Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 8, 1983)
All photos by Bill Schulz S/woLi>f pooH Aar»/\ r»A JQJ- EU. The At Ease staff would like to introduce a few people to you — a friendly priest, a hard working nurse, a choir director and several more. Each person featured on these pages is special in some way — it could because of their job or a personal characteristic. Repor ters spent the day with each individual to find out what a day in their life is like. What follows is a collection of the stories. We hope you enjoy learning about these special peo ple. We did. The sight of Texas A&M lifts me up. I can hardly wait every morning to get out here. I'm going to do this until some senior says...'Hey, fish! Go get a wheelchair and get Ruth.' — Ruth Hunt, the Fish lady. by Ronnie Crocker Battalion reporter She sits at a corner table downstairs in the Memorial Student Center, a silver- haired lady in the midst of a group of freshmen in the Corps of Cadets. The lady — Ruth Hunt — has been bringing happi ness and a little bit of home to Texas A&M students for nearly 15 years. Every Monday through Thursday, from about 9 a.m. until Hunt goes to work at the Ramada Inn at 2 p.m., she sits in the MSC, talking with the cadets and anyone else who cares to sit and visit a while. Hunt said the biggest problem at the beginning of the year is homesickness, but by this time of the year, the freshmen are pretty well accustomed to the way things are done here and can come and just have a good time visiting at the "fish table." When Hunt first came to College Station she went to work at the Ramada Inn which at that time was a popular hang-out for cadets. She became friendly with several of them, in cluding some of the football players. And she soon had a following that called itself the "Ruth Club." That Christmas, Hunt got a card with one ticket to Dal las and another to see the Aggies in the Cotton Bowl. "I felt like a queen," she said. "I started living again." In the early 1970s, the Ramada Inn was sold, and Hunt came to work at the Rudder Tower dining hall. When the Ramada was bought back, she returned and is still works there — except when she's at her same MSC corner table. "The sight of Texas A&M lifts me up," she said. "I can hardly wait every morning to get out here. "I'm going to do this until some senior says...'Hey, fish! Go get a wheelchair and get Ruth.'" Jeanne Norton is a broadcast journalist. Along with being an instructor for a broadcast news writ ing course, she is re sponsible for the weekday news pro duction at KAMU— a simple title for a complicated job. by Joel deGuzman Battalion reporter Another KAMU news day begins for Jeanne Nor ton as she closes the door to her Dodge station wagon and walks briskly toward the KAMU building back door. She has a preoccupied expression, constantly thinking. She would prob ably make a good poker player. Norton is a broadcast journalist. Along with being an instructor for a broadcast news writing course, she is responsible for the weekday news production at KAMU — a simple title for a compli cated job. At 8:30 a.m., she is usual ly the only one in the news room. Her only companions early each morning are a cof- feemaker and a rattling Tele type machine spewing out the latest wire stories. As the morning progre sses, Norton's student staff wanders in to report for duty. Like a police dispatch er, she sends out crews to record the events in Bryan- College Station. She has to juggle the work and class schedules of each indi vidual. But, she says, there's never enough time. The morning reporter and photographer report in, and she sends them to inter view a new Bryan city offi cial. Two students from her class arrive, and she directs them to the Teletype to re write some wire copy for the evening's newcast. By now three of the four telephones in the room are ringing just out of reach of the nearest reporter. And by 10 a.m., the newsroom is up to its normal noisy stan dards. Despite the bom bardment, Norton keeps the same calm expression. continued on page 13 -z-zinc\ , /1/ is mam ~ .vr/ ^ ^ It's not like we see a illegally parked car and jump on it. We try to be as lenient as possi ble, but parking is a problem. It makes me proud to be a police officer when I help someone in trouble. — B.J. Hooper, Texas A&M police officer. by Susan Poole Battalion reporter Officer B.J. Hooper, clad in a blue-gray uniform, walkie- talkie in hand, makes the campus rounds in a white Ford LTD, country music whining from the radio and a cigarette smoking in the ashtray. But Hooper is not the typical Texas A&M police officer. She is one of only nine women in the police force. Hooper said she became a policewoman because she admired women in uniform. She enjoys her work and plans to stick with it. Hooper, who has been a certified police officer since 1978, said being a female in a male-dominated field has its hard ships. "You have to make people understand that you are se rious and deserve the respect a male officer would get," she said. Hooper, who attended the Harris County Sherriff's Academy in Houston, felt the academy was tougher on females than males because they wanted the females to be ready for future problems. Hooper came to Texas A&M from the University of Hous ton when her husband was transferred here. She has been with the University Police Department since August of 1981. Hooper said the best part of her job is working with the public. "If there is something I can say to make the relationship between the students and the department harmonious, I will do that," she said. Hooper said some students think that all the police depart ment does is write tickets and tow cars. However, she feels ticketing is irrelevant to the job. "It's not like we see a illegally parked car and jump on it," Hooper said. "We try to be as lenient as possible, but park ing is a problem." Hooper said the main job of the University Police is to make sure the campus moves as smoothly as possible. Dur ing her shift, Hooper makes sure everything looks normal, doors are locked and students are escorted home after dark. "We can't be everywhere at once," she said, "People should be aware of what is going on around them so they can call us if anything suspicious happens." Serious matters such as crimes and accidents are her big gest challenge. Hooper said. "It makes me proud to be a police officer when I help someone in trouble," she said. One of her objectives is to make students understand there is more to being a police officer than writing tickets, Hooper said. "Td like to think they feel good about us and would call us if they need us," Hooper said. Television shows such as "Charlie's Angels" and "Chips" have glamorized life as a police officer, but, according to Hooper, it's not that easy. Hooper said the hardest part of her job is working the odd hours. "I used to work the night shift frdm 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., butl could never get Used to sleeping during the day," she said. Hooper, mother of two boys, said she has a normal family life despite her rigorous schedule. "I have to cook and clean like everyone else," Hooper said.
