SSgt Barbara E. Swanson, USMCR Oral History Tape 1, Side A

title:

SSgt Barbara E. Swanson, USMCR Oral History Tape 1, Side A

creator:

Swanson, Barbara E. (1957 January 20 - )

subject:

Marine Corps Reserve

description:

Tape 1 of 2, side 1 of 2. Barbara Swanson was born on January 20, 1957 in Pordenone, Italy. Her father was in the Air Force, so she lived the first two years of her life in Italy before her family settled in Camp Springs, Maryland. She graduated from LaReine High School and took some classes at Prince George’s Community College, but didn’t finish a degree. By the time she was 25, she was working as a secretary at Georgetown University School of Dentistry and went to join the Air Force Reserve in March 1982 to earn some extra money. When she went, however, the office was closed. The Navy said she had to be 26, she passed on the Army, and went into the Marine Corps office and asked if they accepted women. She took an intelligence test there, passed, and was sworn in the next day. Her scheduled time for basic training was pushed back to January 1983, and she completed it in March of that year. After graduation, she reported to the Naval Reserve Cener in Anacostia, Washington, DC and was assigned to the Rations Company before being transferred to Surgical Support Company B. She got her orders to active duty after her company’s normal drill the first weekend of December 1990. Her company then traveled to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina and stayed there for two weeks before shipping out to Saudi Arabia. She was in three locations while in Saudi Arabia. First, they were in a camp in Al Jubail, then they were in the desert around 26 miles from Kuwait, and lastly they were in an abandoned civilian hospital. In that first location, people in her unit worked in the warehouse, and she delivered her company’s mail when not on patrol, which she greatly enjoyed. There were air raids almost every night, especially when they were in Al Jubail, and they worked seven days a week the entire time they were in Saudi Arabia. Her company returned to the United States in April 1991, and she returned to the job she had at the OBGYN department at the Georgetown University Hospital without issue. As of the interview, she had 3 years remaining in her required 20, setting her up to leave the service in 2006. As of the interview Swanson had reached the rank of staff sergeant, and for her service she was awarded a Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal, Liberation of Kuwait (Emirate of Kuwait), Liberation of Kuwait (Saudi Arabia), and Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. No transcript of this interview is currently available.

publisher:

Military Women's Memorial Foundation

contributor:

Howie, Megan Dawn

date:

2003-03-29

type:

Audio

format:

Cassette

identifier:

908.01; 2003.908

source:

CLIR - Recordings at Risk

language:

English

relation:

055562

coverage:

Gulf War | Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm—1990-1991 | 1980s | 1990s | 1982-interview

rights:

Unrestricted