Susan (Sue) Tavela oral history interview

Oral history interview with Susan E. Tavela, wife of John E. Tavela, Class of 1964, for the Dartmouth Vietnam Project. Tavela explains that she participated in the project because her husband is in a nursing home for dementia and is unable to tell his own story. She describes her childhood growing up across the country and how she met her husband. She describes herself as a civil rights activist and provides a few examples of her and John’s participation in protests, marches, and political campaigns. She describes her marriage to John while he was attending Dartmouth and explains how John was drafted after he completed his graduate studies at Johns Hopkins University. She describes John’s involvement in the Medical Service Corps. Tavela reads a number of excerpts from letters that John sent to her during his time during the Vietnam War. Tavela describes how she believes John’s dementia is a result of his participation in the war. She explains that John had a difficult time transitioning back from the Vietnam War. She shares how John was depressed after he returned home and the impact it had on him personally and on their family.