Susan Daughtry Walker Oral History

Details

Who's responsible?: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries (Repository)
How much has been digitized?: This collection has been digitized in its entirety.
Where can I find more information?: https://uncg.as.atlas-sys.com/repositories/2/resources/1059
What's in the full collection?: August 2013 oral history transcript.
Full biography: Susan Daugherty Walker (b.1962) served in the United States Air Force from 1982 to 1986. Susan Daugherty Walker was born 1 March, 1962 in Cumberland, Maryland, but spent the majority of her adolescence in State College, Pennsylvania. In June 1980, she graduated from State College Area High School, and then attended Pennsylvania State University for four semesters before deciding to study business at South Hills Business School. After graduating with a business degree in 1982, Walker met with a United States Air Force recruiter. With the support of her parents, Walker enlisted in the United States Air Force and was sent to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas for basic training. While there, Walker passed the Medical Administration Specialist exam. Walker was then sent to Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in Goldsboro, North Carolina, where she worked in the Medical Records department for four weeks, before being assigned as the secretary to the Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge of the hospital squadron. Walker then worked in the Patient Affairs Office, scheduling medical appointments for military personnel. In 1984, Walker met and married her husband and they had a son. In 1986, when she had to decide whether to reenlist or not, Walker decided to get out of military in order to care for her son. With the benefit of the training she received from the United States Air Force, Walker became a medical transcriptionist.
Topics: Women's History
Military
Branch of service: Air Force
Conflict: Post-Vietnam, Panama, Grenada (1975-1989)
Subject headings: United States--History--1945-
United States. Air Force
Contributing Institution: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries

: Oral history interview with Susan D. Walker; Primarily documents Susan Daugherty Walker's adolescence and her service with the United States Air Force. Walker recalls her adolescence in State College, Pennsylvania, her involvement with church and choir, and her time spent at State College Area High School. She discusses her desire to join the military from an early age, as well as her ambition to be a writer. Walker recounts the basic training she received at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, the difficulties she faced with physical training, and the many positions she held at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. Walker discusses the frustrations she felt in her various positions, the discrimination against women that she observed, and the difficulty of transitioning back into civilian life, as well as the lessons she learned about direction, focusing, and working towards goals.

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Women Veterans Historical Project

Susan Daughtry Walker Oral History

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