My parents' names were Florian and Mabel Smith. My mother's maiden name was Dersam. They were of German heritage and were part of a family community with my grandparents and uncles and relatives. I was an only child.

Don't dress for fashion, dress for yourself

At school there were some programs in music. I did take piano lessons, and we had a piano at home. I got very interested in that.

My parents never prevented me from doing anything, but they didn't have the knowledge of the arts that Mrs. Ranger had.

At the end of the elementary program, I then had to move onto high school. Simultaneously, my parents moved to Attica to a suburban area not far from the well-known Attica State Prison. Then I would take the school bus which was a very short distance away, where I was involved with a much larger community.

I was there [in school] the full time with one teacher, and the student body was never more than 10 or 12 students of all ages.

I know that I was conscious of all the aspects of the war, having had cousins who were in the army, who would send me notes and memorabilia. I began to collect things that they would send me.