Interview with Arsenio Barcelos and Katherine Fitzpatrick
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Arsenio Barcelos described growing up on Terceira Island, working in his family's butcher shop. He describes the domestic work undertaken by his sisters to support the family and how they earned money for themselves using their sewing. Arsenio's sisters and mother would create clothing for the entire family, often crafting their own yarn and making creative use of the resources they had such as pieces of old clothing or home-grown cotton. The community worked together to support one another by sharing equipmen, teaching young people how to sew and spin thread, and working together to fulfill orders. Arsenio speaks about only finding an appreciation for the work his sisters did when he came to Canada and no longer had their support for tasks like washing and mending clothing. However, it was never something he was particularly interested in learning more about.