On a snowy January 2nd in Heidelberg, I went to work at the im Bosseldorn in the department of Planning and Development. I had been hired the week before new year’s, 1980, by Dr. Lynne Whitaker. Little did I know that the next 15 years would be spent working with and learning from Dr. Whitaker, the single most profound influence on my life after my parents.
My memories of those 15 years are both fuzzy and clear. My first assignment was to the Women’s Project as project secretary. In that capacity, I was responsible for making logistical arrangements, collating and submitting after action reports, and ensuring that teaching/training materials were on site and on time. For every seminar I made hotel reservations for the pairs of instructors who went out to sites all over Germany to teach women to be assertive in the emerging co-ed military workplace.
Occasionally, someone would come from College Park to monitor progress on the contract and I was responsible for those logistics too. At one point, a distinguished overseer from CP was coming (his name escapes me) and Dr. Whitaker and he were scheduled to visit Bad Kreuznach, a small town whose only stoplight was on the base, and with an inordinate number of houses of ill repute. After duly dispatching my two charges to their assignment and with the address of their hotel, I went back to work (probably napping in Dr. Schlesinger’s chair as I was pregnant with my only child during this period). Around quitting time the civilian phone rang. It was Dr. Whitaker, calling in from the “hotel” I had booked. It was a whore house and she was fit to be tied. It was uncomfortable at the time as I frantically searched for a legitimate alternative, but over the years it has become a rich anecdote of my early years at Heidelberg.
Once when we were in Heilbronn we had to visit the Education Center which was near some sort of Family Services agency. A harried mother with three small children was about to go ballistic. Dr. Whitaker strolled up to the woman and offered to take the smallest of her charges while she “took a little break.” I learned from this that it is better to intervene gently than to look away or even to challenge. She said to me, protect the children when you can.
DW, as we called her, had a large sense of humor and a tough sense of justice. She thrived on her intellect and believed in the worth of women. She was devoted to her family but widened that definition to include the many women who worked with her over the years. I was fortunate to be counted among her chosen family. I was even more fortunate to have her as a mentor and friend at whose side I learned to survive in a profession that was hard on women (IT Engineering). I have many treasured anedotes saved up and when I tell the story of my years at UofM, I drag them out for the telling. Almost every one of them involves DW and the lessons I learned from her and by watching her.
I just read the post above about Lynne Whitaker - who also hired me in the late 70s in Heidelberg. I learned that all the classes I was to teach had been cancelled after I had decided to stay, following my first summer assignment at Ramstein (77). Lynne assigned me to some of the Women's Studies weekend seminars - one at Spangdahlem in particular sticks in my mind. The room on base was overflowing with the energy of those early women's seminars. My teaching style still needed work, but I was lucky to hit this one right, and can still remember how Lynne laughed in genuine appreciation. She was a remarkable Texan, with vivid memories of her time as a pilot. She was a mentor to me, as well. In gratitude, Susan O-S
Penelope Roberts
On a snowy January 2nd in Heidelberg, I went to work at the im Bosseldorn in the department of Planning and Development. I had been hired the week before new year’s, 1980, by Dr. Lynne Whitaker. Little did I know that the next 15 years would be spent working with and learning from Dr. Whitaker, the single most profound influence on my life after my parents.
My memories of those 15 years are both fuzzy and clear. My first assignment was to the Women’s Project as project secretary. In that capacity, I was responsible for making logistical arrangements, collating and submitting after action reports, and ensuring that teaching/training materials were on site and on time. For every seminar I made hotel reservations for the pairs of instructors who went out to sites all over Germany to teach women to be assertive in the emerging co-ed military workplace.
Occasionally, someone would come from College Park to monitor progress on the contract and I was responsible for those logistics too. At one point, a distinguished overseer from CP was coming (his name escapes me) and Dr. Whitaker and he were scheduled to visit Bad Kreuznach, a small town whose only stoplight was on the base, and with an inordinate number of houses of ill repute. After duly dispatching my two charges to their assignment and with the address of their hotel, I went back to work (probably napping in Dr. Schlesinger’s chair as I was pregnant with my only child during this period). Around quitting time the civilian phone rang. It was Dr. Whitaker, calling in from the “hotel” I had booked. It was a whore house and she was fit to be tied. It was uncomfortable at the time as I frantically searched for a legitimate alternative, but over the years it has become a rich anecdote of my early years at Heidelberg.
Once when we were in Heilbronn we had to visit the Education Center which was near some sort of Family Services agency. A harried mother with three small children was about to go ballistic. Dr. Whitaker strolled up to the woman and offered to take the smallest of her charges while she “took a little break.” I learned from this that it is better to intervene gently than to look away or even to challenge. She said to me, protect the children when you can.
DW, as we called her, had a large sense of humor and a tough sense of justice. She thrived on her intellect and believed in the worth of women. She was devoted to her family but widened that definition to include the many women who worked with her over the years. I was fortunate to be counted among her chosen family. I was even more fortunate to have her as a mentor and friend at whose side I learned to survive in a profession that was hard on women (IT Engineering). I have many treasured anedotes saved up and when I tell the story of my years at UofM, I drag them out for the telling. Almost every one of them involves DW and the lessons I learned from her and by watching her.
Susan Olden-Stahl
I just read the post above about Lynne Whitaker - who also hired me in the late 70s in Heidelberg. I learned that all the classes I was to teach had been cancelled after I had decided to stay, following my first summer assignment at Ramstein (77). Lynne assigned me to some of the Women's Studies weekend seminars - one at Spangdahlem in particular sticks in my mind. The room on base was overflowing with the energy of those early women's seminars. My teaching style still needed work, but I was lucky to hit this one right, and can still remember how Lynne laughed in genuine appreciation. She was a remarkable Texan, with vivid memories of her time as a pilot. She was a mentor to me, as well. In gratitude, Susan O-S
Martine Robinson Beachboard
A formidable woman.
Rest in peace.
Martine Robinson Beachboard
Maryland in Europe, Heidelberg HQ