November 12, 2023 – Peace Corps Worldwide

Review | A JOURNEY FOR PEACE: A JOURNAL OF PEACE by Donald Yates (The Philippines)

Nov 12 2023

A Journey For Peace: A Journal of Peace Donald Yates (The Philippines 1962–64) Austin Macauley Publishers 122 pages March 2023 $10.95 (paperback) Review by Douglas Garatina (Ghana 1971-1973) • • • “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” It didn’t take long for Don Yates to answer this challenge made by President Kennedy. He made the decision to join the recently formed Peace Corps. In 1962 Don transitioned from a recent college graduate living in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, to an elementary school teacher on the very remote Philippine Island of Jolo in the middle of the Sulu Sea. To make things even more interesting, the people on Jolo were Muslims even though 95% of Filipinos were Catholic, so Don’s Peace Corps training did not prepare him for the Muslim traditions and culture he was about to enter. His . . .

“Carlos and the Parrot” by Becky Wandell (Ecuador)

Nov 12 2023

A Writer Writes Throughout my service, I lived in the rural outskirts of a bustling city, and sometimes I walked to town. It was a 45-minute stroll, all downhill, which gave me a chance to wave to the shop owners setting out their brooms, their fresh-baked rolls and their publicity boards announcing a new item. If I timed it right, I passed by Luis. His black bowler hat made him look taller than he was as he shuffled up the sidewalk with his large black cow in tow. I’d give him a nod and smile, his coffee-brown wrinkled face always emitting enough sunshine to fill my day. While hopping over the heaved slabs of sidewalk and steering around the sections of mud and litter in the path, I took in the distant vistas, the passing cars and the groans of buses grinding up the hill. After several months of living . . .

Florida State U launches new Peace Corps Prep program

Nov 12 2023

BY: HELEN BOYLE | PUBLISHED: JULY 30, 2018 Florida State University will launch a new program this fall that will prepare students to volunteer in the Peace Corps or work abroad. The Peace Corps Prep program will help undergraduate students explore and discover the Peace Corps service opportunities that interest them and the skills they need to be a competitive applicant for those positions. “FSU is delighted to extend its ongoing work with the Peace Corps through this program,” said Helen Boyle, associate professor of education and program coordinator. “It will be invaluable for undergraduates who are thinking about international careers in government, development or teaching abroad.” Through a partnership with the College of Education, FSU’s Peace Corps Prep will assist new graduates through the application process to the Peace Corps Education volunteer program. The Peace Corps established the preparation program in 2007 to support universities’ efforts to provide substantive, globally focused . . .

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