Carol Caudle Oral History Interview

The interview begins with a discussion of Caudle's childhood. At a young age, she began to have breathing problems and, acting on the advice of a docter, her family moved from Portland to Bend. Caudle describes growing up on a farm with her four brothers and her experiences at Bend High School. She then discusses her decision to attend Oregon State College, her first jobs in Corvallis, and other aspects of college life such as living in Hawley Hall, studying math, playing powderpuff Football, attending sporting events, and the social scene.

Caudle then speaks about how she met her future husband - Daunt - outside of her History of American Civics class, describes their dating experience which lead to marriage, and details her decision to leave OSC with Daunt after he graduated in 1961. From there, she talks about Daunt's work as a log trucker in Coquille, Oregon, and their experience of building a house in Coos Bay. After that, she tells about raising children and moving to California for a few years before coming back to settle down in Tualatin. She moves on to speak about why she got into nursing and her memories of applying to nursing school, her training experience, and her first nursing job. She also discusses what nursing was like in the beginning of her career, how nursing changed throughout the decades, and why she was drawn to emergency room nursing in particular.

Next, Caudle discusses her faith in God and how that has impacted her life through the years, including her volunteer work with Medical Teams International. She recounts the eleven trips she took as a member of this disaster response organization, visits to Honduras after flooding, Haiti following an earthquake, and Mozambique during a war. She recounts some of her experiences in these countries and how she felt working in unsafe areas. At the end, she talks about going back to visit Oregon State University at various times in her life, how the university has changed, and the importance of education.