Interview with Moira P. Baker, October 24, 1985

Partial Transcript: The following is an unrehearsed taped interview with Moira P. Baker from the University of Notre Dame. The interview was conducted at 7:15 a.m. on October 24th, 1984 at the CAP volunteer center near Martin, Kentucky.

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about her childhood and how she got interested in working in the Appalachian Region. She talks about the political unrest in the United States due to the Vietnam War and how she wanted to make a difference by doing something aside from protesting. She talks about her first impressions of the Christian Appalachian Project and people from Appalachia.

Keywords: Appalachia; Attitudes; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Cleaning; Clearing land; College students; Expectations; Family background; First impressions; Isolation; Loudermilk family; Manual labor; Misconceptions; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Permanent volunteers; Preconceptions; President John F. Kennedy; Protests; Rural areas; Skills; Stereotypes; Student protesters; Temporary volunteers; Transportation; Vietnam War; Willingness

Subjects: Appalachian Region--Social conditions; Appalachian Region.; Berea (Ky.); Childhood.; Children.; College students--Attitudes.; College students--Social conditions; Families.; Mountain people.; Poverty.; Universities and colleges.; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Protest movements; Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Public opinion; Voluntarism.; Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: Now when you talk about building the church in McKee, uh--

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about her duties when she first volunteered with the Christian Appalachian Project, including cleaning and finishing construction on a church building. She talks about her thoughts on why she was there and how she was benefiting the local people.

Keywords: Assignments; Benefits; Building churches; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Cleaning houses; Construction; Duties; Helping; Learning; Manual labor; Ovens; Temporary volunteer quarters; Thinking

Subjects: Building.; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Mountain people.; Scaffolding; Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: Tell me about your first meeting with Father Beiting.

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about getting to know Father Beiting and her first impressions of him. She tells some stories about her time working with Father Beiting.

Keywords: Anecdotes; Breakfasts; Budgets; Camps; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Compromise; Construction; Day of Recollection; Decisions; Donations; Faith; Father Beiting; Father Ralph W. Beiting; Finances; Financial concerns; First impressions; Food; Indefatigable; Knowledge; Mandatory fun; Money; Mr. Waffles; Permanent volunteers; Personality; Relationships; Sense of humor; Songs; Work ethic

Subjects: Beiting, Ralph W.; Building.; Camps.; Finance.; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: What did you do ne--what was your next, uh, responsibilities after the, uh, construction?

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about some of the work she was involved in with the Christian Appalachian Project after she finished working on the construction of the church, including teaching children and the work she did in the Bible schools. She talks about conducting home visits with people in the community. She talks about her use of music in her work. She talks about the specialized qualifications of her fellow volunteers and how their skills and abilities were used.

Keywords: Activities; Assignments; Bible schools; Bob O'Connor; Changes; Child Development Center; Child development schools; Children with disabilities; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Church of Christ; Civil engineering; Civil engineers; Denominations; Elderly people; Father Beiting; Father Ralph W. Beiting; Gardening; Healthcare; Home visiting; Home visits; Infant mortality; Needs; Nurses; Nursing; People with disabilities; Physical therapy; Preachers; Programs; Responsibilities; Schedules; Senior citizens; Services; Skills; Stores; Summers; The Attic; Unstructured

Subjects: Appalachian Region--Religion.; Childhood development.; Children.; Church.; Early childhood development.; Families.; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Music.; Schools.; Teachers.; Teaching.; Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: What are some of the other, uh, what are some of the other differences that you see now, uh, between the time you were here?

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about how the Christian Appalachian Project has changed since she worked with it, including the variety of programs they do, the number of permanent volunteers, and the program's economic stability.

Keywords: Budgets; Changes; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Christian communities; Community life; Domestic abuse; Domestic violence; Economic stability; Father Ralph W. Beiting; Finances; Financial solvency; Growth; Human services; Jobs; Needs; Permanent volunteers; Programming; Programs; Variation

Subjects: Appalachian Region--Social conditions; Communities.; Economic development.; Schools.; Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: Can you describe that situation back then about the financial basis of CAP?

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about the financial struggles of the Christian Appalachian Project in its early days. She describes the food they had to eat due to the lack of money.

Keywords: Budgeting; Budgets; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Donated food; Donations; Father Ralph W. Beiting; Finances; Food; Income; Money; Paychecks

Subjects: Finance.; Food habits.; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: Uh, tell me about community life.

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about the community she was a part of while working with the Christian Appalachian Project. She talks about Father Beiting's relationship with the community and the difficulty they had working with him at times.

Keywords: Ages; Attitudes; Christian Appalachian Project (CAP); Communal living; Community life; Community living; Differences; Diversity; Father Beiting; Father Ralph W. Beiting; Male volunteers; Permanent volunteers; Pressure; Relationships; Respect; Shared experiences; Tensions; Tolerance

Subjects: Beiting, Ralph W.; Christianity.; Communities.; Mount Vernon (Ky.); Prayers.; Religion; Volunteers.

Partial Transcript: What--when you left, uh, what was your overall viewpoint of the Appalachians? What had you learned about the Appalachians?

Segment Synopsis: Baker talks about how her views of the people she met in the Appalachian Region changed because of her time in the Christian Appalachian Project. She talks about how she doesn't think their living conditions are changing much despite their efforts.

Keywords: Appalachian people; Changes; Economic patterns; Effects; Expectations; Impact; Injustices; Isolation; Misconceptions; Pre-conceptions; Progress; Qualities; Respect; Rockcastle County (Ky.); Stagnant; Stereotypes

Subjects: Appalachian Region--Economic conditions.; Appalachian Region--Religion.; Appalachian Region--Social conditions; Appalachian Region--Social life and customs.; Children.; Culture; Families.; Mountain people.; Poverty.; Rural conditions.