In this interview, Karen Whitaker Knapp, former director of the OHSU Center for Rural Health and Vice Provost for Rural Health, looks back on her career as an advocate for rural health services. She discusses her early work with the Oregon Medical Association, where she first learned of the challenges faced by rural health professionals. She oversaw the collection of data on their needs. She participated in the early work on legislation which ultimately became the Oregon Health Plan. Whitaker Knapp delineates the history of OHSU's Office of Rural Health and its relationship to the Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) program. She outlines trends in rural health care and health manpower, but offers no easy answers to future challenges. She speaks of her many outstanding colleagues, her achievements, and her plans for a long and productive retirement.