Client Experiences - The Peace Corps

​For our first posting to our new blog we want to share a story about a client’s recent volunteer work. Patrice Powers felt driven to make a difference in the world. While many of us help others in varying ways, Patrice is more courageous than most...

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Peace Corps: A Journey of Discovery
Patrice Powers

I have finally arrived in Tanzania, East Africa.  My previous life is in a 10 X 10 storage unit in Twin Falls, Idaho.  For the next 27 months I am a Peace Corps Volunteer experiencing life as I never knew existed.
 
I arrived in country 2 months before my 60th birthday.  My children teased me about the lengths I would go to get out of a birthday party. 
   
This backpack is now battered and the soles have come off my Chaco’s.  These are just the outward symbols of the profound personal changes that have enriched my life because of my service. 

I hope to share my story in a way that will encourage and educate others about Peace Corps service.  I was part of the 2011-2013 Peace Corps Health and Environment class.   There were 48 people in my class ages ranging from 23 to 84, married couples and single people.  All of us completed a rigorous application process, including medical and legal clearances, and had received and accepted an invitation to serve in Tanzania. 

In the first 3 months we were placed with ‘homestay families,’ in living situations that would replicate as close as possible what we would experience in our villages.  We received language and cultural training 8 hours a day, 6 days a week.  The friendships and bonds that I developed with my classmates are some I hold most precious to this day.

After graduation, we were placed in different villages in Tanzania.  My village was Igoma, which is located in the Livingston Mountain range in the Southern Highlands. Most of the villagers are sustenance farmers, living in mud and thatch houses. 

After arriving in my village and getting my house set-up, it was time to complete a Village Assessment project.  This was an in-depth analysis of the needs of the community.  I worked with the village government, the headmaster at the school, and the medical officer to identify projects that would improve the health and food security of the villagers.  It quickly became apparent that the extreme poverty, lack of education and isolation of the village had created an environment where HIV/AIDS were prevalent.  It is very common for children to lose both parents to AIDS related deaths, then to be raised by extended family who did not have the resources to care for the children.  Many times 12 and 13 year old children were raising their siblings.
 
Working with my Peace Corps advisors and village officials, we designed a chicken raising project for people living with HIV/AIDS which was funded by a grant from the United States Government. On World AIDS day, we educated and tested 500 people to greatly reduced the stigma and began a dialog on prevention and management.

Villagers at HIV/AIDS education

Villagers waiting to be tested

​Another project was to replace the broken windows and doors in the school.  As well as install solar panels for electricity in one of the classrooms.

The village finished building the classroom below.  We installed solar electricity.  This is the first building in Igoma to have electricity.

There are many more examples, both big and small, where my presence as a Peace Corps Volunteer improved the lives of the people in my village. These stories of success are replicated in villages all over the world. 
 
On a personal level, to be a part of a culture and life that is so powerfully different than what I ever experienced has made me look at life through a different lens.  Not a day goes by that I don’t remember the people in my village.  I remember the smiles on their faces and the laughter of the women as they walked by my house on the way to their farms, rain or shine.  Most of them had a baby swaddled on their back and were carrying a hoe on their heads, heading out for a very long day of manual labor.  Then they returned at night fall, carrying fire wood or a pail of water on their heads, still talking and laughing with each other. Most of them had not eaten much that day and would probably have an evening meal of beans and rice.  They had never driven a car, cooked on a stove, watched TV, slept on a mattress, taken a shower, seen a washing machine or refrigerator, the list is endless.
 
The Peace Corps Motto is “The toughest job you will ever love,” and it is so very true.  For those of you who are wondering about life after retirement and would like a big worthwhile, life-changing adventure visit www.peacecorps.gov.  I would be happy to assist you or answer any questions.
 
Patrice Powers
(208) 431-1878
patrice.123@hotmail.com