Skyline College/North San Mateo County Oral History Archives, SkylineCollege Library
Student project for LSCI 110– Digital Oral Research Project, Skyline College

 The Life of Marichu Menrige

Click here to read to read the research essay, “Life’s Challenges”, by Christy Revita

Click on the links below to hear audio segments from an April 2007 interview by Christy Revita
with Marichu Menrige
, who is my soon to be mother-in-law.

 

Marichu Menrige

 

Table of Contents:
1. Growing Up In the Philippines

2. Her Education in the Philippines

3. Parents Going To America

4. Meeting Her Husband

5. Parents Finding Out About Her Husband

6. Arriving America

7. Having Kids

8. First Job

9. Other Jobs

10. Positive and Negative Experiences

11. Parents Consent To Finally Marry Her Husband

12. Differences between America and the Philippines

13. Returning Home and how she felt about the Philippines

14. Advice

 

 

Segment 1
Growing Up

Her life growing up in the Philippines when she was younger.

 

Filipino Flag

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 2
Education

Her days going to a public school, and how the school system ranked the kids.

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 3
Parents Going To America

Parents going to America, and leaving their kids behind in the Philippines with their grandmother.

Parents and siblings


    

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 4
Meeting Her Husband

Her husband lived practically next door to her in Bayangbang Pangasinan where they met.

 

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 5
Parents Finding Out About Her Dating

When her Parents found out about her and her husband dating they did not approve, and made them separate.

 

Her parents Flora Batoon and Ferdinand Batoon

 

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 6
Arriving in America

She arrived in America with her two kids (Joyce Menrige and Joseph Menrige), and three months pregnant with her third son (Jason Menrige). Since her parents did not approve with her husband, her did not arrive to the Philippines with them.

 

Her children Joseph Menrige and Joyce Menrige getting ready to come to America

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 7
Having Kids

How it was like for her having kids in the Philippines vs. America.

 

Her youngest son Jason Menrige and herself Marichu Menrige

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 8
First Job

The struggles she went through with juggling her life as a single mom, taking and picking her kids up from school, taking care of her new born baby, and working

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 9
Other Jobs
Her experiences with other jobs in the past.

United Airlines Plane

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

 

Segment 10 

Positive and Negative Experiences 

She had a hard time being away from her family in the Philippines, but at least she had her parents and siblings.

 

Her Family

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

Segment 11

Parents Consent for her to marry her Husband

She was finally able to go back to the Philippines In March 1994 because her parents finally gave her their blessings to marry her husband (April 15, 1994) and did not come back to America till August 1994.

 

 

Joseph Menrige and Marichu Menrige on their wedding day

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

Segment 12

Differences between America and the Philippines

Differentiating the Philippines vs. America and telling us where it is better.

 

 

 

America and Philippines Flags

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

Segment 13

Returning to the Philippines and how she felt about it

She returns back to the Philippines every single year because of that feeling of home.

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

 

Segment 14

Advice

Her advice to me, Joyce Menrige, Joseph Menrige, and Jason Menrige (Her Kids) for future life experiences for their kids.

 

Her grandson Jarel Nicholas Revita Menrige

 

 

Back to Table of Contents

                                                                                                                                     

Image sources:


Title:
International Flags-http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.gifs.net/Animation11/Geography_and_History/International_Flags/philippines.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.animationlibrary.com/sc/67/International_Flags/%3Fpage%3D27&h=148&w=270&sz=50&hl=en&start=135&um=1&tbnid=qrkU7vQmdnU_BM:&tbnh=62&tbnw=113&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dphilippine%2Bflags%2B%26start%3D120%26ndsp%3D20%26svnum%3D10%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN 

Title: Airlines.net- http://www.flying-school.com/images/world/UnitedAirlines.jpg 

Title: gung-fu-  http://www.gungfu.com/pics_general/pics_apparel/apparel_a_patches_national_flag_usa_philippine.jpg  

 

*These audio files may be played with Windows Media Player or RealPlayer.
To download a free copy of Windows MediaPlayer, click here.
To download a free copy of Real Player, click here.


last revised: 5-30-07
by Eric Brenner, Skyline College, San Bruno, CA
These materials may be used for educational purposes if you inform and credit the author and cite the source as: North San Mateo County Oral History Archives, Skyline College Library. All commercial rights are reserved.
To contact the coordinator, or send comments or suggestions, email: Eric Brenner at brenner@smccd.net