Heath, Mary, 1953-

Dass, Sai
Ingram, Alyssa

Charlotte, North Carolina

J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections and University Archives, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

2015-10-17

1 audio file (22:34) : digital, MP3

Audio

spoken word

eng

Mary Heath was a 62-year-old woman at the time of interview, which took place in the Fifteenth Street Church of God, Charlotte, North Carolina. She was born in Charlotte in 1953. She was educated at J. H. Gunn Elementary School, Albemarle Road Junior High School, Independence High School, and Central Piedmont Community College. She was employed as head of housekeeping at the Federal Reserve Bank and on the housekeeping staff at Johnson and Wales University in Charlotte.

Mary Heath, a Charlotte native, describes her life and experiences as a longtime resident of Optimist Park. Mrs. Heath discusses growing up in the Hickory Grove area of Charlotte and how desegregation impacted her education. She describes how she came to live in Optimist Park and how her children"s involvement in the Boy Scouts of America and Habitat for Humanity impacted that decision. She recalls the camaraderie that resulted from building her own and others" Habitat houses, and discusses her community involvement as secretary for the Optimist Park Community Association and as a member of the Fifteenth Street Church of God. Mrs. Heath reflects on significant changes within her community including rapid growth, increased diversity, and a reduction in drug and alcohol use. While she sees these changes as beneficial to the neighborhood, she is also cautious about the future of the community and how it will be impacted by pressures of new development and domination by the adjacent North Davidson arts district .

MP3 access copy created on ingest from WAV preservation master. Interview originally recorded on Zoom H5 digital recorder with XY modular mic.

Heath, Mary, 1953-

Habitat for Humanity, inc.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Optimist Park Community Association (Charlotte, N.C.)
Boy Scouts of America

Cleaning personnel
Gentrification
African American families
African American neighborhoods
Urban poor--Social conditions
School integration
Cities and towns--Growth
Social mobility

North Carolina--Charlotte
North Carolina--Charlotte--Optimist Park

Interviews
Oral histories

1950-2020

UNC Charlotte Honors College and Charlotte Action Research Project interviews on Charlotte neighborhoods

Small but significant : The Optimist Park community

Henry Heath oral history interview, October 17, 2015, J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections and University Archives, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

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audio/mpeg

CH-HE0009

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13093/uncc:1429