Safety Saves
In August 2009 I sat in my first Occupational Safety and Health class at Murray State University. I had every intention of getting my degree and going to work with my husband in construction. What actually happened is that I found myself, met some amazing people and continuously get to experience so many amazing things.
I sat in the front row on my first day of my Introduction to Occupational Safety and Health class. The teacher walked in and set his laptop down and with a click of the mouse The Safety Dance came blaring out of the speakers. I bit my tongue to keep from laughing and secretly worried that this was only a sign of how the rest of the semester was going to go. The professor was Dr. Fender and he was a classic example of why you should never judge a book by its cover. To be fair, safety isn't exactly the most interesting subject to teach. The semester started out slow and I was unsure I had chosen the right major but by December everything in my life had changed and I had a new lease on life.
I don't know what I was thinking when I got married at 22. I guess I liked the idea of it. I had dropped out of the police academy to move to Kentucky to be with a man I barely knew. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and I guess I thought getting married was the easy way out. He'd work and pay the bills and I would continue to do what I wanted. My husband very much believed in stereotypical gender roles. I went along with it as much as I could and just kind of accepted it. I had a warped idea that somehow being a woman limited me in life and studying the history of safety changed that. The field of safety got its foundation during World War Two when the men went off to war and the women took their place in the factories. They were forced into the mans role and the world didn't stop. Women were doing everything for themselves and it changed history. Unfortunately, they were also getting hurt. They lacked the strength of the men and the equipment was hard and dangerous to operate. Some women were hurt and others lost their lives but they helped shaped the safety moevement. In 1911 the Traingle Shirtwaist Factory Fire killed many women but created the Fire Safety Code. These women gave their all to help protect today's workers. The more I learned about these amazing women supporting themselves and shaping history the more I wanted to be like them. Every day I was working up more and more courage to go out on my own and it was an amazing feeling.
I spent a lot of time in Dr. Fender's office that semester, mainly because I didn't want to go home. He believed in me and when I told him about the things that were going on at home he would pray with me. He was my safety net and he helped me garner the strength to finally leave my husband. I finished his class with an A and shortly after I left my husband. It was the hardest thing I've ever done but the life I have today is more than I could have ever imagined and I am so grateful to everyone who has played a role in it.
I sat in the front row on my first day of my Introduction to Occupational Safety and Health class. The teacher walked in and set his laptop down and with a click of the mouse The Safety Dance came blaring out of the speakers. I bit my tongue to keep from laughing and secretly worried that this was only a sign of how the rest of the semester was going to go. The professor was Dr. Fender and he was a classic example of why you should never judge a book by its cover. To be fair, safety isn't exactly the most interesting subject to teach. The semester started out slow and I was unsure I had chosen the right major but by December everything in my life had changed and I had a new lease on life.
I don't know what I was thinking when I got married at 22. I guess I liked the idea of it. I had dropped out of the police academy to move to Kentucky to be with a man I barely knew. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and I guess I thought getting married was the easy way out. He'd work and pay the bills and I would continue to do what I wanted. My husband very much believed in stereotypical gender roles. I went along with it as much as I could and just kind of accepted it. I had a warped idea that somehow being a woman limited me in life and studying the history of safety changed that. The field of safety got its foundation during World War Two when the men went off to war and the women took their place in the factories. They were forced into the mans role and the world didn't stop. Women were doing everything for themselves and it changed history. Unfortunately, they were also getting hurt. They lacked the strength of the men and the equipment was hard and dangerous to operate. Some women were hurt and others lost their lives but they helped shaped the safety moevement. In 1911 the Traingle Shirtwaist Factory Fire killed many women but created the Fire Safety Code. These women gave their all to help protect today's workers. The more I learned about these amazing women supporting themselves and shaping history the more I wanted to be like them. Every day I was working up more and more courage to go out on my own and it was an amazing feeling.
I spent a lot of time in Dr. Fender's office that semester, mainly because I didn't want to go home. He believed in me and when I told him about the things that were going on at home he would pray with me. He was my safety net and he helped me garner the strength to finally leave my husband. I finished his class with an A and shortly after I left my husband. It was the hardest thing I've ever done but the life I have today is more than I could have ever imagined and I am so grateful to everyone who has played a role in it.
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