“We have all, during our time at Duke, experienced a lot of transitions and changes,” King, 85, told the group. “I thought this might give us an opportunity to come together and share some of these experiences and ideas.” »

King, who served as Duke’s archivist from 1972 to 2002, recounted how in its early years Duke was far from the nationally renowned institution it is today. He recounted a story he heard about a professor at another university who received a job offer from Duke when the university was in its infancy.

“Accept the offer. Where is Duke? »wrote the professor in response.

As King passed the mic around the group, the stories told ranged from interesting work-related moments to life-changing personal encounters.

John Druesedow, director of the Duke Music Library from 1987 to 2005, recalls receiving a call from a former University of North Carolina student living in the Midwest who had borrowed one of the printed copies of the vocal score of his beloved opera. Porgy and Bess” from the Woman’s College Library in the 1940s. The caller explained that, due to contracting polio shortly afterwards, he was unable to return it.

The caller, who had been rebuffed when trying to return the document to Duke years earlier due to fears of spreading polio, mentioned that the sheet music, printed in 1935, was labeled as a “first edition limited” and bore the signatures of the composer George. Gershwin, lyricist Ira Gershwin, author DuBose Heyward and director Rouben Mamoulian.

“He said, ‘Do you want it?'” Druesedow said. “I said, ‘Yes, we do!'”

The score can now be found in the Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library.

Sitting next to her husband, Dr. Cesar Guajardo, Cathy Guajardo, who spent three years as a medical secretary in Duke’s psychiatry department, recounted how she and her husband met while they were Duke.

“He’s from Monterrey, Mexico, and I’m from Durham,” Cathy Guajardo said. “He came here to train in psychiatry. I just met his gaze, and vice versa. So instead of coming back with all his knowledge and opening a clinic in Mexico, he decided he preferred North Carolina.

From the stories of participants who went to Duke as students to those who spent their careers working there, the common thread was that for as long as they were a part of it, the Duke community was where they belonged.

Towards the end of the event, Dr. Jeffrey Dawson, Professor Emeritus of Immunology, mentioned some of the fellow professors who inspired him, including late IB Holleylongtime history professor at Duke, who often shared stories from his time as a decorated member of the Air Force Reserve.

“It’s the people that stand out to me,” Dawson said. “So many great people have been involved with Duke.”

Do you have a Duke Centennial story you’d like to share? Share it via our story idea form or write [email protected].

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