OXFORD COMMUNITY CENTER ORAL HISTORY PROJECT:

Oxford Community Center, formerly known as Oxford Playground and the current site of the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center and Great River Water Park, has been an important institution in the Rondo and Summit-University neighborhood for generations. Oxford nurtured young people, athletes, coaches, officials, and community leaders after the construction of I-94 destroyed the historic African American Rondo neighborhood. Residents rallied around Oxford as issues of racial justice, “urban renewal,” and citizen participation in city planning dominated local and national conversations about American life. In the middle of all this, African American girls became athletes at Oxford, even before Title IX began to extend such opportunities to girls and women across the nation.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Oxford Community Center Oral History Project. Oral History Interviews of the Oxford Community Center Oral History Project. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Location of Master Files:

Digital masters of the files are maintained on the Society's secure digital collections storage servers and are managed and preserved in accordance with archival best practices.

Accession Information:

Accession number: AV2026.2

Processing Information:

Catalog ID number: 9989899040204294

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Biographical Information: Dennis “Denny” Christian was born in St. Paul in 1960, one of seven children raised by Josephine and Kenneth Christian. He and his four brothers all played multiple sports at Oxford and his sisters skated there. Denny skated and played baseball, basketball, and football at Oxford. He also played basketball at Ramsey Junior High School and as a sophomore at Central High School. Denny completed his high school education at an alternative school, but technically graduated from Central High School in 1979. Of Oxford, Denny said “there was not a better place that I could have grown up. …You had no worries when you were at Oxford."

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OH 186.1

Oral history interview with Denny Christian, January 26, 2026. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 41 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (44 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in the Selby-Dale / Rondo neighborhood, first on Fuller Ave., then on Marshall Ave. close to Oxford; walking with older brothers across the construction site of Interstate 94 to Oxford; playing at Oxford when it was just a playground; parents and older siblings having a more direct memory of construction and impact of I-94; mother Josephine working as a cook at St. Paul Academy, father Kenneth having three jobs – at Whirlpool, his own painting business (Part Time Painters), and at Savoy Pizza; everyone in neighborhood knowing his dad because he employed many in his painting business; mom making food and sharing it with neighborhood kids; playing baseball, basketball, football, and skating at Oxford; widespread participating in skating in the Rondo / Selby-Dale area; playing point guard in basketball, pitcher in baseball, quarterback and wide receiver in football; taking The Big O (a blue bus) from Oxford to McMurray Field for speedskating races in the winter; Rondo exemplifying the “It takes a village” principle; the closeness of people in Rondo; boundaries defining Rondo / Selby-Dale and mostly staying within them; mother and father meeting in Missouri, moving to Minnesota with mother’s family; getting into “fisticuffs” with white kids a few times in early teen years; attending Maxfield and J.J. Hill elementary schools, Ramsey Junior High, Central High School, and an alternative school after getting “kicked out” of Central; spending most of his free time after school and in the summers at Oxford, in both formal team practices and informal pick-up games and other activities; transformation of Oxford from playground with warming house to having a recreation center with a gym and other amenities; Oxford’s main football rival – Hazel Park; other teams not wanting to come to Oxford to play; significant mentors and coaches; winning football championship for Oxford coach Ray Brown, known as “Iron Five-Man”; lifelong influence of parents and Oxford coaches and mentors; parents trusted coaches at Oxford; Denny’s and Frank White’s dads playing ball together; Oxford teams beating competitors by wide margins; Oxford basketball team being overlooked for a trip to Texas for a tournament despite having beaten a team from Anoka; lessons learned from coaches and mentors at Oxford and from playing sports; liking to watch Oxford’s girls basketball team; his seven kids and their participation in athletics; significance of Oxford in his life; Oxford being a second home.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Florence Conover was born in January 1942 in Duluth, Minnesota. Her family moved to St. Paul when she was four years old. She lived in the Rondo neighborhood before, during, and after the construction of I-94. As a child, she was involved in activities at the Ober Boys Club, played at the Hollow playground, then spent much time – after the freeway forced her family to move further west and south into the neighborhood – at Oxford. She especially enjoyed ice skating, which she did under the guidance of Bill Peterson. She married her husband, David, a few months before graduating from Mechanic Arts High School in 1960. She and David have three sons, all of whom played football at Oxford, where David also coached. Her spiritual practice has been important to her since she was young, when her “village mothers” ensured that she could attend Mount Olivet Baptist Church. She also sang in the Gospel Choral Union. She worked as a nurse for 28 years, volunteered as a chaplain at the Ramsey County Correctional Facility for more than 15 years, and later earned her master’s degree in theology from Bethel Seminary. She said she learned about respect, community, love for others no matter their background, and teamwork from her experiences at Oxford and especially from Bill Peterson.

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OH 186.2

Oral history interview with Rev. Florence Conover, December 10, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 20 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (35 pages).

Subjects discussed include spending early years in Duluth, MN, and Superior, WI, before family moved to St. Paul; being one of three children raised primarily by mother and step-father, but maintaining contact with father; attending McKinley Elementary, Marshall Junior High, and Mechanic Arts High School; learning to be a fighter when she was young and other children would harass her and her sister; growing up believing that race and color “meant nothing”; first being encouraged to attend church in Superior when a white German lady paid her and her sister 25 cents afterwards; coming to value church life for itself by age 12; loving music, singing wherever and whenever she could, including in the Gospel Choral Union (?); living in the eastern part of Rondo as a young person, before the freeway; attending activities at Ober Boys Club, playing at The Hollow playground; memories of pre-freeway Rondo; the importance of her “village mothers” and other pillars of the community to her young life; being very active in high school, including as a cheerleader and in choir; becoming involved at Oxford when family moved further west in Rondo (to 986 Marshall) as a result of freeway construction; coming to know, be mentored by, and love Bill Peterson; learning to skate at Oxford; growing up at Oxford; Bill Peterson’s influence at Oxford, within the community, and in the lives of the young people he coached and mentored – even into their adulthood; Bill Peterson and Steve Winfield as community leaders and mentors to many; watching her sons play, and husband coach, football at Oxford in the late 1960s-1970s; impact of freeway on Rondo; moving with husband and sons to Roseville/Maplewood; older sons graduating from Central High School because they missed the neighborhood, youngest son completing high school in Roseville; being upset when the city let Bill Peterson go; believing something at Oxford should have been named for Bill; nursing career; chaplaincy and theology degree; importance of a place like Oxford to the community; the continuing need to invest in young people.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at Rev. Conover’s home, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Robert Crowe is one of eight children born to Otharee and Clemmy [sp?] Lee Crowe Sr. The Crowe family moved to Rondo from Omaha, Nebraska in 1968, just as I-94 was opening to traffic. Unlike many of his neighborhood friends, Robert and his siblings attended Hancock Elementary and Wilson Junior High, schools north of the Rondo area. He graduated from Central High School in 1975. Robert became involved at Oxford soon after arriving in St. Paul. He played baseball, basketball, and football at Oxford and at Central, then attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA, where he played basketball, ran track, and earned a degree in economics and business administration with a minor in physical education. Robert also has had a long and distinguished career as an official, especially in softball and wheelchair softball. He has been inducted into Halls of Fame for St. Paul Central High School, USA Wheelchair Softball, and Minnesota State High School League. As an official, he describes himself as a “direct descendant” of Bill Peterson, Frank White, and Steve Winfield. “I am so proud to be a product of Oxford/Jimmy Lee,” he says.

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OH 186.3

Oral history interview with Robert Crowe, February 26, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 25 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (59 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in a segregated community in Omaha, NE; adjusting to life in a more integrated Rondo, St. Paul, and Minnesota; living first at Fuller and Aurora, then moving to Portland and Victoria; attending predominantly white schools outside of Rondo; facing racism from but also making friends with white classmates; University Avenue as the northern boundary of Rondo; dad playing baseball in Negro Leagues; Robert and his brothers all being involved in sports, in Omaha and in St. Paul; Oxford as a community gathering place; early days at Oxford with a warming house, field/rink, and outdoor basketball courts, then with building that had more space, gym; playing touch, flag, and tackle football, starting in Omaha; not liking tackle football until coach Dave Goodlow convinced him to play at Oxford; also playing basketball and baseball at Oxford; goal to play ball “across the street” at Central; Bill Peterson as “heart and soul” of Oxford; life lessons learned from sports; sports helping to dissipate racial tension; going to Oxford 2-4 times a week while in school at Hancock and Wilson, then being there every day in the summers; coaches and mentors at Oxford teaching him and other kids to compete “the right way” and represent the community well; the principle of action and consequences; being a three-sport athlete at Central; coaches at Central instilling school spirit; not being able to play night games at Central until senior year; baseball being his favorite sport; memorable games; playing basketball and running track at Coe College in Iowa; working at Control Data and eventually in IT at StayWell Health Management; his dad and Bill Peterson officiating town ball across Minnesota; starting to officiate after college, at the behest of Bill Peterson; officiating softball, basketball; officiating for International Special Olympics, National Veterans Wheelchair Games; attending officials clinics led by Jim Robinson at Oxford; skills and attributes that make a good official; induction into various halls of fame; learning the “fundamentals of life” at Oxford; importance of representation and legacy.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Richard Crumley was born in St. Paul in 1957. He spent the first five years of his life on Carroll Avenue, near Dale Street, where he often played at the Hollow. His long relationship with Oxford and Bill Peterson began around 1962, when he and his mother and 5 siblings moved to 1037 Marshall Avenue, across from Oxford Playground. His older brothers brought him to Oxford to play wee pee football for Bill Peterson. From that point on, until he began playing for Central High School, he played football, basketball, and baseball at Oxford. He credits the time he spent at Oxford, especially under the guidance of Peterson and other mentors, with shaping the entirety of his life, athletically, socially, politically, and personally.

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OH 186.4

Oral history interview with Richard Crumley, October 12, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (48 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in the Rondo neighborhood, first on Carroll, then on Marshall; mother moving with her sister to Minnesota from Waco, Texas; meeting biological father at 13 years old; spending time with father in Atlanta, becoming a horseman/cowboy; living in Atlanta as an adult for 30 years, until he moved back to St. Paul during the coronavirus pandemic; attending J.J. Hill Elementary School, with teachers who exposed students to the arts, athletics, history, and other academic subjects; playing at The Hollow as a young child, while living on Carroll Ave.; mother working hard to ensure her family had financial security; finding surrogate fathers in community and at Oxford; racially mixed neighborhood in Rondo; Oxford becoming a second home to Richard and his siblings; loving basketball but excelling at football, which became his primary sport; seeing University of Minnesota and ABA (American Basketball Association) players at Oxford; Bill Peterson’s coaching and mentorship of young African American boys; staying with Bill during the summer to play ball while his mother visited Texas; teams from other St. Paul recreations centers being unwilling to play at Oxford; the context of the 1960s, including the civil rights movement, Black Power, the assassination of the Kennedys and Martin Luther King, Jr.; serving in U.S. Army 1979-1986, partly inspired by Bill’s service in the Marines; struggle by Bill and others in the community to get the new building at Oxford; kids at Oxford not just playing sports, but also helping to maintain field and facility; warming house building at Oxford; Bill facing some “pushback” from community members; the reasons a place like Oxford is important to a community; Oxford unique for having done “a lot with less”; girls’ involvement in programs at Oxford; the benefits of playing sports.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Ramsey County Library, Roseville, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Donald “Donny” Geng was born in St. Paul in February 1953. He grew up on the East Side of St. Paul before moving to Highland Park. From a very young age, Donny wanted to play baseball, and wanted to play with coach Billy Peterson. He rode his bike from Highland Park to Oxford in order to do so. Peterson asked Donny to help coach the 12-year-old all-Black Pee Wee Traveling All-Star team in 1969. That experience, as well as others with the young people he met and coached at Oxford, was formative in his understanding of race and racism. Oxford has influenced his career as an educator and baseball coach, including as a clinician for the Minnesota Twins.

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OH 186.5

Oral history interview with Donald "Donny" Geng, October 23, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 35 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (43 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in a white, working-class family on the East Side of St. Paul; moving to the more affluent Highland Park neighborhood; passion for baseball from an early age; influence of To Kill a Mockingbird (film) and his World War II veteran father’s willingness to defend a persecuted African American family in Highland on his own awareness of racial injustice; Rondo being a de facto and de jure Black enclave in St. Paul; biking from Highland to Oxford to play baseball with Bill Peterson; Peterson as a “master of teaching” and an excellent coach; having to fight to fit in with African American kids at Oxford; coaching the Pee Wee baseball team at Oxford; witnessing the racism the Black kids experienced; thoughts on racism, history of African Americans, immigration, education; playing and coaching at Oxford during the post-World War II civil rights movement; race, gender, and athletics; the importance of sports in developing young people; the lifelong impact of his time at Oxford.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Peggie Jackson Hicks was born in 1952 in Webb, Mississippi, where she spent the first two decades of her life. She was one of nine children raised by her mother and grandmother. She and her siblings grew up in a sharecropping family on a white-owned farm/plantation in Webb, where they learned to balance academics, hard work, and their love of sports. Peggie played softball and basketball with her brothers at home. She was on a state tournament basketball team in high school, and played both basketball and softball at Coahoma Junior/Community College in Clarksdale, MS. She and her four-month-old son moved to St. Paul in 1973, following her sisters and joining her cousins who had grown up in Minnesota. Someone told her she should go to Oxford if she wanted to meet people in the neighborhood, which began her long association with the recreation center. She played softball and basketball as a young adult at Oxford, and went on to play basketball at Concordia University, for the Summit-University Stars (coached by Kwame McDonald and Steve Winfield), and for the Minnesota Fillies. She also coached basketball at the Martin Luther King rec center and served as a girls high school basketball official for ten years. She worked for the state of Minnesota for more than 30 years, retiring in 2012.

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OH 186.6

Oral history interview with Peggie Jackson Hicks, November 4, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 24 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (39 pages).

Subjects discussed include Oxford being her first connection to the Rondo community after moving to St. Paul in 1973; making her first and lifelong friend, Vera Carpenter, at Oxford; growing up in Webb, MS; being the youngest, with her twin brother, in a family of nine children (which included three sets of twins); kids helping to chop cotton and missing school accordingly, but still maintaining good grades; growing up in a class- and race-segregated community, hoping for more opportunity in Minnesota; family headed by mother and grandmother; growing up playing sports with her brothers; sisters calling her a “tomboy” for being athletic; mother dying at age 53, after which Peggie and a sister lived with an aunt; playing basketball in high school; feeling there were ample opportunities for girls to play sports in school; attending a segregated high school, her graduating class (1970) the last one before integration; having a natural talent for basketball; playing center in basketball, outfield in softball at Coahoma Junior College; getting pregnant while living at her aunt’s; visiting cousins in St. Paul during the summer of her senior year, working for St. Paul Urban League; moving to Chicago to live with brother for the last months of her pregnancy and birth of her son; deciding to move to St. Paul to be near sisters when her son was four months old; arriving in Rondo and visiting Oxford to become part of the community; feeling immediately welcomed at Oxford; being encouraged by Bill Peterson, Frank White, and Steve Winfield to play sports, coach sports, officiate sports; seeing someone drive by Oxford in a car with a State of Minnesota logo, aspiring to someday work for the state and drive such a car; getting a job with the state in 1981, retiring in 2012; studying physical education at Concordia University, where she also became the first Black homecoming queen; culture shock in moving from a mostly Black community in Mississippi to a very white Minnesota; belief that Minnesota met her expectations in terms of providing better opportunities; the value of sports and competition for everyone, including girls and women; feeling that the people at Oxford (Peterson, White, Winfield, and others) were “always rooting” for her – “You knew they loved you.”

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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OH 186.7

Oral history interview with Peggie Jackson Hicks, December 12, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 8 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (32 pages).

Subjects discussed include moving to Minnesota from Mississippi by way of Chicago when her son was four months old and feeling excited to be joining family in St. Paul; having two sisters in St. Paul (Armanda and Lee) who became the support system for her and her son (Garland Jackson); lived with sister who had no children, while other sister with three children kept Garland during the day while Peggie worked/attended school; first working for St. Paul Urban League, then the State of Minnesota; Oxford a place that allowed her to get away from the stressors of life and release some anxiety; fitting in time at Oxford when she could, to play basketball, softball, volleyball; sports being part of who she was/is; son attending her basketball games at Concordia and when she played for the Fillies and Summit-University Stars; son starting to play sports at Oxford when he was in second or third grade, at which point Peggie shifted her attention at Oxford to his events; beginning study at Concordia University as a full-time student in 1975 with main goal of completing her education (elementary education) and, secondarily, to play basketball; despite being one of very few African American students at Concordia, feeling welcomed and respected; earning the nickname “Leggie Peggie” at Concordia because she was a standout rebounder (set numerous records) and could jump; being aware of some pushback from male athletes over gym time, etc.; the many rebounding records and other honors (e.g. team captain, Most Valuable Player, etc.) she earned through basketball while at Concordia, including becoming the first African American woman to be inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame; being drafted, in her junior year at Concordia, by Minnesota Fillies in the first year of the Women’s Professional Basketball League; playing for the Fillies, as one of the eight teams in the WBL; played one year, then was waived and decided not to play for other teams because she didn’t want to move herself and her son away from their support system in St. Paul; completing her degree at Concordia; continuing basketball with Summit-University Stars (All Stars?), for whom she played for about five years; son also growing up at Oxford, graduating from Central High School; the deep community support for her and her son around Oxford and Rondo, from people including Bill Peterson, Frank White, and Steve Winfield; believing her life is a completed puzzle, with Oxford being an important piece of it.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: John Hughes and his three siblings were born and raised in St. Paul, close to the University of St. Thomas. He attended St. Mark’s Catholic School through grade eight, then went to Cretin High School. He grew up playing basketball and baseball at St. Mark’s and Cretin, but was aware of Coach “BillyP” at Oxford. In the summer after his sophomore year of high school, Hughes started playing baseball for Bill Peterson’s Attucks Brooks American Legion baseball team. He graduated from Cretin High School in 1970, played baseball and basketball at Winona State University, then taught math and coached at Cretin for nine years. He has since built a career as a magician and public speaker known as The Amazing Hondo. He attributes much of his life’s successes – in sports and otherwise – to the coaching and mentoring of Bill Peterson.

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OH 186.8

Oral history interview with John "Hondo" Hughes, February 3, 2026. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 32 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (43 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in the Dayton – Cleveland avenues area of St. Paul; playing ball for coach Joe Meyer at St. Mark’s; Meyer’s coaching style one of fear and intimidation vs. Bill Peterson’s style of encouragement and education; playing sports formally and informally as a young person; playing baseball and basketball; his neighborhood of St. Paul, and his friends, being primarily white and Catholic; playing against Oxford teams while he was playing for St. Mark’s; Bill Peterson’s coaching style; significance of Peterson being a Marine Corps veteran; view of Rondo neighborhood among his friends, family, classmates, teammates; historical context of mid- to late 1960s, including war in Vietnam, civil rights movement, sexual revolution, counterculture; being a white kid at Oxford in Rondo; sports mediating whatever racial tension existed in larger culture; Oxford teams being 50-50 white/African American; learning both athletic and human development at Oxford; playing pick-up basketball at Oxford, often the only white kid on the court; baseball coach at Winona State knowing that Hughes had been coached by Peterson; coaching basketball at Cretin after graduating from college and taking a teaching job at the high school; goal of coaching to help athletes figure out for themselves what they need to do; deciding to quit teaching and launch career as The Amazing Hondo; long-term impact of Bill Peterson.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Highland Park Library, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Lisa Lissimore was born in 1960 and raised in the Rondo and Summit-University neighborhood of St. Paul. She became involved at Oxford playground and recreation center at age 10, after she moved with her family from the north side of I-94 to the south side and started attending J.J. Hill Elementary School. She had her first experience with competitive sports at Oxford, where she played flag football, basketball, track and field, and softball. She went on to be part of the girls’ basketball team at Central High School, when it won the first official Minnesota State High School League-sanctioned state tournament in 1976. She graduated from Central in 1978; played basketball at Grand View College in Iowa (and one year for the Minnesota Gophers); coached basketball at the University of St. Thomas; co-founded the Shooting Stars Basketball Clinic and worked for the Minnesota State High School League for 34 years.

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OH 186.9

Oral history interview with Lisa Lissimore, February 26, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 17 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (56 pages).

Subjects discussed include becoming involved at Oxford with her friend and classmate at J.J. Hill; the many opportunities for girls to engage in competitive sports at Oxford, including in flag football, basketball, track and field and softball; other recreational programs (e.g. art) at Oxford; being coached by young African American women at Oxford; African American role models at J.J. Hill; attending junior high school at Ramsey, which provided fewer African American mentors and role models but introduced her to new sports (e.g. volleyball and broomball); peer and adult athletic role models at Oxford, including Weller Johnson, Debbie Stampley, Stacy Robinson, John Withers, (cousin) Linda Roberts, Bill Peterson, Frank White, Steve and Dave Winfield and Debbie Montgomery; fifth grade teacher Rhoda Stroud who taught students about Black history and African American athletes such as Wilma Rudolph and Althea Gibson; growing up with the ethic of giving back to the community; competitors from other schools becoming teammates during the summer and later in college; family roots in Georgia; growing up in a tight-knit family in the Rondo neighborhood; being oldest of three girls raised by mother and, later, step-father; step-father’s deep support of girls’ sports; her mother acquiring an interest in Lisa’s sports a bit later; rivalry between Central and Highland Park high schools; boys’ and men’s respect for female athletes at Oxford; deep community support for female athletes when they played at Oxford, Central, and University of Minnesota; Oxford as a place that built community, not just a recreation center; Oxford as a place for teens to socialize and to work; feeling proud and comfortable as an African American woman, even in a racist world, due to mentorship, education, and wisdom provided by community elders; giving back to community by co-founding Shooting Stars Basketball Clinic for inner city girls in both St. Paul and Minneapolis; lifelong relationships that began at Oxford; drawing on community and connections fostered at Oxford during her time at the MSHSL; passing along values and community established in Rondo and at Oxford to her son, who grew up in Woodbury, MN and still feeling a deep connection to Oxford and Rondo community.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Dr. Valerie Littles-Butler was born in 1963 and raised in Rondo. Her family lost their house to the construction of I-94, after which they relocated further west in the neighborhood, closer to Oxford than to Ober Boys Club, where her mother served as a director. She recalls the vibrant neighborhood that was Rondo – one in which elders, parents, coaches, teachers, and pastors mentored and invested in young people -- as well as the firm racial barriers surrounding the neighborhood. Dr. Littles-Butler became involved at Oxford when it was only a playground/field and a small brick fieldhouse. She played basketball, flag football, ran track, and skated at Oxford, but basketball became her primary focus. Instead of attending Mechanic Arts High School, which closed in 1976, or Central High School, Dr. Littles-Butler was bussed across town to Highland Park for junior and senior high. Though she and other African American students faced racism and harassment at Highland, she also found supportive white teachers and friends, especially after Black students staged a silent sit-in in junior high to protest ill treatment. She played basketball throughout high school, which meant playing against her friends from Oxford/Rondo who attended Central High School. After graduating in 1981, she played basketball with Lisa Lissimore at Grand View College for a year, earned her A.A. at Inver Hills Community College, then played basketball at Florida A&M, where she earned a degree in business education. She also played for the Summit-University All Stars, coached basketball at Highland Park, and earned a master’s degree and doctorate in education from St. Mary’s University. She says that her time at Oxford and in Rondo taught her to “navigate life unapologetically.”

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OH 186.10

Oral history interview with Dr. Valerie Littles-Butler, November 5, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 40 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (49 pages).

Subjects discussed include The Rondo “village” that nurtured and supported her; mom working as director of Ober Boys Club, where activities for boys and girls were more gender-specific; losing family home to construction of freeway; becoming involved at Oxford, where girls could play sports with girls and with boys; mom teaching kids to ice skate; Oxford when it was just a field house; mother’s Ballard family roots in St. Paul; father’s Littles family roots in Oklahoma; father’s and uncle’s involvement in the Negro Leagues; family tradition of involvement in sports; growing up with a sadness about politics in light of assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and John and Robert Kennedy; civil rights and Black Power / black nationalist movements; the racial/racist geography surrounding Rondo; wonderful teachers and mentors at J.J. Hill Elementary; learning life and political lessons from teachers, pastors, coaches; the importance of education and spiritual walk; mother being the first African American to attend Minnehaha Academy, becoming a social worker; racial politics of education and bussing; confronting racism at Highland Park Junior High from students, staff, and community; pastors guiding students to find a peaceful solution, by sit-in, to troubles at Highland; finding white people who also invested in her and other African American young people, at Oxford, in Rondo, and in Highland Park; Bill Peterson, Steve Winfield, and Kwame McDonald investing in her and other girls, ensuring they had opportunities to play with and against boys; being mentored by older African American female athletes; playing basketball at Oxford, in school, in college, and for Summit-University All Stars; wanting to attend and play basketball for University of Minnesota, but coach telling her she was too short (5’3”), later beating the U of MN team while playing for Florida A&M; deciding to stay at Highland Park High School rather than switching to Central High School; wanting to leave Minnesota to “grow up” on her own; culture shock of attending Florida A&M; making lifelong connections with teachers at J.J. Hill and at Highland; staying connected to Oxford even while playing ball at Highland; girls from Rondo/Oxford elevating play of Highland basketball teams; Highland – Central rivalry; applying lessons learned at Oxford to life outside of sports; influence of older Black female basketball players; excellence among African American women basketball players, including in Summit-University All Stars; basketball opening doors for her, books keeping the doors open; importance of ministry to her life; her career in education, investing in young people the way others invested in her; the importance of sports and of a place like Oxford.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the St. Paul Public Library – Dayton’s Bluff, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Yusef Mgeni (first known as Charlie Anderson) was born in St. Paul in 1948. His family has deep roots in St. Paul and a long history of civic, social, and political activism. He and his four siblings were raised by their mother in the Rondo neighborhood. He attended St. Peter Claver School and first became involved at Oxford Playground and Rec Center in 1960-61. Though he did not play on the organized, competitive sports teams at Oxford, he did become Ping Pong Champion and he and his friends’ neighborhood pick-up teams often played against Oxford’s teams. He graduated from Central High School in 1966 and spent a long career in education, print and broadcast journalism, and philanthropic foundation work. He remembers Oxford as one of three community institutions (along with Ober Boys Club and Hallie Q. Brown) that were central to the development of young people in Rondo. He credited the nuns at St. Peter Claver, his mother and other influential African American women, and Bill Peterson as formative to his development as a confident young Black man.

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OH 186.11

Oral history interview with Yusef Mgeni, March 23, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 20 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (61 pages).

Subjects discussed include being born and raised in the Rondo area of St. Paul; family’s deep roots in St. Paul, Minnesota, and civic and political activism; significance of Oxford, Ober Boys Club, and Hallie Q. Brown to young people in Rondo neighborhood; early memories of Oxford getting a small mobile warming house after Quonset huts had been removed from the site in the mid-1950s; Bill Peterson providing direction, guidance, coaching, mentoring, and high expectations for young people at Oxford; attending St. Peter Claver Catholic School, just across what would become I-94 from Oxford playground; racial and religious diversity at St. Peter Claver and in Rondo; the impact of segregation on Rondo, its residents, and on development of and need for a place like Oxford; the tight-knit, resilient African American community that arose as a result of segregation; the need to set high expectations for young people so that they will rise to and exceed them; Oxford playground and recreation center as an athletic and social space that welcomed him and his friends, in contrast to the racial hostility experienced in locations outside Rondo; swimming at Wilder Pool, a public bathhouse; being thwarted in playing baseball at Oxford; missing out on other sports at Oxford due to an ankle injury; unwillingness of teams from outside of Rondo to come to play at Oxford; adults who had a positive influence on him, including his mother, the nuns at St. Peter Claver (of the Oblate Sisters of Providence Order), Bill Peterson, Cyrus Ettinger at John Marshall Junior High; getting a high school education in elementary school at St. Peter Claver; participating in activities, sports, and summer camps through Ober Boys, Oxford, and Hallie Q. Brown; changes in neighborhood as Black professionals moved to suburbs starting in late 1960s, as a result of displacement from I-94; spending five years going between St. Paul and southern California during the last couple years of high school; graduating from Central High School 1966; Oxford’s space changing as neighborhood evolves; importance of Black pastors in neighborhood and social and civic engagement and protest and why Oxford was important to the community.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at Yusef’s home in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Debbie (Gilbreath) Montgomery was born in 1946 in St. Paul and has spent her whole life in the Rondo neighborhood. She and her three brothers were raised by their grandparents in the “Oatmeal Hill” section of Rondo. Debbie attended J.J. Hill Elementary School, John Marshall Junior High, and Central High School, graduating in 1964. Among her many accomplishments, Debbie was the youngest person to serve on the national board of the NAACP, the first female police officer in St. Paul, and the first African American woman elected to the St. Paul City Council. She was also a standout, multi-sport athlete at Oxford Playground / Recreation Center and attributes much of her success to the lessons she learned at Oxford.

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OH 186.12

Oral history interview with Deborah Montgomery, April 12, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 33 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (61 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in Rondo as the oldest of four children raised by her grandparents; the family losing their house at 978 St. Anthony to I-94; learning about the civil rights movement, primarily in the South, at St. Philip’s Episcopal Church with Father Denzil Carty; growing up with white friends in a racially diverse Rondo; the strong, professional African American community in Rondo’s Oatmeal Hill; becoming acquainted with more African American kids when moving from J.J. Hill Elementary to John Marshall Junior High; the isolation of the Rondo community due to redlining practices; the tight-knit “village” that was Rondo prior to I-94; playing sports at Oxford Playground in its early days; the Quonset huts that served as housing units and eventually gave way to expand Oxford; the rudimentary equipment and site at Oxford, especially when compared to other recreation sites throughout St. Paul; the influence, coaching, and mentorship of Oxford director, Bill Peterson; Bill bringing several pairs of skates for kids at Oxford and learning to speed skate because those were the only skates that fit her; beating eventual Olympic medalist Mary Meyers in two of three skating heats at Como, but being denied admission to the Blue Line Speedskating Club; unwillingness of other recreational teams to come to Oxford because playing field was so undeveloped; Bill hauling Oxford teams to other sites in his 1954 (?) red Ford station wagon; playing sports with her female friends, some of whom were more “girly” than was “tomboy” Debbie; playing short stop on the Oxford softball team; scrimmaging the Oxford boys’ baseball team and “creaming” one of Dave Winfield’s pitches; Oxford’s softball team being superior to other sites’ teams because they had played with boys; other locations in Rondo that provided athletic and recreational opportunities – e.g. Hallie Q. Brown – but spending most of her time at Oxford because it was closer to home; helping to get Oxford football field turfed in the early 2000s while serving on the St. Paul City Council and learning that Oxford playground was built on a site that was formerly a dump; skating, running track, playing softball and football at Oxford; learning things besides athletic skills from sports; the role of recreational facilities in city planning; other adult influences at Oxford; being asked to participate in police academy by Mayor Larry Cohen, then staying for the whole thing and becoming first woman in St. Paul Police Department; involvement in St. Paul NAACP Youth Council, national NAACP; attending 1963 March on Washington and 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery; recognizing racial disparities in recreational facilities in St. Paul; lack of athletic opportunities in junior and senior high school in the pre-Title IX era; attending the University of Minnesota as Oxford Recreation Center was being planned and built; concern over current lack of coordinated service and promotion of Oxford to young people in Rondo / Summit-University neighborhood; the naming of a segment of Marshall Avenue, from Lexington to Western, “Debbie Montgomery Ave.”

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at Debbie’s home in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Billy Peterson was born in 1940 in Mora, Minnesota. In 1950, his family moved to the East Side of St. Paul where he played multiple sports (baseball, basketball, football, and hockey) at Hazel Park Playground. In 1960, he coached an all-African-American youth hockey team at Oxford. Shortly after this hockey team won the city championship, Billy applied for a job with St. Paul Parks and Playgrounds (now Parks and Recreation) and was assigned to Oxford Playground, thus beginning his decades-long tenure as coach, manager/director, and official at Oxford.

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OH 186.13

Oral history interview with Billy Peterson, January 14, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 41 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (49 pages).

Subjects discussed include early life as family moved from one location to the next as his father was assigned for his job with the U.S. Census Bureau; moving to the East Side of St. Paul in 1950 and playing team sports, such as hockey, at Hazel Park Playground; finding success in team sports; moving to the Rondo neighborhood with his father in 1952; taking a streetcar from Rondo back to Hazel Park to play hockey; meeting best friend Wally “Pooky” Pettiford at Marshall Junior and Senior High School, beginning a long association with the Pettiford family; being a white kid growing up with African American neighbors, friends, and teammates in Rondo; playing football, hockey, and baseball at Central High School; graduating from Central in 1957 then joining Marine Corps when he turned 17; learning discipline and how to respect and command authority in Marines; returning to St. Paul from Marines in 1960, noting the changes in neighborhood as I-94 construction was underway; getting a call from John Pettiford, then president of the Oxford Boosters Club, asking Billy to coach hockey at Oxford; learning to coach through this experience; fielding the first all-Black youth (12U) hockey team in the city and state (and perhaps country) and winning citywide championship; characteristics that make a good coach; importance of teaching the fundamentals in any sport; playing baseball at University of Minnesota; applying for job at St. Paul Parks and Playgrounds (now Recreation) and being assigned to run program(s) at Oxford; arriving at Oxford when it was just a playground, with no structures; a boxcar that served as warming house for winter sports; later addition of a permanent building on Oxford site (1969) and subsequent addition (Jimmy Lee Recreation Center); having a considerable degree of autonomy at Oxford; learning the importance of offering athletic opportunities for girls after meeting Debbie Montgomery, who was a competitive speedskater; developing girls’ softball, flag football, and basketball teams; involved parents who supported Oxford; adding programs besides sports once a permanent building in place; becoming lifelong friends with Frank White, who played baseball for Billy, volunteer-coached at Oxford and Martin Luther King Recreation Center, and had a long career in parks and recreation and baseball; the importance and challenge of officiating; what makes a good official; Oxford’s role in training and developing a group of African American officials and the defining significance of Oxford in Billy’s life.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Oxford Community Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Gwen (Crowe) Peterson was one of eight children born to Clem and Otharee Crowe. Her family lived in a segregated community in Omaha, NE, until they moved to the Rondo neighborhood in 1968. Instead of attending predominantly African American schools in Rondo, she and her siblings were bussed to predominantly white schools north of University Avenue. Her parents taught her and her siblings to stay together and protect each other, especially in the tumultuous times of the late 1960s and in the largely white areas where they attended school. Although Gwen loved to be physically active, her parents would not allow her to go to Oxford, even though her brothers played sports there. Her first experience at Oxford – and the first time she met Bill Peterson – was through a summer employment program that placed her at the recreation center when she was 15 years old. She participated in GAA (Girls Athletic Association) activities, but it wasn’t until Title IX passed in 1972 and she began high school at Central that she was able to participate in competitive team sports. She played volleyball and basketball and was a cheerleader. She was a member of Central High School’s state champion girls basketball team in 1976, the year of her graduation. She graduated from Winona State University, where she earned a degree in business administration and played sports recreationally. She later earned a master’s degree in library science from the College of St. Catherine. She worked for St. Paul Public Library for several years, but spent more than three decades working for St. Paul Parks and Recreation. Gwen was a divorced mother of one when she met Bill Peterson many years after their initial encounter. They married in 1999 and have been together for a total of 36 years.

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OH 186.14

Oral history interview with Gwen Peterson, January 30, 2026. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 24 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (61 pages).

Subjects discussed include growing up in Omaha until she was 10 years old; the culture shock of moving to Minnesota in 1968; being bussed from Rondo to mostly white schools north of Rondo; parents insisting that she and her siblings travel (especially outside of Rondo) as a group, for protection; making friends with white classmates through their involvement in sports and other school activities; close relationship among her siblings to this day; feeling frustrated that her parents would not allow her and her sisters the same freedom they granted her brothers; parents insisting girls needed an escort when out in the community; parents not allowing her to go to or participate in activities/sports at Oxford; mother a housewife because father didn’t want her to work; mother being Gwen’s best friend and encouraging her toward independence; historical context of late 1960s, including civil rights movement; feeling detached from women’s movement because it was so focused on white women’s issues; always being an active child, but not having any formal outlets for it; participating in GAA activities in junior high because there were no other athletic opportunities for girls in the pre-Title IX era; not learning to play sports at Oxford like her eventual teammates at Central (Lisa Lissimore, Linda Roberts, etc.) had; first experience at Oxford when she was 15 and had a summer job there; meeting Bill for the first time and being intimidated by him; Bill being able to “fit in” to the African American Rondo community because it was his community, too, and because he knew who he was; being in high school just after Title IX passed; being invited to play volleyball at Central; brother Robert teaching her some basketball skills; playing on inaugural girls basketball team at Central; learning game from brother, teammates (some of whom had more experience), and coach Steve Studer and with natural talent; Title IX being “an awakening”; Central basketball team’s growth over her three years of high school, leading to state championship in 1976; championship game the first time her parents saw her play; deep support of team from Rondo community; memories of particular games; difference in access, facilities for girls’ and boys’ teams at Central; not planning to attend college until her high school counselor convinced her; deciding to focus on her studies at Winona State; graduating in 1981, then working at Control Data for a while; marrying first husband in 1981, daughter born 1984, divorced 1988; meeting Bill again at a picnic in 1988; eventually dating and marrying him; starting SUGAA, a nonprofit providing athletic opportunities for girls in the Summit-University area, at MLK Center (Oxford could not accommodate it); earning her master’s degree, working for St. Paul Public Library and starting Urban Library Program; spending most of her career in St. Paul Parks and Recreation, retiring in 2025; Oxford as a cornerstone for Rondo community; the uniqueness of St. Paul Parks and Rec, the recreation center system in St. Paul, and Oxford in particular.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Candace was born in 1961 in Saint Paul, the fourth of five kids. She lived on Central Avenue until second grade, when her family moved to Dayton Avenue west of Lexington. All five kids were involved at Oxford, from the time it was a playground to when it became a full-fledged recreation center. Candace said she “lived at Oxford,” where she played softball, basketball, football, and ran track. (Her younger brother, Stacy, played football and would go on to play professionally for the New York Giants.) She attended Maxfield and J.J. Hill elementary schools, Ramsey Junior High, and graduated from Harding High School in 1979. She attended the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis Community and Technical College, and earned a degree in Human Services from Metro State University. She has worked at Saint Paul College since 1993.

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OH 186.15

Oral history interview with Candace Robinson, July 18, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 39 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (51 pages).

Subjects discussed include Growing up in and around Rondo, first on Central Avenue, then on Dayton; graduating from Harding instead of Central because she had begun a college prep program in Northfield, MN, didn’t like it, came back to Saint Paul, and mother directed her toward Harding for its academics; growing up with a strong, activist role model in her mother, Gladys Robinson Thomas; siblings (in order) Leighton, Kimberly, Ramonn “Pooky,” and Stacy; mom from Waterloo, Iowa, with family roots in Durant, MS; father, John Thomas, from Oklahoma, working at Armour meatpacking plant, then at the airport; mother a social worker and, with Katie McWatt, a strong neighborhood activist; mother being part of Model Cities and founding an organization (Refugees of African Descent) to help children born of African American GIs and Vietnamese women during the U.S.-Vietnam war and other refugees of African descent; mom earning a social work degree from the University of Minnesota; Candace’s first experience with sports being in the neighborhood and at Oxford playing basketball, football, softball and running track at Oxford; mother supportive of kids’ involvement in sports and at Oxford, but not having sports as a priority over academics; playing guard and forward in basketball, quarterback, halfback, and end in football; shifting athletic activity to high school, but playing at Oxford throughout elementary and junior high; Oxford as a community of families where kids from the neighborhood congregated every day; athlete role models among her siblings and other kids from neighborhood, such as Weller Johnson; participating in other activities at Oxford, such as arts and crafts (with Pat Gaustad), coronations, dances, cooking class; main involvement at Oxford when it had a brick building after warming house but before permanent/current building; influential adults at Oxford, including Steve Winfield, Frank White, Bill Peterson, Alonzo Lucas, someone nicknamed “Tiny”; learning social skills and pride in being a young African American from her involvement and mentoring at Oxford; played basketball for two years at Harding, until it became too difficult to do so far from home; playing against former Oxford / neighborhood teammates while at Harding, including Lisa Lissimore; attending University of Minnesota for two years after high school, then leaving and working for African American attorney Jeffrey Hassan, Minnesota Mutual, and Saint Paul College; returning to school at Minneapolis Community College and finishing at Metro State University while still working at Saint Paul College; involvement with Shoot for the Stars basketball clinic for girls, with Lisa Lissimore, Linda Roberts, Kathie Eiland-Madison, and others.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Minnesota History Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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Biographical Information: Russell Taylor was born in St. Paul in 1951 and raised in the Rondo neighborhood, one of five children raised by a single mother. The family first lived in various locations on the eastern end of Rondo before moving to the western end just as Russell was starting 6th grade, at which time he became involved at Oxford playground. He learned to speed skate at Oxford, eventually taking third place in the city championship race at Lake Como. It was at Oxford that he began playing football and basketball as well. He played both sports at Central High School and was an All-City athlete. He graduated in 1969, played ball in junior college and for a year at Tuskegee University, lived in California for 15 years, met his wife while working at Target Center, and has lived in Bemidji since 2020. He has been inducted into Central High School’s C Club and says that he gained lifelong confidence from the coaches and mentors at Oxford.

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OH 186.16

Oral history interview with Russell Taylor, November 19, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, M4A (2 hours), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (54 pages).

Subjects discussed include Growing up in Rondo neighborhood, first on the eastern side; skating and playing outside at The Hollow; attending camps run by Ober Boys Club and Hallie Q. Brown; attending McKinley, Maxfield, and J.J. Hill elementary schools; learning to skate at McKinley; playing, as a child, in the trench dug to construct I-94; moving to western side of Rondo, near Oxford, just before 6th grade, age 12; playing in the woods on the edge of the playground; becoming friends, classmates, and teammates with David Winfield; being invited to play football and basketball at Oxford; growing up as oldest of five children raised by a single mother; mom (Elizabeth Barbara Taylor) relying on public assistance when needed, working as a domestic for a family in Highland Park, attending beauty school and working as a beautician, then working at Wilder Foundation; memories and descriptions of Rondo neighborhood before and after freeway; Rondo boundaries defined by redlining and zoning policies; being trained to be an appraiser by HUD, an attempt to ensure fair appraisals for homes in Rondo; Rondo a well-maintained neighborhood, good place to live; “rough-around-the-edges” athletes from eastern end of Rondo who also got into trouble along Selby Avenue; Bill Peterson becoming director at Oxford, having to earn trust of African American men who had already been coaching at the playground; Bill earning trust and respect by teaching and modeling discipline and hard work; Oxford becoming home to competitive sports teams, having a reputation as being “clean-cut”; getting hockey skates for Christmas in 9th grade, then trading them in for used speed skates; Bill creating an oval skate track at Oxford for kids to prepare for races; winning race at Oxford, placing 3rd at Como; being invited to skate for some white clubs, but unable to afford it; talented collegiate and professional athletes coming to play and practice at Oxford because of its stellar reputation; having better football coaches at Oxford than at Central High School; boycott/walk-out of African American football players at Central to protest biased coaching in 1968, just after Tommie Smith and John Carlos protest at Olympics in Mexico City; boycott helping younger African Americans who would play football at Central, including Stacy Robinson; Black football players at Central losing opportunity to play at college level due to lack of mentoring/guidance from white head coach; playing football at Tuskegee for one season, until coach left for Kentucky State; coaches at Oxford serving as good role models, holding jobs, volunteering to coach and mentor young people; building confidence at Oxford; being inducted into Central High School’s C Club.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila via Zoom.

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Biographical Information: Frank White is a Rondo elder, former athlete, coach, official, administrator and historian and author. He was born in St. Paul in November 1945 and first became involved at Oxford Playground in 1957/58, when he played for the Giants baseball team. A multi-sport athlete and walk-on basketball player at the University of Minnesota, he began working part-time at Oxford in 1970 while still a student. In 1972, he became director at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center; two years later, he took a job as Community Education Coordinator for the Summit-University Education Center. In the latter capacity, he would provide programs at Oxford and J.J. Hill and Maxfield schools. He also coordinated the Pillsbury Holiday Basketball Tournament at Oxford and MLK. He helped train sports officials at Oxford (and other sites) in the late 1990s and began a personal walking-for-exercise program at Oxford in 2012. He had a multi-decade career with Richfield Parks and Recreation and was part of the Minnesota Twins’ RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities) program. He remains an advocate for Oxford and African American history in St. Paul and Minnesota.

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OH 186.17

Oral history interview with Frank White, February 19, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (1 hour, 45 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (39 pages).

Subjects discussed include his first experience at Oxford site through a relationship with teammate John Cotton, whose family lived in post-World War II era Quonset huts that were at that location; playing baseball at Ober Boys Club in the mid-late 1950s against teams from Oxford; being asked by Mr. Carter, coach of Oxford’s baseball team, to play for the Oxford Giants; desire to become a CPA and studying business and accounting at the University of Minnesota while playing basketball as a walk-on; stopping at Oxford with friend and teammate Steve Winfield, who worked there, to attend a meeting, after which Billy Peterson offered him a part-time job at Oxford; working at Oxford while still at the university; working full-time at Oxford, then at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center; coaching at Oxford and MLK even while working elsewhere; working as Community Education Coordinator for Summit-University; inability to pursue recreation degree at the university because it required full-time study; the small number of people of color in recreation field in 1970s (and now); coordinating the Pillsbury Holiday Basketball Tournament at Oxford and MLK for 20 years starting in mid-1970s; fighting against other teams’ unwillingness to come to the Rondo, Summit-University and Oxford neighborhood due to negative perceptions of neighborhood; becoming a de facto father, brother, uncle, elder, mentor to kids coming through Oxford and other recreation sites; passing on values of respect, timeliness, cleanliness, hard work to young people through work at Oxford and elsewhere; officiating and training other officials of color at Oxford; changing values among recreational users and staff; the need to appreciate the hard work that went into building a place like Oxford and the need for a comprehensive, system-wide training for staff in parks and recreation.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Oxford Community Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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OH 186.18

Oral history interview with Frank White, May 28, 2025. 1 master audio file: digital, WAV (2 hours, 38 minutes), 1 user audio file: digital, MP3, and 1 transcript (56 pages).

Subjects discussed include viewing the job at Oxford as just a job, then realizing it was also about teaching and modeling values and behavior; the importance of cleanliness in maintaining a good image of and atmosphere at Oxford; working with Bill Peterson and Steve Winfield at Oxford; learning importance of cleanliness and respect from family and from time in U.S. Air Force; coaching football and basketball at Oxford; learning importance of giving back and helping people from his parents; qualities that make a good coach, including good communication skills with kids and parents, having physical skills, having an understanding of who you’re coaching and coaching kids at and to the appropriate level; differences in coaching girls versus boys; his father and uncle being outstanding athletes; playing pee wee baseball at Ober Boys Club when family lived on Dale; growing to love basketball more than baseball while in high school, having played basketball at Ober Boys and Hallie Q. Brown; wanting to play basketball in college but not able to afford tuition; joining the U.S. Air Force in January 1965 and playing on the basketball team at several bases; returning to Minnesota and being a walk-on to the University of Minnesota freshman basketball team until he was cut for skipping class to attend practice; playing on intramural teams and on Pillsbury Kings amateur team, which won a national championship; playing fast-pitch softball, for which he was inducted into the Hall of Fame; officiating basketball at Oxford and the Martin Luther King Recreation Center, the Minnesota State High School League, and at college level; qualities that make a good official, including good communication skills, positive ethics, knowing and understanding rules, showing respect for coaches and players; changing demographics among coaches and officials over the years in MSHSL, to include more people of color and women; relationship and comparison of main recreation sites in Rondo, including Ober Boys Club, the Hollow, Hallie Q. Brown, Oxford, and MLK Center; networking with others in the recreation field to bring new ideas and develop new programs at the King Center; the factors that make Oxford unique, due to the impact of the construction of I-94; Oxford being known as the place to play, especially football; comparable recreation and community centers such as El Rio Vista and Neighborhood House on the West Side, Merriam Park, and Phyllis Wheatley Community Center in Minneapolis; the importance of training staff at recreation centers and the importance of capturing the history of Oxford.

Interviewed by Kim Heikkila at the Oxford Community Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota.

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Community centers -- Minnesota -- Saint Paul -- History.

African Americans -- Minnesota -- Saint Paul -- History.

African American youth -- Recreation -- Minnesota -- Saint Paul -- History.

Youth -- Recreation -- Minnesota -- Saint Paul -- History.

Community life -- Minnesota -- Saint Paul -- History.

Heikkila, Kim, 1968- interviewer.

Christian, Denny, interviewee.

Conover, Florence, interviewee.

Crowe, Robert, 1956- interviewee.

Crumley, Richard, interviewee.

Geng, Donny, interviewee.

Hicks, Peggy Jackson, interviewee.

Hughes, John, 1952- interviewee.

Lissimore, Lisa, interviewee.

Littles-Butler, Valerie, interviewee.

Mgeni, Yusef, interviewee.

Montgomery, Debbie Gilbreath, 1946- interviewee.

Peterson, Billy, 1940- interviewee.

Peterson, Gwen, interviewee.

Robinson, Candace, 1961- interviewee.

Taylor, Russell, 1951- interviewee.

White, Frank M. (Sports Administrator), interviewee.

Places:

Summit-University Neighborhood (Saint Paul, Minn.)

Rondo (Saint Paul, Minn.)

Document Types:

Interviews.

Oral histories (document genres).

Sound recordings.

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