Catherine Freeman

Catherine Freeman and her sister were raised by their grandmother in Norfolk, Virginia after losing their mother at a young age. After graduating from highschool, Catherine enlisted in the air force, starting basic training at Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas in 1952 before moving to Ellington Air Force Base and Lackland Air Force Base in Houston. Catherine was assigned to be a hospital assistant at Ellington and was quickly promoted to Ward Master, or Non Commissioned Officer in Charge. The nurses at Ellington were so impressed with her work, that they recommended Catherine enroll at Philadelphia General Hospital Nursing School. Her first position out of nursing school was with the VA hospital in Philadelphia. Her experience in that job inspired her to enroll with the Navy as a nurse, where she could learn new procedures and skills. Catherine and her friend from Philadelphia were the only two Black nurses in their unit. The two of them faced discrimination when looking for housing close to the navy hospital and found that some members of their unit weren’t sure how to communicate with them. Catherine stayed with the Navy for a couple of years before returning to Philadelphia to be in charge of the orthopedics and then ear, nose, and throat wards. While vacationing in Los Angeles in 1964, Catherine met her husband, who was a musician who worked at LACMA. She decided to move to Los Angeles to be with him, and the two of them moved into a home on Venice Boulevard, by Crenshaw, which was an integrated neighborhood. Catherine advises young people not to stretch themselves out, but to be avid learners. She also advises them to be respectful to their parents and to the older generation.