
Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
Una comunidad que cultiva: El proyecto de la historia agrícola de Oceana
Entrevista de Walter Urick, May 26, 2016.
Tiempo total – (59:39)
(Traducido al espaňol por Kassie O’Brien, Juno 2016)
El comienzo
• Walter es presidente del Oceana Historical and Genealogical Society
• Su historia familiar tiene raíces en Europa porque Walter es estadounidense de primera
generación
o Su padre creció en Bielorrusia
o Su madre creció en Polonia
Los antecedentes del padre de Walter – (1:08)
• Su padre emigró a los Estados Unidos cuando tenía 16 años, siguiendo a su primo que
emigró a Chicago
o Su papá encontró trabajo en Chicago y asistió a la escuela para aprender inglés
o Después recibió entrenamiento para ser barbero
• Durante los años de la Primera Guerra Mundial, el padre de Walter empezó a emigrar
hacia el oeste
o Su papá fue a Spokane y encontró trabajo allí en el departamento de valet de un
hotel, y después trabajó en Seattle
o El presidente Franklin D. Roosevelt visitó Seattle, y un día el padre de Walter le
ayudó al presidente con su corbatín
La relación de su padre y madre – (4:56)
• Su padre regresó a Europa para visitar a sus padres por primera vez en 1930
• El padre de Walter conoció a la madre de Walter en 1934 durante su segunda visita allá
o Los padres de Walter se casaron el 24 de febrero de 1935
o Después de seis semanas, su padre regresó a los Estados Unidos pero tuvo
dificultades de traer a su esposa también porque él no era ciudadano
estadounidense
o En 1938 la madre de Walter llegó a los Estados Unidos
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
• El papá de Walter había regresado a Chicago y a la comunidad de inmigrantes allá
• Su hermana, Mary, nació en diciembre de 1935
• Walter nació el 3 de junio de 1939
Mudarse a Hart – (7:54)
• El padre de Walter estaba trabajando con la limpieza en seco
• Su mamá quería ganarse la vida por medio de una granja de productos lácteos
• Así que su padre viajó en autobús a Wisconsin en 1939 y encontró una granja allí
• Su papá fue en barco a Ludington para regresar a Chicago por bus
o El bus se estropeó en Hart y su papá deambuló por allí mientras esperaba
o Conoció a un agente inmobiliario que le dijo que se necesitaba un servicio de
limpieza en seco en Hart
• La familia de Walter se mudó a Hart en 1940
• En 1941 su padre inició su empresa de limpieza en seco en Hart, pero la cerró durante
los años de la Segunda Guerra Mundial
o Después de la guerra, su papá fundó Urick Dry Cleaners
Los hermanos de Walter – (13:32)
• Su hermana, Mary, nació en 1935
• Su hermana, Lola, nació el 16 de diciembre de 1940
• Su hermano, John, nació el 7 de marzo de 1944
• Todos asistieron a Hart Public Schools
• Como niño, Walter tuvo problemas con idiomas y el aprendizaje de la lectura porque su
mamá hablaba varias lenguas
Trabajar con la agricultura – (17:09)
• La familia de Walter vivía en una granja de 27,5 acres y poseyó media docena de vacas
lecheras
• Walter tenía que hacer tareas de la granja
• Por unos años, Walter, su hermana Mary, y su mamá recogían a mano las cerezas de los
cerezales de Marshall Spencer y el señor Jacobs
• Empezaban con las fresas en junio, las cerezas a finales de junio, y luego las cerezas
amargas a mediados de julio
• También recogían pepinillos de la granja de Norm Jensen en agosto
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
•
•
•
Walter recogía estos cultivos hasta los 16 años de edad cuando encontró su primer
empleo formal con Hart Cherry Packers, y trabajó allí durante 7 veranos
o Ganaba $1 por hora
o A veces trabajó por 101 horas en una semana
Recuerda el procesamiento de las cerezas en Hart Cherry Packers
Las cerezas de Harold Morgan eran muy grandes, y se las procesaba por separado y se
las vendían por precios más altos
Crecer en Hart – (24:39)
• Hart era una comunidad unida mientras crecía
• Se iba de compras en el centro de Hart en las pequeñas empresas familiares
• Entonces era una comunidad religiosa
• El padre de Walter era de la iglesia ortodoxa rusa en Bielorrusia, la cual luchó mucho
contra la iglesia católica allí
• La familia English de Hart invitó a la familia de Walter a visitar la iglesia wesleyana
o Walter participó en el coro de la iglesia
• Walter participó en los deportes, el drama, y el club de debate durante los años en la
secundaria
La Universidad – (32:06)
• Se le ofrecieron unas becas para programas de estudios previos de abogacía debido a su
desempeño en el club de debate
• Después de graduarse de la secundaria en 1957, asistió a Albion College
• Recibió la beca Sloan durante los últimos tres años y se graduó en 1961
o Tenía suficiente dinero para pagar sus estudios de derecho en la Universidad de
Michigan
o Se graduó de la Universidad de Michigan en 1964
El comienzo de su carrera de derecho – (34:18)
• Durante el último año de sus estudios de derecho, el juez de circuito del condado de
Oceana quería hablar con Walter antes de que aceptara empleo después de la
graduación
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
•
El bufete de abogados más grande de Toledo le ofreció un puesto y Walter también
recibió ofertas de empleo en Grand Rapids
• El juez de Oceana le avisó sobre la posibilidad de ser reclutado por el ejército debido a la
guerra en Vietnam
o Era posible evitar el reclutamiento si Walter aceptó el puesto de ser el fiscal del
condado de Oceana
o Así que aceptó el puesto pero realizó el examen de acceso a la abogacía en
septiembre de 1964
El sistema legal del condado de Oceana – (39:10)
• Walter llegó a ser el fiscal del condado de Oceana el primer día de enero de 1965
• Trabajó como fiscal por seis años
• Por entonces había jueces de paz
• La junta de supervisores del municipio se encargó de las finanzas del condado
• Las únicas personas con educación universitaria y formación profesional en el pueblo
eran Walter y el juez
La esposa de Walter – (43:18)
• Karen, quien luego se convertiría en la esposa de Walter, vino a Hart con una amiga en
1966
• Karen llegó a ser maestra de la secundaria allí
• Se unió al coro de la iglesia en que participó Walter
• Empezó a salir con Walter y luego se casaron el 26 de agosto de 1967
o Tuvieron tres hijos
o Ahora tienen nietos también
Resumen de la carrera judicial – (47:26)
• Durante los primeros 6 años, Walter era el fiscal y abrió su propio bufete de abogados
• En 1976, contrató abogados jóvenes
o Walter contrató Tony Monton y con el tiempo se convirtieron en socios
• En 1988, estuvieron disponibles unos puestos de magistratura
• Walter fue elegido y pasó 18 años trabajando como el juez de la Corte de Familia en el
condado de Oceana
• En resumen, trabajó en el campo de derecho por 42 años
�Growing Community: Oceana’s Agricultural History Project
A project supported by a National Endowment for the Humanities Common Heritage Grant
Project Director: Melanie Shell-Weiss, GVSU Liberal Studies Department
El caso Brandel – (50:44)
• Uno de los temas importantes de que Walter se encargó fue el caso Brandel que tenía
que ver con la agricultura y los trabajadores migrantes
o Jerry Brandel empleaban a migrantes para que trabajaran en su cultivo de
pepinillos
o Walter y Jerry ganaron el caso
La jubilación – (53:20)
• Ya que se jubiló, Walter participa en su club de tenis, su club rotario, su iglesia, Oceana
Singers, y el Oceana Historical Society
Comentarios finales – (53:45)
• Karen y Walter construyeron su casa al lado de Hart Lake en 1975
• Walter había establecido una compañía inmobiliaria con dos otros hombres
o Compraron tierras para construir apartamentos, pero después decidieron que
querían construir sus propias casas allí
• Su hermana, Mary, llegó a ser maestra y se casó con Bruce Kruege
• Su hermana, Lola, también llegó a ser maestra y se casó con Richard Bierschbach, quien
trabaja para Steelcase
• Su hermano, John, es veterano de la Guerra de Vietnam y ahora tiene un negocio de
aserraderos, y su esposa también es maestra
• El padre de Walter se murió en 1985, y la madre de Walter se murió en 2006
�
https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e9ac742fa723a7601a1264bc155af79a.mp3
731deba272484b80401a6c7bec4f0215
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Oceana County Migrant Labor History Collection
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Shell-Weiss, Melanie
Description
An account of the resource
Collection contains images and documents digitized and collected through the project "Growing Community: A Century of Migration in Oceana County." This project was a collaboration between El Centro Hispano de Oceana, the Oceana County Historical and Genealogical Society, and Grand Valley State University funded by a Common Heritage grant from the United States National Endowment for the Humanities. The materials in this collection document the history of communities in Hart, Shelby, and Walkerville and explore themes of migration, labor, religion, family, belonging, national and cultural identities, regional, national, and international connections, and citizenship.
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Oceana County (Mich.)
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Grand Valley State University. Kutsche Office of Local History
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
El Centro Hispano de Oceana; Oceana County Historical and Genealogical Society
Relation
A related resource
Growing Community (NEH Common Heritage project)
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DC-06
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
application/pdf
image/jpeg
audio/mp3
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Image
Sound recording
Language
A language of the resource
eng
spa
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oceana County (Mich.)
Hart (Mich.)
Shelby (Mich.)
Farms
Farmers
Migrant agricultural laborers
Hispanic Americans
Account books
Diaries
Oral history
Oral History
A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge.
Título
Spanish language Title entry
Urick, Walter (entrevista de audio y resumen)
Descripción
Spanish language Description entry
Entrevista autograbada por Walter Urick, Mayo 26, 2016. Idioma en Inglés. Walter nació el 3 de junio de 1939. Es estadounidense de primera generación, porque su padre creció en Bielorrusia y su madre creció en Polonia. Walter tiene dos hermanas, Mary y Lola, y un hermano, John. Su familia se mudó a Hart en 1940, y después de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, su papá fundó Urick Dry Cleaners en Hart. Por unos años, Walter recogía fresas, cerezas, y pepinillos en granjas del área. Cuando tenía 16 años, encontró su primer empleo formal con Hart Cherry Packers. Durante los años en la secundaria, Walter participó en los deportes, el drama, y el club de debate, y se graduó en 1957. Después asistió a Albion College y luego estudió derecho en la Universidad de Michigan, y se graduó en 1964. Walter llegó a ser el fiscal del condado de Oceana el 1 de enero de 1965, y lo hizo por seis años. Conoció a su esposa, Karen, y se casaron el 26 de agosto de 1967. Tienen tres hijos. Durante ese tiempo, él estaba contratando abogados jóvenes, y con el tiempo Walter y Tony Monton se convirtieron en socios. Después Walter pasó 18 años trabajando como el juez de la Corte de Familia en el condado de Oceana. En resumen, trabajó en el campo de derecho por 42 años. Ya que se jubiló, Walter participa en su club de tenis, su club rotario, su iglesia, el Oceana Singers, y es presidente del Oceana Historical Society.
Sujetos
Spanish language Subject terms
Oceana Historical Society
Primera generación
Bielorrusia
Chicago
Presidente Roosevelt
Guerra Mundial
Hart
Granja de productos lácteos
Limpieza en seco
Cerezas
Pepinillos
Hart Cherry Packers
Iglesia
Debate
Estudios de derecho
Vietnam
Fiscal
Juez de la corte de familia
Derecho
Compañía inmobiliaria
Maestra
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
DC-06_Urick_Walter
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Urick, Walter
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
2016-05-26
Title
A name given to the resource
Urick, Walter (audio interview and summary)
Description
An account of the resource
Self-recorded interview by Walter Urick, May 26, 2016. English language recording. Summary in English and Spanish. Walter was born on June 3, 1939. He is a first generation American, as his father grew up in Belarus and his mother in Poland. Walter has two sisters, Mary and Lola, and one brother, John. His family moved to Hart in 1940, and after World War II his father started Urick Dry Cleaners in Hart. For a number of years, Walter picked strawberries, cherries, and pickles at farms in the area. When he was 16 years old, he got his first formal job working for Hart Cherry Packers. In high school, Walter was involved in sports, drama, and the debate program, and he graduated in 1957. He went on to Albion College and then to law school at the University of Michigan, graduating in 1964. On January 1, 1965 Walter became the Oceana County Prosecuting Attorney and held that role for six years. He met his wife, Karen, and they were married on August 26, 1967. They have had three children together. During that time, Walter was recruiting young lawyers and eventually became partners with Tony Monton. He then was the family court judge for Oceana County for 18 years. Overall, Walter had a 42-year career practicing law. Now that he is retired, he is active in his tennis club, rotary club, church, the Oceana Singers, and is president of the Oceana Historical Society.
Contributor
An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource
Shell-Weiss, Melanie (director)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Oceana Historical Society
First generation
Belarus
Chicago
President Roosevelt
World War
Hart
Dairy farm
Dry cleaning
Cherries
Pickles
Hart Cherry Packers
Church
Debate
Law school
Vietnam
Prosecutor
Family court judge
Law
Real estate
Teacher
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Growing Community (NEH Common Heritage)
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
<a href="http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/?language=en">In Copyright</a>
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Sound
Text
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
audio/mp3
application/pdf
Language
A language of the resource
eng
spa