My Peace Corps Story

Photos from David’s Service David Hernandez’s Peace Corps Story Where and when did you serve? What did you do? I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Ecuador from 2013-2015. I worked as an Environmental Education/Business volunteer. This sector had me doing many different activities such: recycled art workshops, teaching environmental awareness classes, and […]

Jody Olsen first heard of the Peace Corps during a presentation from a recruiter attending a sorority dinner. The following day she informed her fiancé that they were going to join the Peace Corps and 18 months later they were headed to Tunisia. Almost 50 years after her service ended, she was sworn in as the 20th Director of Peace Corps. This is her story.

For the past two weeks I've been either rushing to the bathroom, doubled over in pain, or both. It reminded me a lot of Peace Corps actually. This was the first time I've had any major GI issues since Peace Corps, which I assumed hardened my gut and made it impervious to illness. Boy was I wrong.

Being a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer herself, she couldn't help but think that just such an in-depth, comprehensive documentary was needed for the Peace Corps. Alana says: "In a time when the American public either has a very antiquated notion of the Peace Corps, informed by an almost mythological awe of the 60s, or is not even aware that the agency still exists, it is high time to bring this unique organization back into the public discourse, to raise the level of the discussion from quaint to crucial."

As a Peace Corps Volunteer in The Gambia, Bryn worked to rehabilitate the country's highly deforested environment. But Bryn’s drive to serve didn’t end with the Peace Corps.

Abraham served in Indonesia from 2016-2018 as an education volunteer where he taught at a local Madrasah middle school on the island of Java. This is his Peace Corps story.

Chad only recently returned home from his Peace Corps service in Vanuatu. With the sand barely out of his shoes, he talks about living two years on a remote island followed by a third year in Port Vila.

Korea has been part of Ambassador (retired) Kathleen Stephens’ life and career since she served in rural Korea as a Peace Corps volunteer and trainer, 1975-1977.

This week, I go back to the beginning. Two years ago I recorded this intro episode with a friend, before the podcast had launched and before I knew what it would grow into. Hopefully you enjoy this return to the start as much as I did.

Jane Hale left her fiancé for Peace Corps service in Chad--where she was the only person to actively choose Chad as a country of service. She has numerous great stories that make this interview seem too short, even though it's the longest one yet on the podcast!