I got involved in the Worcester Women’s History Project in 1999 and I’ve been involved since and I helped establish this oral history program. I think it’s a very important program for the city and really beyond that because as I mentioned, I had gotten interested in genealogy and my family from Southern Italy they didn’t—my grandmother—my great-grandmother didn’t even know how to write so when she came to this country all I have is an “X” from her in her signature block with her passport. So when I started to do genealogy, I couldn’t find any letters or diaries or anything like that because she couldn’t even write, but it doesn’t mean that her life wasn’t important. So she would be considered an ordinary woman, but she did great things for her neighborhood and for her family and I wanted to make sure we could capture the stories of women and that was really the genesis of my thought.
Linda Rosenlund was born in Worcester in 1960 and grew up in Bellingham, Massachusetts after the age of seven. After graduating from Assumption College in 1982, she got married and worked a few different jobs before finally working where she is now, at Assumption College. In this interview, Linda discusses her life story, including her various jobs, her experience with her family, and her affiliation with the Worcester Women’s History Project. Linda was raised in a family which was held up by traditional values through her father. After marrying, she moved to the Burncoat area of Worcester and worked at Raytheon Company, Fitchburg State College, and the Worcester Historical Museum, and coached basketball at Nichols College and Blackstone-Millville Regional High School. She now works at Assumption College where she is the Associate Director of Annual Giving and the Director of Parent Programs. Finally, in this interview, Linda relates how she has helped the community of Worcester through the Worcester Women’s Oral History Project and how she has continued to search for new goals in life in order to improve both her life and the life of the Worcester community.