Oral History Archive

Filtering by Brighton Beach back to all

Zohra Saed

Poet and writer from Afghanistan who grew up in Southern Brooklyn

Nasim Almuntaser

Brooklyn College history student grew up working in his family's bodega in Brighton Beach

Amparo Garcia

Lifelong Brighton Beach resident shares stories of Brighton Beach then and now

Alisa Minyukova

Brooklyn artist who emigrated from Russia as a child is drawn to Ocean Parkway and Brighton Beach

Yeva Novik

A 90-year-old Coney Island resident recounts her journey from Moscow to Southern Brooklyn

Jewel Hough

Working at Coney Island's Deno's Wonder Wheel Park for 18 Years

Olga Martynchuk

Mother of professional boxing star Nikita Ababiy

Sheila Levrant de Bretteville

Memories of growing up a block from the ocean and being head of Lincoln High School's Art Squad

Yanglun Hsiao

A filmmaker and film editor from Taiwan living in Brighton Beach

Sam Shlivko

Growing up in the Russian community in Coney Island and Brighton Beach

Abby Jordan

Growing up Latina in Brighton Beach with a special connection to nature and the ocean

Bill Zeidenberg

Memories of growing up on Brighton First Court and a summer job renting beach chairs in Coney Island

Teresa Genaro

Reflections on the history of horse racing in Coney Island in the late 19th and early 20th centuries

Steve Larkin

Memories of working at a Coney Island beach chair and umbrella rental company as a teen in the 1970s

Irina Roizin

Founder and director of Brighton Ballet Theater, now celebrating its 30th year

Patricia Sener

Sea Gate resident and co-founder of CIBBOWS - Coney Island Brighton Beach Open Water Swimmers

Boris Kotlyar

Mermaid Spa founder talks about bringing the Russian banya tradition to Coney Island