Interviewer: Jacob Campbell

Affiliation: University of Arizona

Ronnie was first contacted during the History II study, referred by Richard Goodroe, but was never interviewed. We met at his home in north Houma. He worked for Unocal, retiring in 2003. The following year he took a position with Measurement Technologies, as a salesman for the oilfield service company, which he currently holds. He maintains ties with many of his former Unocal co-workers, and provided me with numerous contacts.

Mr. Rhodes was born in 1950, in Houma, and has spent almost his entire life there. He was drafted to go to Vietnam, but was released due to a shoulder injury. He was married in 1971, and that same year started as a roustabout for Unocal Oil Company. Ronnie moved up the ranks until becoming a production foreman by the late 70’s, in charge of three offshore fields. In the mid-90s he was moved to construction foreman, a position he held until being forced into retirement in 2003 when Unocal was bought out and management positions were liquidated.