In this 2025 interview, Joyce Fields-Ray discusses her life growing up in the Union-Miles neighborhood. She describes frequently-visited businesses, such as restaurants, ice cream parlors, and roller skating rinks. She recounts her garden plot at the Miles Elementary School garden, early experiences of racism, and other memories from along Miles Avenue. At the end of the interview, she summarizes what has changed and stayed the same throughout the neighborhood.
In this 2025 interview, Carol Ford talks about growing up along Miles Avenue in the 1960s and 1970s. She discusses the racial composition of the neighborhood, the variety of businesses on Miles Avenue, and her experiences of spending time outdoors. Additionally, she talks about racial tensions between residents of Union-Miles and Slavic Village. At the end of the interview, she talks about the changes of the neighborhood and leaves a message for future generations.
In this 2025 interview, Gifted Garrett discusses his early life growing up in the Cleveland neighborhoods of Miles, Tremont, St. Clair-Superior, and Kinsman in the 1980s and 1990s. He describes how the Miles neighborhood has changed throughout the years. At the end of the interview, Garrett details his path to owning Kyrie’s Kafe, a restaurant located on Kinsman Road.
In this 2025 interview, Huey Haynes II, the owner of Haynes Firestone Tires on Miles Avenue, discusses his early life in the Glenville neighborhood in the 1960s. He describes the Haynes family history of owning gas and auto service stations across Cleveland and how he became the owner of Haynes Firestone Tires. He also describes the impact of his family on his life, why he became a business owner, and the changes that he has witnessed in Cleveland throughout his lifetime.
In this 2025 interview, Roshawn Sample, the Executive Director of NuPoint Community Development Corporation, talks about her early, positive memories of the Union-Miles neighborhood, her experience in the public schools, and her pathway to working at NuPoint (formerly Union Miles Development Corporation). She also describes her experience attending University of Akron, raising her daughter in Lee-Harvard, and working as a social worker. At the end of the interview, she encourages young people to pursue their dreams.
In this 2025 interview, Dan Shields discusses his early life growing up in the Union-Miles neighborhood. He retells the story of his Polish and Irish family arriving in Cleveland in the 1800s, and discusses his parents’ and grandparents’ experiences living along Union Avenue and Broadway Avenue: his grandfather worked at the steel mill in the area. Shields describes his childhood in the neighborhood: specifically memories from Garfield Park and Calvary Cemetery. He talks fondly of his paper route and how it gave him a greater understanding of his community. Shields describes the racial changes that the area saw in the 1960s and how these changes impacted his life. He discusses the neighborhood in the present-day and his hopes for its future.
In this 2025 interview, Mark Smith, pastor at Sanctuary Baptist Church, talks about his early life in Hartford, Connecticut, his move to Cleveland, and his life in and outside of the church. He discusses his career path, his involvement in the Mt. Pleasant and Union-Miles neighborhoods, and his hopes for the future of Sanctuary Baptist Church.
Southeast Side Stories 