Our move from Kansas City to Salt Lake City — June 1984
Upon finishing my anesthesia residency in Kansas City in June of 1984, I was fortunate to secure a position as an obstetric anesthesiologist at Holy Cross Hospital in Salt Lake City. Susan flew to Salt Lake in early June, left Anne and John with Grandma Rudd, and then flew back to Kansas City. We said our goodbyes to the many people we had come to love in Kansas City, packed our belongings in a U-Haul truck, and headed west. I will never forget the overwhelming feelings of gratitude and satisfaction I felt as we rolled out of Kansas City in that truck. I was so full of love for Susan, for the way she had supported me during the three most difficult years of my life, and I had a tremendous feeling of accomplishment as I thought about what I had achieved. I truly looked back with gratitude, and forward with unbounded enthusiasm.
We bought a cute home on the corner of 1900 East and 1300 South in Salt Lake City, and became members of the Monument Park 2nd Ward. Our home was a nice older home and it served us well for the two years that we lived in it. Its two drawbacks were that it was situated on a very busy corner, and it required almost continual maintenance and repair.
My first few months at Holy Cross Hospital were harrowing and yet rewarding. During my residency, I had always had someone looking over my shoulder, giving direction and suggestions as needed. As I started private practice, I was totally on my own. During my 24-hour shifts, I was the only anesthesiologist on the Labor and Delivery ward, and thus I was responsible for everything that happened relative to anesthesia, both good and not-so-good. I was responsible for all labor epidurals, anesthesia for Cesarean sections (scheduled and emergent), resuscitation of newborns, intubating newborns with meconium aspiration, difficult intravenous line placements, etc. I prayed fervently before, during, and after every shift for the Lord’s blessings and support, and that support carried me through many difficult situations.
This was truly a grand time of my life. I was now gainfully employed, fully independent financially, out of debt, married to a wonderful helpmeet, and solidly grounded in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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