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This Peruvian ocarina is from my grandparents on one of their last trips before my grandmother passed away. This type of ocarina is commonly sold to tourists, it lacks the tuning and sound quality needed to play music. At age 8 it made me the coolest kid in the neighborhood, my next door neighboors had 3 sons similarly aged as me who were all huge fans of the Legend of Zelda series, so having an ocarina was a huge deal.

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This is a photo of my father's white garrison cap from when he served in the marines. This white cap was part of his dress uniform and it now sits on the bookshelf in our living room. It represents his hard work and dedication to the marine corps and America.

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this is a photo from 1977 of my father (age 12) skateboarding in his old neighborhood in Georgia. From a very early age, i was put onto a skateboard and either pushed around on it, or having my father hold me up trying to teach me how to skateboard. From my father teaching how to skateboard and how to have the love for the sport has totally influenced who i am today.

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This guitar once belonged to my grandfather, who i never knew played guitar until my grandmother gave me this some time after he passed. This guitar is very important to me because of that and also this was the guitar i learned on. ever since then I've grown a strong passion to music and instruments. music is therapeutic to me in a way and so was talking to my grandpa he is one of the greatest man I've ever known. I still feel connected to him like hes still here every time i look at this guitar. also in history I've always admired how music has been incorporated from ancient tribes to slavery to modern times. how generatons can pass down culture, storys/communication, feelings, or entertainment, that will last generations and influence and educate us long after their gone. the past will always influence our future.

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My family owned Discoveryland!, an outdoor amphitheater in Sand Springs, OK that was the National Home of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma! for almost 40 years, and eventually, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. My dad performed as Curly in Oklahoma! for 14 seasons until my mom was cast as Laurey, his love interest. They fell in love and I was eventually born. I grew up in Sapulpa, Oklahoma, and spent many summer nights seeing Oklahoma! and dreaming about eventually being on that stage. I can still hear the crickets and frogs chirping in the background and watching bats fly overhead while watching the story unfold. I had my first camp counselor experience when I worked at a summer camp for WorldChangers, a nonprofit benefiting disadvantaged Native American youth and their families that my family ran using the land. When my grandfather passed away, Discoveryland! and WorldChangers could no longer keep their doors open due to financial struggles and a record breaking hot summer. My family recently sold the land but I was able to visit one last time first. It had been closed for a year and nature had begun reclaiming the land, but while digging in one of the shops, I found this shirt and some other artifacts. I don't wear it but I will always hold onto it because it means and so much to me, and represents a lot of my childhood and many of the things that have shaped me to be who I am today.

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These are my father's dogtags.  My father died when I was just five years old, but when I got older I asked my mother if I could have something of his to remember him by. I wear them when because these dogtags are not only a reminder of my father, but also a reminder that he is still watching over me even now.

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This flag was given to my Grandmother when my grandfather died. This flag symbolizes to me the ultimate sacrifice that so many are willing to make to keep this country safe.

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This post is a picture of my grandfather's honorable discharge from the military after World War 2. He was a truck driver during World war 2 and as well as after the war. He saw a lot of the gruesome acts of war.

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This picture is of a comic book I worked on with my two best friends from 2 years ago. We made this book at a time in my life when I was kind of aimless and didn't really have many plans, but these 2 really helped me out and make plans with my life. My art in it wasn't really good and has gotten a lot better, but this means the world to me

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This is a picture of my great grandparents on my mothers side. My great grandfather was a Finnish soldier who, along with a large group of others, cached weapons in protest against a treaty with the Soviets in World War II.  He served jail time for his determination to protect his family and country have been carried through my family, and inspires me to do the same.

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This is a picture of my ballet slippers of when I was 1 year old. I have kept this for many years because to me it represents innocence and also reminds me of when life was simpler.

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This is a photograph of my grandfather, Perry James Marathas Sr. This picture of my grandfather was taken in the fall of 1955, his senior year at Canton High School, "ECHO". My grandfather was a wonderful baseball player who was drafted to the minor leagues right after he graduated high school at 17 years old. 7 years later he was then brought up to the major leagues as a pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles. He was injured his first year and unfortunately was unable to continue his career. His mother and father had immigrated from Greece to escape hostility in their country. When they moved to the United States they left their Greek Culture behind and did their best to be what they considered to be, "American". My grandfather was the youngest of 13 children who never spoke greek because their parents valued America and the idea of being "American" that much. Although I was not able to grasp ahold of any photographs of my grandfather in uniform, he was the one out of the 13 who were considered to be the most "American" of all in their family by being drafted.

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This is a picture of my tanbur.  It is a traditional Persian instrument.  My mom got it in Iran from a man who makes musical instruments by hand.  Music has been the main aspect of my life for as long as I can remember, so I love playing the tanbur as much as I love playing my other instruments.

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This t-shirt was originally my fathers. He has been a firefighter for almost 30 years. The photograph printed on the t-shirt was taken at my fathers first fire. Over the last 30 years the X-LARGE men's t-shirt has managed to shrink to what I believe a woman's small. Ive worn this shirt with pride for the last 5 years and hopefully many more. I enjoy sharing with people what and who is in the photo and how long it has been around.

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This is a picture of a medical bracelet. It was the first time I had to undergo surgery. I have a genetic disease called tarsal coalition. The disease involved my ankle and heel bones growing together. The surgery was to remove the part of the bone. Otherwise I would not be able to move my ankle at all and not play my favorite sport of all time (soccer). At the time period, only one doctor was able to preform the surgery correctly and her name was Dr. Spencer. In recent years, medical science has advanced far enough to fix genetic diseases. It is just so amazing to believe how far science has come!

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This is a photo of my mother in her youth, during her travels to the Middle East. The photo was taken in Cairo, where she stayed with a friend. I grew up on my mother's stories of her travels to Egypt, Jerusalem, and Israel. She is sitting in front of the Muhammad Ali Mosque in the citadel in Cairo, which is also known as the Alabaster Mosque. The clear, crisp brightness of the photo embodies my own dreams of travel, of being able to go and have adventures in foreign lands and visit religious sites as my mother had.

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This is a picture of my good friend who passed away 2 years ago, almost to the day. It has made it with me through three moves and resides in my night table. It is important to me because it reminds me to tell the people I love how much I appreciate them every day.

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This is a picture of my good friend who passed away 2 years ago, almost to the day. It has made it with me through three moves and resides in my night table. It is important to me because it reminds me to tell the people I love how much I appreciate them every day.

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When my dad was 6 (1942)  he came to America to visit his Aunt and Uncle.  This  was the first time he had ever "seen" a Santa.  That American tradition is what inspired him to work hard, and want to eventually move America.  He would move to America when he was 22.

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This is a picture of my great grandparents farm in Bathurst, New Brunswick, Canada. They had lived and worked there together for 60+ yrs. Looking at this picture brings memories of childhood, and how much of a different way of life they had up in Canada. The nearest town/city was an hour and a half away. There were no traffic lights, major shopping centers, grocery stores, and everything moved at a slower pace. My great grandparents didn't have a TV, and I remember being the only kid in town with a basketball hoop attached to the barn. This picture reminds me not only of my family's history, but also of a place where time forgot and how it made me feel like I was living back in history when I was there.

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This is a picture of my great grandparents farm in Bathurst, New Brunswick, Canada. They had lived and worked there together for 60+ yrs. Looking at this picture brings memories of childhood, and how much of a different way of life they had up in Canada. The nearest town/city was an hour and a half away. There were no traffic lights, major shopping centers, grocery stores, and everything moved at a slower pace. My great grandparents didn't have a TV, and I remember being the only kid in town with a basketball hoop attached to the barn. This picture reminds me not only of my family's history, but also of a place where time forgot and how it made me feel like I was living back in history when I was there.

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-  David Jack

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This has hung in my my closet for 11 years now. I wore it nearly everyday it was washed. This is the 2nd New England Patriots Superbowl T-Shirt. I'm from New York and everyone hates the Patriots. I was just turning 15 and within the next year I ended up homeless. This was one of the things I put away so it wouldn't be ruined. Four years later they won another Superbowl and just lost the undefeated season.I put up my stuff and left for the Army. I could no longer live in New York. Because of this shirt in a way Massachusetts is not just the home of the Patriots it is my home now.

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This is hair comb my mom gave me when I was a child. She used to comb my hair with it back in old days in Kyrgyzstan, where I am originally from. It is simple plastic comb, it is not that fancy but it is special to me because it was a gift to me from my mother. Its bright orange color reminds me of happy and carefree childhood.  It is pretty old, it was made in Soviet Union times but I still use it. I have had this comb for a long time, since I was 3 years old, and I am planning to keep it forever and pass it to my daughter someday. It is nice to have something that reminds you of your family especially when you are far away.

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This is an Old record player paired with a vintage preamp and multi band EQ. This Combination of high fidelity audio equipment only first became affordable to the general public sometime around the early 1960's.  Looking at this picture makes me imagine a scene of my father delving deep in the the warm transient sea of vinyl and the warmth of analogue.  Record players of this kind truly transformed the listening experience for the average consumer, and the stereo system at the same time became the new standard

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Simone M Bazile                                                    This picture is called a "pilon" in Haiti. It is made by Haitian people and can also be found in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic. It is used to make ground coffee, ground meat, ground food, and Haitian seasoning. It is an essential tool in any Haitian kitchen. This artifact brings back the memory of my mother making delicious Haitian food during family gathering and holidays.  

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Simone M Bazile                                                    This picture is called a "pilon" in Haiti. It is made by Haitian people and can also be found in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic. It is used to make ground coffee, ground meat, ground food, and Haitian seasoning. It is an essential tool in any Haitian kitchen. This artifact brings back the memory of my mother making delicious Haitian food during family gathering and holidays.  

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This picture shows my grandfather’s uniform that was kept by my family from when he served as a soldier in World War II. This artifact represents the brutality of the war, and the close encounters with death my grandfather had faced. There was one gruesome battle in which my grandfather was one of only two people in his unit to survive. He was actually assumed to be killed in the battle at first. His parents were notified of this tragic news, and were later told that it was false. This is just one of the many times my grandfather had nearly gotten killed in the war, and it’s eye-opening to think how my current family would cease to exist had he not survived, since the war occurred before he had met my grandmother.

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Most of my family still lives in India. Whenever I go back to India, my uncle and I often drive around, and visit local farmers or street peddlers to see if they found anything interesting. I keep most of the coins with me, while my uncle keeps some of the larger artifacts. While the objective of our searches is finding cool stuff, it is often more interesting hearing about where people found these things. Below are some of the coins that I have been collecting since I was a little kid.

A. Exhibit A, is coins from the East India trading company, aka the British joint stock company that was used to trade with and rule India.

B. Exhibit B is a 1929 India rupee that features the Hindu God monkey god Hanuman. (B is the single coin on the top left hand side of the page.)

C. Not completely certain about exhibit c, but it is likely that they are copper coins from Mughal Empire (1556AD).

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Ally Kudenchak

This book has been passed down in my family and is very important and connects all of us to our common ancestors and heritage.  My grandfather wrote a memoir about his life growing up from when he was a kid though adulthood.  The memoir is called “The Story of a Depression Era Kid.”  This memoir portrays my grandfather’s experiences and endeavors growing up during the great depression as one of twelve kids in Sicily, Italy and Sewickley, PA.  Specifically, this artifact shows the history of my family which is connected to major historical events of the past such as the Great Depression and World War II.  My grandfather recounts his experiences being drafted into World War II as a teenager where he was stationed in Italy and portrays his experiences.  Overall, this artifact depicts my family’s past and is a piece of history that shows where I come from and what my family has been through showing how we got to where we are today.

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This picture of my father was taken in 1943 when he was enlisted in the United States Navy. The picture, taken with my iphone, shows cracks in the original photo. Those cracks for me represent events such as depression and war which shaped his early years.

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This picture of my father was taken in 1943 when he was enlisted in the United States Navy. The picture, taken with my iphone, shows cracks in the original photo. Those cracks for me represent events such as depression and war which shaped his early years.