Karen Peterson, M.A., was the first archivist of OHSU Historical Collections & Archives, who began working as an intern at OHSU during her graduate studies. She was hired permanently as the staff archivist in 2002, and wrote many of policies that informed HC&A operations in its earliest days. Peterson describes her family background; growing up in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland, Oregon; her two marriages (including one to a Cuban santero), and motherhood. She describes her personal experiences with disease over her lifetime, including contracting polio as a child and diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer in 2003. She also recounts her experiences in education, including traveling to Mexico for a study abroad program, earning a B.A. in history at Portland State University, and completing her M.A. in folklore and mythology at the University of California, Los Angeles. She concludes the interview by sharing her vision for the future of HC&A.