TRANSCRIPTION
What are your earliest childhood memories?
My earliest childhood memories were growing up on my grandfather's ranch i'd always spend my weekends helping him take care of the little goats and cows, there was also a lake on the ranch and i'd go fishing there as a kid.
Would you see yourself living in Mexico today?
No,i've lived here for most of my life so i guess you can say that i'm used to it already,even though Mexico is where i was raised.
What was it like growing up in Mexico back in your time?
I
had a
lot of good memories growing up in mexico i would help my grandfather
out in his
ranch, i would ride horses out there, my grandfather would also race horses, my brothers and i would go almost every weekend to the horse tracks with him i
enjoyed
that as a kid i was probalby around 12 yrs old.
![Baldemar Mata Flores & Maria Aurora Rodriguez getting married ,1956, in Villa Union Coahuila](wedding.jpg)
How has Mexico changed since youv'e lived there?
Oh,it's
changed
a lot its more modern now more technology when i was growing up most
families didnt even
have a t.v, we had a radio and i would hear the baseball games.My
my
entertainment as a kid was hearing the New York Yankees play.
How was living in mexico different from living in the United States?
Well, the United States had more opportunities, there was more
money to be made too,
it was a better living for the people in Mexico.
Did a lot of people during your time want to move to the United
States?
Well... yes some people not so much the people who've lived in the area there entire lives, there parents and even grandparents were raised in the same small towns they were raised in, so they didnt find much need to leave, but the younger people who wanted to get out to make money and have more opportunites wanted to leave to the the United States.
Do you think you raising your children in Mexico would have been
different from raising them in the U.S why?
Oh yeah it would have been a
lot
different, from the education they received to the jobs that they have
now, the
U.S had more opportunities that why i moved out for my family as well as
myself.
Some of your siblings decided to stay in Mexico, why?
They
went to
college in Mexico they had good jobs.My sister was a teacher and my
brother was
a public accounter, that was just there choice.
How was the cost of living in Mexico different from the U.S?
It was a little
cheaper, when i was growing up it was 8 pesos to the dollar now its 14
pesos to
the dollar; the dollar value is worth more now but it's even cheaper becuase of the economy today.
What would you see yourself doing if you still lived in Mexico?
Well i was into working with cars so i probalbly would have
liked to
have my own mechanic shop.
Were there many career options in Mexico while you were living
there?
Not to much.. but i had friends in the U.S who were working
there and a good friend of mine
found me my job at jordan ford.
![Grandpa with BaldemarJr. and Raul Flores at San Pedro Park in 1961](park.jpg)
Why did you move to the United states?
Well for a better
life a job
opportunity, iwas working as a mechanic for Jordan Ford. And also my wife
was
born in San Antonio and lived there most of her life we met in mexico
but both
wanted the same life in United States.
What did you do for fun as a young boy?
I would love to
go to
my grandfathers ranch i'd help him take care of the animals
and i
would also go out fishing, those were my favorite things to do as
a young boy.
What jobs were avaliable for young kids in Mexico back then?
Some
of my
friends would shine shoes on the weekends or help out in the ranches.
![Baldemar Flores Sr. with Baldemar Jr. and brother Raul Flores on Brand new 1957 Ford Galaxy 500 1st car bought in the U.S 1,500 bought in 1st year working at Jordan Ford.](car.jpg)
What type of job did you have growing up in mexico?
I
worked at a
coal mine where i earned 1,000 pesos every two weeks, that was a lot of
money
to be earned at that point. That was about $125.00 dollars then. Which in the year 1949 was equal to 1,111.87 every two weeks i was earning. Cost-of-Living Calculator
Did you become a United States citizen?
yes
What was the first car you purchased in the United States?
It was a 1957 Ford Galaxy 500 it was the First Car i bought from Jordan Ford my first year of working with them they gave me a good deal, i paid $1,500 in 1957 which is equal to 11,300.71 now. Cost-of-Living Calculator
![Baldemar Flores on left with Wife on right Maria Flores, and children Raul,Liz,Idialia,Hector and two cousins](family.jpg)
Is there anything else you would like to add to this interview?
I would just like to say that im proud to be an American.