On March 15, the Peace Corps announced it would temporarily suspend Volunteer operations and begin evacuating Volunteers from all posts due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On this episode, five volunteers share their story of evacuation in the time of coronavirus.   Resources: Facebook Page for COVID Evacuation: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PeaceCorpsCOVIDevacuationsupport/ Peace Corps Headquarters COVID Page: https://www.peacecorps.gov/coronavirus/ National Peace Corps Association: https://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/articles/new-action-to-congress-protect-peace-corps-and-support-evacuees      Enj ..read more

Happy National Peace Corps Week! This episode marks the return of the My Peace Corps Story podcast. After taking a few months off, I’m starting the show up again. The show will now be a monthly podcast for the time being. If I feel that I have the time, I’ll happily increase the frequency to two or more episodes a month but I’d hate to overcommit and fall short. This week, in honor of National Peace Corps Week, I would like to share three speeches from President John F. Kennedy. As you likely already know, JFK founded the Peace Corps in 1961. In this episode you’ll hear JFK’s address to Congre ..read more

After 27 months of the My Peace Corps Story podcast, I’m closing this chapter of the podcast. The podcast isn’t over though. I plan to come back to the show with a new format. Producing weekly podcasts was an ambitious undertaking but immensely rewarding. I thank each and everyone of you, whether you were a guest or listener or both. Thank you for all those 5-star reviews on Apple Podcasts. Thank you for the shares, likes, and reposts. Thank you for the comments and most importantly thank you for the criticism. It has been my pleasure to help share so many amazing stories over the past two yea ..read more

Inspired by a former teacher, Katie set off to Peace Corps for an adventure and a chance to prove herself. She did both and more. This week, I talk with Katie McNamara about her time in Namibia, a country that’s twice the size of California while also being the second least densely populated place on earth. Photos from Katie’s Service Katie McNamara’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? I served in Namibia from 2016 to 2018 as a math and science teacher in a rural village in one of the northern regions of Owamboland. What is one of your favorite Peace Corp ..read more

  Photos from Randy’s Service   Randy Hobler’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? Served in Libya from October 1968 thru most of October 1969. I, like all my colleagues, was a TEFL (Teaching English as a Second Language) teacher. Almost all of us were teaching 5th Grade. What is one of your favorite Peace Corps memories? In country memories are those that repeat…all the wonderful meals served by villagers to me so many times. What is one of your least favorite Peace Corps memories? When a barber in Tripoli was shaving my neck with a straight razor and cut ..read more

  Photos from Sharelle’s Service Sharelle’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? Ghana, 2010-2012. Primary Assignment was Biology Teacher – also ended up being head of the ICT department at my school and training new PCVs on PEPFAR grant project implementation. What is one of your favorite Peace Corps memories? So many come to mind but one that still makes me so happy to this day is the story about a young man at my school who lost his leg and now walks again with a prosthetic thanks to some resourcefulness and determination. Even better, this young man is now i ..read more

Health Resource Partners (HRP) founder, Britany Ferrell, decided to join the United States Peace Corps during her last year of college at the University of Alabama. Shortly after her graduation in June 2010, she learned that she was going to be posted in Ghana, West Africa. Three months later, Britany arrived in the village of Eremon to be a secondary science teacher for the next two years. Photos from Britany’s Service ..read more

  Photos from Addis and Jim’s Service Addis and Jim Chapman’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? We served in what was then West Pakistan from 1961-63. Ours was the first multidisciplinary project in PC — nurses, teachers, lab techs, librarian, agriculture specialists, even a brick mason. Jobs for the most part were poorly thought out, so most of us had to create our own. Addis was an RN, started working in a govt. hospital in Lyallpur, but had nothing to do. She then created a program to evaluate jobs requesting future PCVs to insure the jobs actually e ..read more

Since leaving Peru, Tasha Prados founded Duraca Strategic, a business and marketing strategy company. Tasha wants organizations that are doing good for the world to have access to expertise from a skilled partner that can help those organizations. She recently left her full time job and will be traveling the world as a digital nomad while running Duraca Strategic. We go back to the beginning, her service in the Peace Corps. Photos from Tasha’s Service ..read more

In 2001 the first expedition of indigenous women reached the summit of Cotopaxi, the highest active volcano in the world just shy of 20,000 feet. Four Andean women (Warmis) and two American women all joined together to climb in celebration of women worldwide.  Dana Platin was one of the women on that expedition. Photos from Dana’s Service Dana Platin’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? I served almost 3 years as a Peace Corps volunteer, in a rural community located in the northern Andes of Ecuador, about 2 hours south of the Colombian border.  Living ..read more