Laura Pease

Animal Control Officer

I love the fact that I have been able to reinvent myself throughout my life.  It is really empowering to know that you can change if you find something that you want to do different.  Then you can actually just go and create the possibility of doing it. A lot of people get sick and they do something even when they don’t like doing it anymore because they are so afraid of not having the income or not being able to make the change that they do something they don’t love.  I have been able throughout my life to do what I love. 

Abstract: 

Laura Lee Pease was born in North Brookfield, Massachusetts in 1957.  In this interview, Laura touches upon the ability to reinvent herself throughout the years.  Growing up in a very equal family, Laura’s father, an experienced hunter, wanted his children, regardless of gender, to know how to hunt.  These skills ended up being useful in her future as an Animal Control Officer.  An Animal Control Officer is typically a man’s job, but Laura’s skills landed her the position.  While Laura was in college, she met and married her husband and they decided to open a restaurant together.  Laura knew how to cook, but her husband taught her the skills to cook for masses of people.  Thanks to his lessons, Laura managed to succeed as a Chef at Worcester Polytechnic Institution, although the Chef’s position was typically a male job.  Laura discusses the benefits and disadvantages of her jobs, and what obstacles she encountered on her way to success.  She elaborates upon the importance of family, female support in her life, and passes advice along to all women.

Interview
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Interview Date: 
October 17, 2014
Transcript: 
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