[middtube envs0350a-f08 mp3: agiesche_theffernan_102108]
Tim Heffernan is the youngest child in the Heffernan family. After doing an interview with his brother, I was really excited to ask him some of the same questions and see what different responses would come up. In the interview, Tim was more reserved than Gerald in talking about his family, but I gathered important new insights by filling in stories and listening “between the lines”. There were many parallels: when I asked Tim about his religious views after having grown up in such a strict Catholic household, he told me that they put priests and father figures on pedestals. They did not question authority. However, since the recent priest scandals in the Catholic Church, he has stopped going to church. One of the things Tim stressed was what he learned from growing up with such a large family in Little Ireland: you don’t look for handouts and when you bought something, you took care of it. Like Gerald, Tim also talks about flatlanders and notes higher taxes, less community, and the common, sentimental desire of people moving in to “live the life we used to live”. Despite many similarities, there are differences between the brothers. As an auto mechanic and real estate broker, Tim has followed a very different line of work than Gerald, which I felt was a difference that drew them apart in many ways.
00:45 Tim Heffernan as the “baby of the family”
02:04 Started school in Bristol, then moved to Jerusalem SH with two other brothers
03:55 1 month old when the house burned down
05:50 “He was a strict father… but really no problems”, On Catholic household- “It was no problem growing up like that”
07:10 He doesn’t go to church since three years ago because of the priest scandals. “Putting them on the pedestal…”
09:25 Talks about the distance and distortion created by the media. “World War II meant something… when everyone came back they were respected”
12:35 Taught to do things on their own; good memories: “Up home in Starksboro… was a good memory”
12:50 Dairy farm
14:12 Grandparents. “We respected him”, his grandmother’s sweet rolls, maple sugaring
15:55 Sugaring in Starksboro, it has become easier to do, “we want more!”
17:15 Possessive land owners moving from cities in Starksboro “trying to live what we used to live” “they have the means to do with”
18:30 Predicts many more fires, people moving in don’t know the care that goes into using a woodstove.
20:00 Changes in the town- “You don’t know your neighbors”, higher taxes, less farms
21:00 On opportunities to work in Starksboro as a teenager, “I wish I had stayed there” Farmed at 13 to support himself and go to Bristol HS. “No problem at all!”
24:40 Punk- “Punk was a chip off the father… he was strictly Irish”.
25:45 Self-sufficiency: “You didn’t look for handouts…When you bought something, you took care of it”, combat boots for example
29:00 Started at Randolph VT Tech, “and I decided to like that”
29:30 California for a few months.
31:15 –chimes- Real estate in Bristol. People coming in say- “I’ll come here and make it my way”… it’s a “bedroom community”.
33:45 In 2020- Would like to see Starksboro slow down! The more people you get, the more demands. Suggestions on how to slow down? “Put a gate up!” –laughs-
37:30 His relationship to his brother Gerald- “We’re probably both educated… but his education is in history”
39:45 Auto mechanics… talking about his work.
43:20-53:00 Showing me some pictures
56:45 Talking about changes in the environment, expensive approaches to environmental problems, “Everyone took care of themselves… didn’t have landfills”
59:00 Losing skills- “Different strokes for different folks”. “Some folks say, ‘Teachers were taught to read and follow directions’… I never said that to Gerald”