Community Voices: Postville Project Oral Histories

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Sharon Drahn

  Sharon Drahn

  Sharon Drahn is the newspaper editor of the Postville Herald, and has worked there for over 27 years. She is an active member of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and volunteers at the Good Samaritan Center. Sharon moved to Monona a small town near Postville in 1969, leaving for a while in the 1980s for school and to teach in Iowa City, but shortly returned. As editor of the newspaper, Sharon has an insight into the events and happenings of the town. In the interview Sharon describes what it means to work for the newspaper in a small town from working on the planning committee of the Taste of Postville celebration for many years to handling Letters to the Editor and covering major events like the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid while national and local news sources also looked for the scoop. Sharon describes how much of the life of the town revolves around the school in Postville where athletics, cultural celebrations, and cooperation and change bridge the demographic and cultural differences of Postville’s residents.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Pedro Arturo Lopez Vega

  Pedro Arturo Lopez Vega

  Pedro Lopez grew up in Postville and attended the Postville Schools. In this interview he shares his experience of learning from the various cultures that make up the Postville community, making friends and having fun in small town, completing elementary and high school in Postville, and being a member of the Catholic Church. Pedro also explores what it was like to transition to college as a first generation student at Luther College in nearby Decorah, Iowa. Pedro recounts his experiences during the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid in which his mother was arrested, jailed, and deported to Mexico. At age 13, his life changed forever. Pedro has spoken about his experience in many different venues and participated in marches, protests, and rallies about the raid and national immigration reform.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Chad Wahls

  Chad Wahls

  Chad Wahls came to Postville in 2001 and worked at the Postville schools for 15 years, serving as a principal for nine of those years. During his time working for the school in Postville Chad also coached many sports from girls basketball to boys football, baseball, and basketball. During his first year as Principal, the raid threw the town and the school into an unprecedented situation. Chad explains how the community and the school regrouped in the aftermath of the raid. Schools are often the foundation of small communities and that becomes clear in this interview as Chad describes how the school tried to meet the needs of all its students before and after the raid.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Steve Brackett

  Steve Brackett

  Stephen Brackett came to Postville in 2005 to serve as the Pastor at St. Paul Lutheran Church. In the interview Pastor Brackett discusses his experiences living and working in Postville as the community adapted to demographic changes and dealt with the aftermath of the May 2008 ICE immigration raid at Agriprocessors. In Postville, churches are centers for social and spiritual interaction, so when the raid threw the town into turmoil, community and church leaders led the way in relief efforts. Pastor Brackett recounts how many community members, himself included, responded to the immigration raid by marching in Postville as well as Waterloo. Also discussed in the interview are the challenges and joys of serving a rural congregation, the evolution of the food pantry in town, and more recent developments in Postville, namely the influx of Somali refugees.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Gary Catterson

  Gary Catterson

  After graduating from Kent State University in 1973, Gary Catterson moved to Dallas and became a police officer. Later he moved his family to Ohio, going in to business with his brother in law. In 1988 he felt called to Seminary and after graduating in 1991, began his ministry in Round Lake, Minnesota. Pastor Catterson moved to Postville in 1995 and became the pastor of the Community Presbyterian Church. Over the years, Pastor Catterson has served as a school board member, with the Food Pantry, on the Recovery Group after the 2008 ICE raid, and on the National Response Team of the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. In the interview, Pastor Catterson discusses the changes over time in Postville, what it is like working in small but diverse community, and the aftermath of the ICE raid.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Judy Egeland

  Judy Egeland

  Judy Egeland and her family moved to Postville in 1970 and she has witnessed much of the change that has occurred in rural Postville over the last nearly 50 years. Judy has had many careers including working as a nurse and LPN, drywaller, painter and wallpapering, and had a gardening business. Judy is a master gardener and was central to bringing a community garden to Postville through her role at the time of this interview as the Vice President of the Diversity Council. Judy also helped with the school garden that was able to bring in FoodCorps volunteers. The community garden serves to bring together people from all walks of life and cultures. As Judy notes in the interview, “Everybody speaks the same language when you are in the garden.”

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Salat Elmi

  Salat Elmi

  Salat Elmi was born in Somalia and spent years in a refugee camp in Kenya after a civil war broke out in Somalia. In 2008, Salat moved to Seattle and eventually settled in Postville in 2010. At the time of the interview Salat worked as the Adult Literacy Liaison for the Postville School providing services and resources to families of diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. In the interview Salat discusses his involvement with the Diversity Council, events that occurred in Postville or neighboring towns, and his experience working and living in Postville. Although Salat was not living in Postville at the time of the raid, he was able to comment on some of the ramifications of the 2008 ICE raid. The interview closes with Salat’s hopes for the future of Postville and the Somali community in Postville as well as some of the positive changes he has seen over the years. Salat also answers many questions that people may have about Somali culture, because he believes that spreading knowledge can help combat false stereotypes.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Aaron Goldsmith

  Aaron Goldsmith

  Aaron Goldsmith moved his family and his business, Transfer Master Products, Inc., to Postville in 1997. He enjoyed the safety and pace of rural America. In the interview Goldsmith discusses the way Postville has changed over time including the expansion of the kosher meatpacking plant, Agriprocessors, and the multiethnic population of Postville. Goldsmith shares his experience working on the city council, his thoughts on the media’s portrayal of Postville, and some insights into the growth of the Jewish community in Postville. The interview also includes his experience around the time of the raid, how Postville has rebuilt since then, and his work as coauthor of the book Postville U.S.A: Surviving Diversity in Small-Town America alongside Mark Gray and Michelle Devlin.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Julie Heitland

  Julie Heitland

  Julie Heitland moved to Postville in 1994 after completing her master’s degree at the University of Northern Iowa. At the time of the interview she worked as the librarian at the Postville School and recounts some of the adaptations the library, school, and community underwent as Postville saw demographic changes throughout the 1990s and 2000s. As a member of St. Bridget’s Catholic Church, Julie is deeply involved in the annual Holy Walk, an event open to the public that occurs in December. In the interview, Julie discusses her role in planning the Holy Walk, teaching confirmation, and participating in religious traditions that were relatively new to Postville like the Posada. Julie was present in the school the day of the raid and in the aftermath at St. Bridget’s.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Barbara Herzmann

  Barbara Herzmann

  Barbara Herzmann and her husband bought a farm near Postville in 1972, and she has lived there ever since. She worked at the Postville elementary school for 27 years before retiring in 2012. In the interview, Barbara discusses the changes in Postville and especially within the school as students from Russia, Ukraine, Mexico, Guatemala, and many other countries came to rural Iowa. The day of the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid, Barbara was teaching third grade and shares emails and recollections of the events that occurred over the next couple days. She also offers insight into how she came to understand the sacrifices and struggles of undocumented immigrants. Before the raid, Barbara, along with some other teachers, were able to take a tour of Agriprocessors and she shared that experience in the interview as well. Finally, Barbara closes the interview with her hopes for the future of Postville.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Mary McCauley

  Mary McCauley

  Mary McCauley has served as a Sister of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary since 1956 and became the pastoral administer at St. Bridget’s Catholic Church in Postville in 2003. In the interview, Mary recalls her experiences around the time of the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid and the interfaith response to the devastation experienced by the community. St. Bridget’s became a place of refuge for some time after the raid and provided support and resources to the Postville community. In the aftermath of the raid, St. Bridget’s hosted Nobel Peace Prize laureate Rigoberta Menchú, which Mary remembers as a humbling and inspiring event. Mary also discusses her experience at the marches and protests after the raid as well as the complications while talking to the press.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Dona Peck

  Dona Peck

  Dona Peck was born and raised in Postville, Iowa. She experienced life in a small town and has observed all the changes that have come to Postville through the years. Dona grew up attending the Presbyterian Church in Postville and has spent a lot of her retirement participating in church events and volunteering through Presbyterian Disaster Assistance. Dona also volunteers at the local Food Pantry. Like many in the community, after the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid on Agriprocessors, Dona spent time helping out at the Presbyterian Church. In the interview, Dona recounts her experience of witnessing the trauma of the event and the fear that remained in the community during the following days. In the interview, Dona also comments on the changes that occurred in Postville after the raid and the media’s portrayal of Postville.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Harold Peck

  Harold Peck

  Harold Peck grew up in Frankville, Iowa and moved to Postville as a young boy. As an adult, Harold worked at the Hy-Grade meat processing plant as a salesman and deliveryman before it was shut down and reopened as the kosher meat processing plant Agriprocessors. In the interview, Harold recounts the changes he has seen in Postville over the years including the establishment of the Jewish Synagogue and the Taste of Postville event that celebrated the various cultures in Postville. Harold has been very active in the Presbyterian Church and shares his experience of volunteering there after the May 12th, 2008 ICE raid on Agriprocessors. Harold is also involved in prison ministry, and in 2008 he worked with some of the immigrants who were arrested during the raid and sent to nearby county jails.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Leigh Rekow

  Leigh Rekow

  Leigh Rekow has spent his whole life in the Postville area, attending Postville High School and making a career as a farmer between Postville and Luana. After his children took over the farm, Leigh spent time in the Peace Corps and traveling overseas using his agricultural experiences to help communities in Africa and Russia. Leigh has had a long political career. He spent one term as a state representative, fourteen years as a city council member, and at the time of the interview was serving as Mayor of Postville. In the interview, Leigh discusses his experiences with the above mentioned positions as well as the aftermath of the May12th, 2008 ICE raid, how the media has portrayed Postville, and his hopes for the future and the new owners of the processing plant Agristar.

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Consuelo Vega Nava

  Consuelo Vega Nava

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  Community Voices: The Postville Oral History Project Recording with Pat Zidlicky

  Pat Zidlicky

  Pat Zidlicky and her husband moved to Postville in 1994, and shortly after Pat became involved in the Taste of Postville Celebration and the Diversity Council. Pat helped with the Taste of Postville from 1998 to 2006 and fondly remembers the good times as well as the complications of planning an elaborate event and meeting all the food safety regulations. At the time of the interview, Pat Zidlicky was the president of the Diversity Council, a group that hosted educational and community programs. Pat recalled many potlucks, movie showings, and celebrations held by the Diversity Council that were well attended by the Community. Pat discusses her involvement in ESOL classes, English Speakers of Other Languages, and the relationships that formed as she tried to learn a little Spanish while other residents tried to learn English. At the time of the raid, Pat spent time at the Catholic Church and comments on how the community came out to support its residents in that time of turmoil.