In late April 2024, a classic Airstream trailer rolled into uptown Charlotte and parked outside of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library's uptown ImaginOn branch.
There it sat for six weeks, through early June, as dozens of people stepped into the converted trailer, all in pairs. They sat across from each other and recorded 40-minute interviews covering any subject they felt like discussing.
Often, those StoryCorps Charlotte interviews got deep. Friends shared stories they had never disclosed. Parents and siblings exchanged memories in ways they never had before. Longtime residents observed changes in their communities and mused about the future of their neighborhoods.
They were all collected, thousands of minutes of voices, hundreds of stories. I had the pleasure of editing many of these interviews into four-minute audio pieces that were broadcast on WFAE throughout the summer and fall. Many times I found myself laughing, sighing, and crying along with the interviews at my desk.
As we wrap up 2024, I wanted to listen back to some of the interviews that seemed to jump through the headphones — or computer speakers, as it were. Here are five:
Two Charlotte mothers, bonded by sons' deaths, become activists
This interview was not only the first StoryCorps Charlotte conversation broadcast on WFAE, it was the very first conversation recorded on the Charlotte mobile tour on April 25, 2024.
Two mothers who lost their sons to gun violence sat down to discuss the challenges they face as community activists.
One gave the other a piece of advice that I still think about today: "When I begin to worry more about you than you're worrying about yourself, I have to move on."
How a Charlotte church program saved a man's health — and life
A strong church community can save a person's spirit, but it can also save a person's physical health and well-being.
In this conversation, Arthur "AJ" Johns speaks with his friend, Bishop Wade Ferguson, about joining a church program designed to help African Americans — particularly African American men — develop healthy diet and exercise habits.
The two men are clearly at ease with each other. They laugh and joke around, all while telling a serious story of breaking through stigma and changing someone's life for the better.
A son talks mental illness, coming out with his Caribbean mother
Theophilus Timothy was prepared when he sat down with his mother inside the recording booth. He wanted to ask her in-depth questions about what it was like to raise a son with mental illness who later came out gay.
In the resulting conversation, his mother shared stories about the family that Theo had never heard, showing how a parent's love can transcend cultural stigma.
How two Charlotteans became unlikely friends and bandmates
During the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot people picked up new instruments and took online lessons while they were stuck isolating at home.
That's how Rachel Orn picked up the guitar, which led her to Caryn Little through a program that teaches women and girls how to play in rock bands together.
The two shared a sweet conversation about the insecurities and rewards that come with learning how to play a new instrument in adulthood — and how it helped them find new identities and forge a lasting friendship.
Two Charlotte moms open up on maternal health, motherhood
Motherhood is tough. It's not for the faint of heart.
With four kids each, Danyae Thomes and Arionne Slayton know that better than most. They also know firsthand how a premature or prolonged birth can seriously traumatize a new mother.
The two moms exchanged their stories in this interview, which — despite its serious subject matter — was filled with laughter and sisterly love. Yes, motherhood can be really difficult, but it helps when you have a great friend to lean on.
