Category Archives: Digital Media

Ronald Rude in Nepal

Name: Ronald Rude
Country of Service: Nepal
Place of Service: Jaleshwar, Gorahana Panchayat (District)
Service Project Title: Junior Technological Assistants
Dates in Service: 1968-1971
Keywords: Agriculture, Community Development

Accession Date: December 5, 2019
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 94 digital files

Document Types

  • Correspondence
  • Photographs
  • Memoir

Digital Surrogates

Finding Aid

  1. Ron Rude, “Diary of a Peace Corps Volunteer.” https://dra.american.edu/islandora/object/peacecorps%3A2595 
  2. Photo collection of People 
  3. Photo collection of Hindu ceremonies 
  4. Photo collection of agriculture 

Sara Miller in Panama

Name: Sara Miller
Country of Service: Panama
Place of Service: Los Santos
Service Project Title: Community Environmental Conservation
Dates in Service: 2016-2019
Keywords: Agriculture, Community Development, Environment

Accession Date: October 6, 2019
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 1 digital file

Document Types/Finding Aid

Gene Carl Feldman in Western Samoa

Name: Gene Carl Feldman
Country of Service: Western Samoa
Place of Service: Upolu, Savai’i, and Manono
Service Type: Village Fisheries Development Project and Sea Turtle Conservation Project
Dates in Service: 1974-1977
Keywords: Agriculture, Architecture, Environment, Community Development

Accession Date: September 30, 2019
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 1 digital collection

Document Types

  • Photographs
  • Reports
  • Publications
  • Memoirs

Digital Surrogates

Finding Aid

  1. Documents 
    1. Fisheries Division Annual Report, 1972, 1975, 1979 
    2. Baitfish Trials, Samoa Times, March 11, 1977 
    3. Description of Peace Corps Service 
    4. Development of Fishing in Western Samoa, 1976 
    5. Expansion of Baitfish Cultural Project, 1977 
    6. FAO UNDP Samoa Baitfish Culture Project 
    7. Peace Corps Reports, 1974-1977 
    8. Report on the Design and Construction of a pilot scale bait fish culture facility 
    9. South Pacific Commission FAO Village Fisheries Development Project, Western Samoa, 1978 
    10. South Pacific Commission Fisheries Newsletter, Oct 1977 
    11. South Pacific Commission Report Fisheries Project, Western Samoa, 1975 
    12. Western Samoa fish market guide by James Hollyer PCV 
    13. Western Samoa Group 14 Information and Qualification 
    14. Western Samoa Group 14 Volunteers and Staff 
  1. Drawings 
    1. Falemauga Cave Map 
    2. Preliminary Design for Outboard Engine Workshop Salelologa Savaii, November1974  
  2. Manono Photographs 
  3. Stories  
    1. “The Cave at Falemauga,” Gene Carl Feldman 
    2. “The Shark, the Samoan, and the Boy from New York,” Gene Carl Feldman 

Wilcox in Dominican Republic Podcast Part 2 – Footprint

In his second year with the Peace Corps, Geer Wilcox changes his approach to development volunteering.  Rather than working directly with the students, he begins to work with the infrastructure of the school, hoping that developing infrastructure will last longer than work in the classroom.  Listen to the podcast below to hear straight from the source his reasoning and to understand how the Dominican Republic changed him, in return.

Music in this audio production was written by Kevin MacLeod.  The tracks used are “Notanico Merengue,” “Hackbeat,” and “Laid Back Guitars.”  To play the podcast, click to the far left of the black media bar.

With this, the 2018-2019 “season” has come to an end.  It has been an incredible experience to be the PCCA Fellow this year and to work with these collections and stories.  I want to thank several people, without whom I would not have been able to fulfill this role.  First, I want to thank Leslie Nellis.  As my mentor, she taught me everything I know about archives, and as my friend, she made this office an incredible place to work throughout my master’s program. I am grateful to her interest in and support of making the most of my fellowship this year.  It was with her help that I traveled to Morgantown, WV to present at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Archives Conference, by her suggestion that I curated exhibits for our hallway, and with her blessing that the blog has become as multi-media as it has.  I would also like to thank Dan Kerr and Trevor Owens who taught me the research and project-oriented history methods I utilized this spring semester.  Online exhibits and podcasts  wouldn’t have been possible if it had not been for them.  I am eternally grateful to the donors who shared their experiences with the PCCA and who allowed their materials and stories to be shared through our online media. Finally, I would like to thank you, dear readers, for coming with me all this way.

Gail Wadsworth in Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania

Country of Service: Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania
Service Type: Secondary Education, Librarian
Dates in Service: 1970-1972, 1973-1976, 1980-1982
Keywords: Education, Libraries

Accession Date: March 9, 2018
Access: No restrictions.
Collection Size: 4.0 linear feet

Document Types

Uganda
Photographs
Correspondence
Sound
Official Paperwork
Training Materials
Assignment
Articles
Travel brochures, maps, postcards

Kenya
Photographs
Correspondence
Official Paperwork
Assignment
Travel brochures, postcards

Tanzania
Photographs
Correspondence
Official Paperwork
Assignment
Travel postcards

Finding Aid

Box 1

Uganda

    1. Application Materials 
      1. Application # card 
      2. Application rcvd. Notification 
      3. Peace Corps booklet 
      4. Draft of volunteer application 
    2. Brochures & Postcards 
      1. Tourist brochures 
      2. postcards 
    3. Cassette of Gail speaking to parents 
      1. One cassette tape of Gail speaking to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth.  
      2. The tape contains Gail’s first impressions of Uganda and about Peace Corps training June-Sept, 1970 in Kampala, Tororo, Lake Victoria. It also includes descriptions of photos on two rolls of film Gail took during this time and sent to her parents to be processes. Listing of photos included. 
    4. Correspondence, 1969-1971 (1/2)
      1. (These letters written by Gail to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth.) 
      2. 3 letters: December 8, 1969 to January 1970 referring to Peace Corps availability date and application. 
      3. 104 letters: June 1970-Sept 1972
    5.  Correspondence, 1971-1972 (2/2)
    6. Newspaper Articles 
      1. Various articles about Uganda during this time period. 
    7. Official Paperwork 
        • Peace Corps ID card 
        • Passport 
    8. Photographs
      1. 49 photos taken during peace corps service in Uganda (many of the photos are prints of the slides included in the donation)  
    9. Post Evacuation Materials 
      1. Peace Corps Volunteers were evacuated from Uganda in Sept & Oct 1972. These items are post evacuation materials. Includes Description of Service. 
    10. School Stuff 
      1. Gail was a PCV English as a Second Language teacher at Tororo Girls’ School in Tororo, Uganda. She was also Adviser for the student publications “The Voice” (one copy included) and the literary magazine “Beyond These Gates” (2 copies included) and the students for two years – first in Form 2 (sophomores) and then in Form 3 (juniors). Class list included along with the East African certificate Exam results. 
      2. Three articles related to Tororo Girls’ School: 
        1. US 1A World Sept. 1986: Article with pictures of Gail and former Tororo Girls’ School student Annie Kakooza. Annie followed in Gail’s footsteps and became a qualified librarian. 
        2. Article with pictures of Tororo Girls’ School and students during Gail’s time teaching there. 
        3. Weatherford, Oklahoma article about former Peace Corps Volunteers Lucille and Henry Simmons who taught at Tororo Girls’ School with Gail in 1970. 

11. Slides

  1. Photos and descriptions 
  2. Box of 91 Extrachrome slides 
  3. CD-Rom of digitized versions of the slides 
  4. Printout of descriptions of the individual slides 

12.Training 

            1. Invitation to train, staging in Philadelphia, various items 
            2. Uganda Argus newspaper – May 22, 1972 – Article with photos of P.C. Training group on arrival in Uganda. Gail appears in two of the photos. 
          2. Training Materials/Newsletter 
            1. Items provided by P.C./Uganda to trainees during training in Uganda 1970. 10th Anniversary Volunteer newsletter distributed to Volunteers 1971. 
          3. Uganda Tourist Brochure Map
            1. Uganda tourist brochure map  

Kenya 

              1. Brochures, Stamps, and Postcards 
                1. Tourist brochures and stamps and postcards 
              2. Correspondence, 1973 Kenya A (1/2) 
                1. 261 letters written by Gail to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth 1973-1976. Kenya A, 150 letters.
              3. Correspondence, 1974 Kenya A (2/2) 
              4. Correspondence, 1975-1976 Kenya B
                1. Kenya B, 111 letters.  
              5. Kenya Volunteers Documents
                1. Miscellaneous documents related to Peace Corps Kenya Volunteers and staff and specifically to Gail’s assignment as a librarian with the Kenya National Library services. Includes description of service.  
              6. Library Services 
                1. Miscellaneous documents regarding Kenya National Library Services, where Gail was posted as a Volunteer librarian, and Kenya Librarian Association and other libraries in Kenya. 
              7. Miscellaneous Documents 
              8. Official
                1. Passport
                2. Peace Corps Kenya ID Cards (2)
                3. Kenya Drivers License
                4. International Driving Permit
              9. Photographs 
                1. 60 photos 
              10. Slides and Photos 
                1. 70 Extrachrome Photographic Slides 
                2. CD-Rom of digital versions of the slides plus description document 
                3. Printed descriptions of the slides 

4. Tanzania 

  1. Correspondence, May-October, 1980 
    1. 129 letters from Gail to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth, 1980-82. Applying for and preparing for Tanzania PCV/UNV contract. 5 letters. 
  2. Correspondence, November 1980-April 1981 (1/2) 
    1. 129 letters from Gail to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth, 1980-1982. Tanzania, 11/1980 – 12/1981. 69 letters. 
  3. Correspondence, May-December, 1981 (2/2) 

Box 2

  1. Correspondence, January-June, 1982 (1/2) 
    1. 129 letters from Gail to her parents, C. Morton and A. Jean Wadsworth, 1980-1982. Tanzania, 1/1982 – 11/1982. 
  2. Correspondence, July-December, 1982 (2/2) 
  3. Photographs 
    1. 39 photos 
  4. Postcards and Stamps 
  5. Official Documents 
    1. Miscellaneous documents 
    2. WHO International Certificate of Vaccination – yellow booklet 
    3. Passport 
    4. East African Management Institute ID Card 
    5. Tanzania Driving License (2 – class A – Class D) 
  6. Documents and Brochures, Arusha 
    1. Documents and brochures related to the Easterman Southern African Management Institute, Arusha where Gail was assigned as a PCV/UNV librarian. 
  7. Slides & CD 
    1. 113 Extrachrome Photographic slides 
    2. Printout of descriptions of slides 
    3. CD-Rom digital versions of slide photos  
  8. Miscellaneous Documents, PC & UN (1/2) 
    1. Miscellaneous documents related to Peace Corps/United Nations Volunteer assignment. Includes description of service. (Chronological order). 
  9. Miscellaneous Documents,  PC & UN (2/2) 

 

Records We Collect; Records That Tell Stories

Throughout the blog, you have probably noticed the various records we use to tell the stories of Peace Corps Volunteers. This post highlights some of the more common types of records that volunteers donate and record their experiences with.

The most common type of record that PCVs donate that tell their story is letters. Volunteers send correspondence back and forth with their family and friends for two years in which they express their accomplishments, frustrations, and describe their everyday life. A letter like the one below, air mail, was a familiar sight for families as it was the fastest and most common way volunteers sent letters.

Joyce Emery Johnston served in the Philippines in Education from 1965-1967.

Similar to correspondence is volunteers’ journals or diaries. These are where volunteers write more in depth about their daily activities and daily thoughts. Diaries are used to preserve memories, and some volunteers even start keeping diaries in the language of their host country as seen below.

David Day served in Kenya and India in Agriculture from 1965-1967.

David Day served in Kenya and India in Agriculture from 1965-1967.

A way that volunteers formally share their experiences is through memoirs. Alan Crew compiled his memoir as a gift to his son upon his graduation from college. In it he details his life in Nigeria and includes pictures of where he worked.

Alan Crew served in Nigeria in Education from 1965-1966.

Along with writing, volunteers also take many photos during their service to show their friends and families where they work and live. While most volunteers take regular digital photos, many early volunteers also used slides.

Patricia Kay served in Kenya in Education from 1966-1968.

Patricia Kay served in Kenya in Education from 1966-1968.

Volunteers also send home postcards when they travel or want to share more photos of their host country.

Tina Singleton served in Benin in Health Education from 1992-1996.

Along with these records, some volunteers also take videos of their service experience. The video below was taken by Brian Adler who served in Suriname with his wife Cindy from 2002-2004. In this clip he gives a tour of where he and Cindy lived, and the video goes on to show a village party, soccer game, and conversations with the villagers.

Bryan and Cynthia Adler in Marchall Kreek 

For volunteers who either could not write home or found this method easier, they recorded audio tapes. This audio clip is from Richard Holmquist to his fiance Ann. In the full recording, he discusses his work as a professor at UMBC, how he met Ann, and what he did in Nigeria from 1966-1968. In this clip he discusses a need in Nigeria for lifeguards.                                           (play button is on the far left).

 

Along with these personal records, Peace Corps Volunteers also donate some of their official Peace Corps paperwork. These include certificates of training and service completion, letters of service acceptance, and volunteer ID cards like Debby Prigal’s below.

Debby Prigal served in Ghana in Education from 1981-1983.

The Peace Corps Community Archives holds many other different types of records such as architectural drawings, posters, newspapers, training materials, correspondence from the Peace Corps and various governments, and much more. But the handful of records highlighted here are the main forms of learning about what a Peace Corps Volunteer experienced while abroad.

 

What We Collected in 2017

The Peace Corp Community Archive accepts many types of records of volunteers from every decade, every country of service, and every type of service job. Though we did not accept donations for part of 2017, we added 6 unique collections to the archives that include a wide range of Peace Corps experiences. We featured some of these collections in previous posts but here you can learn about them in detail.

 

Phillip L. Scholl

Phillip served in India from 1965-1967 in Health Education. India faced many health crises in the 1960s and its government requested help from the Peace Corps. Philip’s group, India 20A, received training in public health and assisted India’s Primary Health Centers, which provided health care services throughout the country. Phillip donated a video about his travels through India.

You can watch the video here: India 20A Video
Visit the groups website here: India 20A Website
And see a previous highlight post about this collection here: India 20A Post

 

Jan and Leslie Czechowski

Jan and Leslie decided to volunteer after they retired at the age of 64 and are two of the oldest volunteers in the collection. They donated a booklet that contains, in chronological order, their blog posts and emails from their service. The couple served in Moldova in 2012 in Community Development. Leslie’s main job was helping with the Global Libraries project funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. They enjoyed their time in Moldova immensely but had to cut their service short because Leslie became ill. A number of Peace Corps Volunteers end their service early for a variety of reasons.

Jan and Leslie – June 22, 2012

Friday, August 3rd, 2012 – Sworn in as Peace Corps Volunteers

 

Delwyn and Claire Ziegler

Delwyn and Claire, with their two daughters, were among the first Peace Corps Volunteer Families. They served in Colombia from 1970-1972 in Community Development and Education. They donated a manual entitled, “Guide to Small Business Consultation,” which was compiled by Delwyn, and a 500+ page diary consisting of correspondence, notes, daily updates, and other writings from their service. The Ziegler’s were one of only two families that stayed the full two years and said “it was the best two years of our lives.” The Peace Corps discontinued the families program after a few years.

You can find their diary here: Diary of the Zieglers in Colombia

 

Lynda Smith-Nehr

Lynda served in the Philippines from 1962-1964 in Education. Her collection consists of the many slides she took during her service. The slides show pictures of the villages she worked in, the people she worked with, and the places she traveled. Lynda experienced a lot during her service.

April 1963 – My Junior Class – Mt. Apo

Davao Mt. Apo School – April 1963

 

Thomas J. Hassett

Thomas served in Nepal from 1965-1966 in Community Development. His fellow volunteers described him as easy to get along with and perfect for the Peace Corps. However, Thomas’s time in the Peace Corps was cut short by an unfortunate fall on his way to visit a friend. At the age of 22 Thomas passed away and was buried in Nepal. Included in his collection are letters to and from his family and friends, condolence letters to his parents, and photos of his work and burial service. Tom’s parents paid for a memorial for him and visited his grave in 1966.

“Thomas J. Hassett, Russian novelist phase – June 1966”

“L to R: ?? Sam Myqatt (partially hidden) by another in front of Bill Hanson. Blond is Cail Hoshicka. Father Moran, Minister.”

Tina Singleton

Tina served in the Central African Republic and Benin from 1992-1996. She worked in Health Education with a focus on Benin’s disabled community. She traveled to the first African Special Olympics in 1992. Tina enjoyed her time so much she stayed twice as long as a normal service tour. Tina’s collection itself consists of numerous letters to her family and many (many) photos that illustrate her time in Africa.

Tina’s school class, she is second from the left.

1992 – First African Special Olympics

 

As you can see from just this small group of collections, a Peace Corps Volunteer’s experience can vary greatly. Every year new collections are donated to the Peace Corps Community Archive that add to these stories.

Listen to Letters: The Experience of a Blind PCV

While Peace Corps Volunteers are abroad, they send many letters home to their family and friends. They receive and send letters, packages, and postcards, and sometimes audiotapes.

Geer Wilcox served in the Dominican Republic from 1963-1965 and taught Blind Education. For two years, at the National School for the Blind, he taught boys how to walk with canes, carpentry, and worked on several other projects. To correspond with his family, Geer and his parents would record their letters because he himself is blind.

The following is a handful of recordings that Geer sent his parents to narrate his time in the Peace Corps.

(In total, it takes about 20 minutes to listen to the recordings and the play button is on the far left of the media bars.) A transcript of  the recordings can be found here: Geer’s Transcript.

 

Geer trained in Seattle, and arrived in Santo Domingo in October of 1963. He lived and worked at the National School for the Blind, which he describes here.

(In the first clip, Geer describes how long the school has been open and how many students have graduated, and in the second he describes the space problems and layout of the school.)

 

A few months into Geer’s service, President Kennedy was assassinated. These are his reactions.

(Geer admits that he will miss President Kennedy, and he does not know how anyone else will do as good a job as he did.)

 

Geer had two main teaching responsibilities while at the school. Cane travel, which he considered important but frustrating.

(Geer talks about how capable his students are, but then he also discusses his frustrations with how difficult some of his students find it to learn cane travel.)

 

And carpentry, which he believes his students could turn into a marketable skill.

(Geer very much looks forward to teaching carpentry, but the school lacks tools and he lacks carpentry skills, however in the second clip he mentions that they get a commission to make crutches.)

 

Beyond the school, the blind community in the city in general was just as important to Geer. In fact, he learned a lot from UN involvement in institutions around the country  and he even helped a local group begin a campaign for a rehabilitation center.

(In the first clip, Geer talks about suggestions that the UN makes, and in the second he discusses supporting the beginnings of a society that will create a rehabilitation center.)

 

He also gained the school a bit of notoriety by attending a dinner with the Rotary Club where he talked about rehabilitation and Geer even appeared on TV demonstrating cane travel.

(Geer discusses the Rotary Club dinner in the first clip, and describes his TV appearance in the second.)

 

Six months into his service, Geer had already accomplished so much. He had become strongly aware of how blind people were handled by the community and the effect this would have on his students. But he was still preparing them for graduation and helping them find their place in the world.

(The first clip details interactions Geer had with the community and how they treated him as a blind person, and the second is about graduation for his students.)

 

While this is simply a snippet of Geer’s life and work in the Dominican Republic, it still shows the impact he had on the community and his students.

(In this clip a student speaks to Geer’s parents and expresses his appreciation for everything Geer has taught him.)

Thomas J. Hassett in Nepal

Country of Service: Nepal
Service Type: Community Development
Dates in Service: 1965-1966
Keywords: Gorkha, Memorial service

Accession Date: October 16, 2017
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 1.0 linear foot

Document Types: 

  • Correspondence (includes condolence letters to parents)
  • Photographs
  • Audiotape
  • Training booklet & certificate

Finding Aid:

  1. Peace Corps Material 
    1. Trainee booklet 
    2. Training certificate 
    3. Newspaper articles 
  2. Correspondence, Mom and Dad
    1. 1963-1965  
  3. Correspondence, Family and Friends 
    1. 1965-1966 
  4. Correspondence, To Thomas 
  5. Thomas Hassett Death 
    1. Report of death 
    2. Newspaper Articles 
    3. Letter from family member visiting 
    4. Letter from Embassy 
  6. Letters of Condolences, from Officials 
  7. Letters of Condolences 
  8. Burial Service 
  9. Tom’s Memorial 
  10. Correspondence, to Mr. & Mrs. Hassett 
    1. 1966-1971 
  11. Hassett Scholarship Fund 
  12. Utica College 
  13. Student Religious Liberals 
  14. Quotes
  15. Miscellaneous 
  16. 3” reel tape 
  17. Photographs

Digital Surrogates:

John Greven & Cliff Witt in Colombia

John Greven & Cliff Witt

Country of Service: Colombia
Service Type: Community Development
Dates in Service: 1966-1968
Keywords: Friends of Colombia, Documentary

Accession Date: October 12, 2017
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: two linear feet

Document Types

Documentary videos (digital)

  • Film for Action: Construyamos una escuela
  • Film for Action: Piedras como esta
  • Film for Action: Tendremos mas que puentes
  • Film for Action: Un canto a mi tierra
  • Publication

Finding Aid

  1. Box 1
    1. Film for Action 
    2. Film for Action Papers, 2007 
    3. Fragments of the Corps (1/2) 
    4. Fragments of the Corps (2/2) 
    5. Fragments of the Corps Photography  
    6. Fragments of the Corps Preface 
    7. Fragments of the Corps Promotional Material 
    8. Newspaper, 1968 
    9. Photos for Fragments of the Corps 
    10. Synopsis of Peace Corps Service 

2. Box 2

  1. VHS

3. 4 Documentaries

  1. Film for Action: Construyamos una escuela
  2. Film for Action: Piedras como esta
  3. Film for Action: Tendremos mas que puentes
  4. Film for Action: Un canto a mi tierra