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My name is Diana Brownlee. Gabrielle. I grew up in gum board Canal Zone. I went to school there, and after that, I am moved into the city. A few years, like in 1956 we moved off the canal zone, my family and grand parents and we lived in the city and re about 13 ST Paddy K.

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And with me and my family, I should say, we, uh, went to school in the Panama City and had a good time. I graduated. I went to Liz Ellis senoritas on. I also attended. Um, Escala Modesta, Like the l E graduated from there also. And Pan Gamboa was a place a community like Aled, the family together, all the parents know each other.

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We had a lot of sports, a lot of activities and fun. We play in the afternoon, and it was fantastic growing up. And even though I moved to the city, I had relatives still in the canal zone, which in Gamboa and I used to still visit there and spend time.

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So everyone that I grew up with that was still living there had, um, commute with and, you know, we kept friends and That's how it comes. I learned with the growth of Panama on, then, uh, maybe 10 years or so are one day changed the canal zone, and I visit there.

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I was surprised to see where I used to live. It's just planes. They start to rebuild, and I stayed in the resource they have up there in the Gamboa. But it's it's a retreat to visit. To go back to Panama would always stay with my with me.

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The fact that it's a place the economy is low, but you always have a way to survive and to live, and it's just fantastic. I just love it. Can't wait to go back and visit again. My family moved to the city. My mother had, um just I stayed with my grandmother when my mother married and lived in the Canal zone.

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But then she, uh, the divorce and, uh, so she gave up the quarters. That's what they used to call it quarters and moved in with my grandparent's, which my grandfather he was one that worked on the canals on the on the canal and my father. He also worked in the judging division in the boiler room so since the separation.

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We stayed with my grandparent's, But then my grandfather retired when he retired when they passed the treaty. I think in 56 that all of the presidents that lives on the Canal Zone unretired. They had to move out of the quarters off the canal zone. So that's the reason why we had to go to the Panama City.

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But, um, and then when my mother separated from my father and we had to leave the Canal Zone School because then, as they used to say, we lost our privilege in living on the Canal zone and I just go to school in Panama. So we went toe Primary Elementary school.

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They're in high school in Panama City, and it was nice. I enjoy it. I It's a place where you can survive. It's hard and there's a lot of poverty there. But you always have way to survive because of this stuff. Things there are so economically to survive with.

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It was pretty nice, and I just enjoy going to Panama the opportunity that my grand parents, my parents, had to support the family and my L family, you know, was from my grandmother my grandfather they were from my grandfather was from Irish and he was one that build the canal.

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And without that, without the canal and without our grandparent's, they probably wouldn't have. I wouldn't have probably on the canal, So it's very, very productive for us to have been part of that. My most memory is that, uh, way of living. There was like a community where all the families know each other.

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They take care of each other's family saying, like my mother and she had friends and neighbors. And so and we all look after they all look after the other parents kids and it was just like we all one big family in Gamble and all of the community and in, uh, Canal Zone, We all know each other and the activities they had we have.

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We have a lot of sports events, a lot of, uh, things that they are. The community come like we had the 22nd of February where they have like, a field day, and so all of those stuff was track and field sports, and it was just a lot of fun.

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Believe me, we had more fun then that the kids are having now because we always have something to do. And we always get indulge into something freedom, production, productive ity. And it's just getting country together because of the past way they have on the canal that they can transport from other country and let the country grow.

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I brought back Moelis the different colors, the abstract, the figure that they mold into the this fabric and just the way they do it. It's fascinating and how it just illuminate the room when you have one up and you try toe, look at it and you see all that different colors.

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I love abstract. So just looking at the different colors, it's just fascinating. And still they able to put it together and have the pigeon and the bird. And, you know, so many different. Um uh, design, Yeah, jewelry and just the way of living. I still refer back to what my grand parents and my parents taught me, and I'm trying to instill it into my, um, my kids, grand Children and also the food.

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And we still do the same kind of food that we cook, and it's just will never change. I remember those days that when they have the field, they when the whole family get together the pregnant, the sport events, the competition and the friends that I have forever.

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Even though we went through a separate ways and even though I had moved off from the Canal Zone into the city of Panama, we still kept friends. We still family, we still communicate with each other and we talk about Panama. We still live Panama, and that's never change.

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Just instill in me. My kids get tired Sometimes when I'm talking about Panama in Panama, we used to do this in Panama. I says, Well, because that's where I that's where my roots are and I do intend toe maybe one day, go back and live there.

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I'm praying for to do that. At first I thought about it that I says that probably won't work because we needed the support of the United States to continue. And with that, it also changed the canal zone because they a lot of the community had to close down.

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They had to move out and get resident in in the city, and it just abolish the the community that we grow up in and it seems like it's working now, but at that time, just think about all that. But then it's good for the change because then they live in the city and they really get to know Panama itself other than just being on the canal zone.

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Because it was a different type of living on the canal zone that in the city So now living in this in Panama, they get to really indulge into the community and to really learn more about Panama itself. I recollect the fact that my grand parents, they were for they weren't that old.

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There was, I think, in the fifties sixties when they had to move off and, uh, it what's a little different from living into the canal zone and then move into the city? The city was a different way of living a different community. And so it sort of impact us a little bit to the fact that on the canal zone we have the commissary where we can get the food, grocery ends.

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And in Panama it's a different way of shopping for food because, um, they didn't at the time when we did move, we didn't have. They didn't have those big grocery stores and those stories that they have now. So it was like going toe purchase on a daily basis.

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And believe me back then, in the fifties, early sixties, what's five of us? And we was able to even live off of $5 from a complete meal. Panama is the greatest place to live, to grow up, to learn to survive. Thio. Thank you visit and the people there are very helpful, but they of course, in every country there is some kind of violence and whatnot, but you just have to be careful and take care of yourself.

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But it's a nice place to live in tow. Visit on. I will go back and live if I get the opportunity in Panama, know that it was just my privilege and I was happy toe talk about it because I live here in Gainesville now, and I have not been able to talk to anyone too much that would understand, doesn't really know much or would understand It's a beautiful place on what it's the changes in it.

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Now. It's so much nice so much we are improving and Panama is getting better