Interviewer: Corazon Sandoval Foley Interviewee: Jeanette M. Rishell FANHS-NoVA Oral History Interview Responses for Fairfax County Asian American History Project: Responses dated March 31, 2008

Life in Fairfax County, Virginia:

1. What is your name and where do you live? Jeanette Mary Rishell. I now reside in Manassas Park. We are previous residents of Fairfax County and lived in Burke until December of 1994.

2. When did you move to Fairfax County? October 1978

3. Why did you move to Fairfax County? We moved to Fairfax County for employment opportunities. There were cut backs in the transportation budget in PA, and we needed to relocate for work. My husband, Ed, is an engineer.

4. What kind of support did you receive when you moved to Fairfax County? Did you feel welcomed by your neighbors? Yes, we moved into a diverse subdivision that became even more diverse as time went on. We always felt that our family was very welcome. Did you experience any unwelcome treatment? None.

5. Do you think more should be done for new residents to be part of the community in Fairfax County? Everyone has a busy lifestyle today. But for those who have the time to get involved in out-of-the-home activities, perhaps making everyone aware of the many groups and associations that are available for our participation. I was personally unaware of the Asian American Association until just last year. Perhaps this is already being done, but information could be provided on cable TV, pamphlets available at the public library or perhaps short articles in the small neighborhood newspapers that are often picked up in grocery stores. Were you ever involved in any civil rights actions in Fairfax County? None

6. What is your fondest memory of your life in Fairfax County? Probably being a Brownie Scout leader. Both of our daughters attended Cherry Run Elementary School and were in scouting. I was a co-leader for two years in a row. It was great!

7. What is life today in Fairfax County compared to when you first arrived? What do you think are the major changes that you experienced while living in Fairfax County? I believe the major changes in Fairfax County relate to growth and diversity. We watched subdivision after subdivision spring up around us. Although it made traffic worse, it brought diverse cultures to the area, and I found that to be wonderful. The same is happening in the Prince William/Manassas/Manassas Park area right now, and we are in a period of adjustment.

8. How have changes in Fairfax County affected your life? The cost of housing was going up in Fairfax County and this prompted us to move just across the county line into Manassas Park. My husband was tired of carpooling, and he looked forward to taking the VRE to work. Our home is just down the road from the Manassas Park VRE station.

9. What do you think have been your successes in your life in Fairfax County? My husband and I would both agree that our lives revolved around our two daughters and that Fairfax County gave them a great start with a wonderful education.

10. Were you employed while you lived in Fairfax County? Did you work in Fairfax County? When we initially moved from PA to Fairfax County, I had a full time job on the Leesburg Pike. When the children were in school, I had both a part time job and eventually a full time job not far from my home. That made it easier to be available to the children when they needed me.

11. How did you enjoy working as a Fairfax County resident? What was the hardest thing about your job? What was most enjoyable about your job? What were major issues or crises that you faced and how did you resolve them? Did your work affect developments in Fairfax County? I don’t feel there were any difficulties regarding my actual work in Fairfax County. When I was employed on the Leesburg Pike, the commute was difficult and the length of time in traffic could vary from day to day. I could not take a bus nor was I able to find a car pool. Mass transit would have certainly made the trip easier but it was not available.

Asian American (e.g., Filipino) Community in Fairfax County:

12. How important was the Asian American (e.g., Filipino) community in helping you get established in Fairfax County? How important was the Filipino American community in your current life? The hectic nature of most people’s life here in the northern VA area make it difficult to maintain contacts in one’s ethnic community, unless one lives in an area where that community is concentrated. I drifted away from the Filipino American community due to having just such a hectic schedule and also because when we lived in PA there was no Filipino American community in the area where we resided. When I was growing up in Miami Florida, we were active in the Filipino American community and belonged to the Manila Club in the 50’s and 60’s. We maintained close ties to other Filipino families and were regularly with our extended family. When we moved to PA and stayed for longer periods of time in the north, there were no Filipino Americans in that small PA town. When we heard that there was a Guamanian woman living in town, we did not rest until we made contact with that family, and then maintained a close friendship with her and her family. So my husband and I throughout our early married life (because of the lack of diversity where we lived) did not have opportunities to become active within the Filipino American community. When we visited with family in Miami, we immediately were surrounded by the Filipino American community, and the warmth of our contacts (no matter how brief) made it feel as though we had never left the city. When we moved to Fairfax County, I did not know how to begin to reestablish ties within my own cultural community. This makes it very difficult for me to know the answers to question

13. How would you describe the Asian American community in Fairfax County? How have Asian Americans (e.g., Filipino) affected life in Fairfax County? What have been the most important contributions of Asian Americans to Fairfax County?

14. Does your family celebrate Asian (e.g., Filipino) holidays? What other Asian American (e.g., Filipino) traditions are observed by your family? My uncle (until his death) would cook tremendous varieties of Filipino dishes and they were wonderful. I still cook adobo despite how our hectic lives have become. I will always remember the gatherings we hosted where many people came, my uncle prepared wonderful meals, and music was central to fun and festivities. These gatherings provided so much togetherness and were definitely a sustaining force in our lives.

Your Family Life:

15. Tell me about your family in Fairfax County. When and where did you meet your spouse? How many children and grandchildren do you have -- and how many of them are in Fairfax County? My husband and I met in a small town in PA. Our mothers were friends first and then my husband and I became acquainted. We were married in December of 1969. We have two daughters, one residing in NC and the other here in the Prince William area. We have three granddaughters, two in NC and one residing locally.

16. When you first moved to Fairfax County, how did it compare to your former place of residence? We moved to Burke in Fairfax County in October of 1979. It definitely had far more opportunities than the area in PA where we came from. It was a faster lifestyle, and the first thing we noticed was the time it took to get to work and get home again.

17. When and where were you born? Who were your parents and what did they do? I was born in Newark, NJ in August of 1949. My mother’s name was also Jeanette (Jeanette Caroline Reyes) and my father’s name was Joseph (Joseph Alexander Velarico Reyes). My father and his brothers came to the United States shortly before WWI. They had joined the US Navy to come to the US and arrived at the port of San Francisco. They came eastward to NY City and established themselves there in the 1920’s. My mother was born in PA in 1902, and went to NY City around 1920. She became a musician, singer and dancer (not her day job), and she toured in Vaudeville in the late 1920’s. Mother grew very close to the Filipino American community through music and the performing arts. She met my dad and they married in 1937. They lived in NY and NJ until his death. I was born about 3 months after he died. When I was one year old the family moved away from NJ. My mother purchased her former school teachers house in her home town in PA. Part of the year was spent there in PA and part in Miami FL. My formative years were in an extended family situation. Though my dad had passed away, other members of our extended family were with my mom and I at different times; my two uncles, my Godfather, my grandmother and a step sister. There was such tremendous warmth and supportiveness, especially for me because I was the youngest member of the family, and I was very protected. When my parents lived in the NY area in the 1930’s and 1940’s, my mom worked for various companies including Western Electric, and was a professional musician in her spare time and on weekends. My dad was first Navy and then primarily Merchant Marine. He also was a professional musician.

18. What was life like in your community when you were growing up? I will always remember the many Filipino American gatherings that I attended growing up, and the warmth and acceptance that I felt. The food, music and dancing will stay with me always.

19. What did you do before leaving for the US -- and eventually to Fairfax County? Does not apply.

20. For those born outside the US, what are some of your best memories of life in the land of your birth (e.g., the Philippines) -- and how did those memories help you in your life in Fairfax County? Does not apply

Your Legacy:

21. How would you like to be remembered? I would like to be remembered as someone who tried to build community and foster inclusiveness for all racial and ethnic groups: as someone who was an agent for positive and meaningful change, the kind of change that improves the lives of everyday people.

Your Suggestions:

22. What do you think we should focus on when we describe your life as an Asian American (e.g., Filipino American) in Fairfax County? Whom else should we interview about life in Fairfax County as an Asian American (e.g., Filipino American) -- and what themes should we cover in the project? I have an appreciation for the importance of the extended family. Because of this extended family structure, there was constant guidance in my early years when my values were formed. I followed their examples of love, kindness and hard work. I listened to their advice about getting an education, and I understood the necessity of respecting everyone regardless of their position in the community and regardless of how different they might be. My family tried to bring out the very best in me and to encourage me to take opportunity as it came; and then when the time came, to also provide opportunity for others. I have a tremendous love and appreciation for those who molded my ideals and my ethics. Because of this I have a genuine concern for the lives of real people. I can also appreciate that not everyone is accepted, and that for some life is a much harder struggle.