The Museum of the Peace Corps Experience features an article about Dries’s docudrama about Lillian Carter’s Peace Corps experience. The film can be streamed here.
Finding Aid:
“Language Teaching in the Philippines,” 1950, 1956
The Philippines Peace Corps Survey: Final Report, 1966
Dates of Service/Place of Service/Service Project:
Education Volunteer, Rota Island in the Northern Mariana Islands (June 1969-May 1971)
Peace Corps Contract Trainer and Coordinator of Language Curriculum Development Projects in Peace Corps/Republic of the Marshall Islands, Peace Corps/Micronesia (Federated States of Micronesia and Palau), and other assignments with Peace Corps/Philippines, Peace Corps Pacific countries of Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Western Samoa and Tonga; (June 1987-November 1989)
Associate Country Director and Program and Training Officer, Peace Corps/Micronesia (Federated States of Micronesia and Palau), August 1989-March 1992.
Keywords: Education, Peace Corps Staff, Peace Corps Training
Countries of Service: the Philippines and Colombia
Service Type: Socio-Economic Studies and Research (in Colombia)
Dates in Service: July 25, 1975-August 6, 1977 (Philippines)
September 30, 1977-January 3, 1980 (Colombia)
Keywords: Agriculture
Accession Date: November 30, 2021
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 0.25 linear feet
Document Types
Correspondence
Reports
Finding Aid
Personal Correspondence (hand-written letters) sent by Donor and addressed to Donor’s late Father (Henry Caracciolo) during the period of Donor’s two U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer tours of service in the Philippines (July 25, 1975 – August 6, 1977), and Colombia (September30, 1977 – January 3, 1980)
Completion of Service – Description of Peace Corps Volunteer Service in the Philippines and Colombia.
Country of Service: Philippines
Place of Service: Pangil, Laguna Province; Manila; Los Banos, Laguna Province
Service Type: TESL co-teacher; Economic Development Foundation
Dates in Service: 1963-1965
Keywords: Education
Accession Date: April 16, 2021
Access: No restrictions
Collection Size: 1.0 linear feet
Country of Service: Philippines
Service Type: Elementary School English Teacher
Dates in Service: 1961-1963
Keywords: Community Development, Education, Literacy, Youth, Judaism
Accession Date: May 7, 2021; May 31, 2022
Access: no restriction
Collection Size: .26 linear feet (located in small collections)
Once a volunteer’s service has ended, they have to decide what to do after the Peace Corps. Some volunteers extend their service, some go on to graduate school, and some simply come home to the states and resettle into daily life.
The following are stories of what some volunteers did after their service.
When Alanna Randall was preparing to leave Belize in 2003 she was deciding between graduate school and joining Americorps, a Peace Corps-type program in the U.S. To help with her decision, Alanna used a chart that her local PCV magazine published.
Alanna Randall, Belize, 2001-2003. This chart is from the PC Belize Magazine “Toucan Times” Oct/Nov/Dec 2001
She eventually decided to join Americorps and served in Tuscon, Arizona as a Team Leader for Youth Volunteers. She then went on to pursue a Masters Degree in Teaching Spanish at the School for International Training in Vermont.
Tina Singleton started her service in Benin in 1992 and extended it two years to 1996. Even though her family encouraged her to serve another year, Tina decided she was ready to leave. However, she was debating between finding a job, taking courses in Community Based Rehabilitation, or applying to graduate schools. She eventually decided on graduate school in London.
Tina Singleton, Benin, 1992-1996. This postcard was sent to her parents from England while she was preparing to start graduate school.
Tina sent this postcard to her parents in March of 1997 and told them: “I managed to get through exams …!! I’m pretty sure I passed . . . now i can sit back (for a few minutes, anyway) and drink tea . . .”
Once Lynda Smith-Nehr completed her service in the Philippines in 1964 she traveled the world before heading home. Lynda visited Japan, India, Egypt, Palestine, Italy, Switzerland, England, DC, and New York.
Lynda Smith-Nehr,Philippines, 1962-1964. This was taken on her travels to Egypt after her service ended.
Lynda Smith-Nehr, Philippines, 1962-1964. This was taken on her travels to Greece after her service ended.
As evident from these examples, volunteers have a lot of paths to choose from when their service is over. And their two years in the Peace Corps gives them a lot of experiences to build their new lives with.
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.
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.
On March 1, 1961 President Kennedy signed an executive order establishing the Peace Corps. He asked Americans how many of them would be willing to serve their country and the cause of peace by living and working in the developing world. Thousands answered the call in 1961 and 750 were chosen to serve in 13 nations.
Throughout the summer of 1961 volunteers took tests for selection and were trained for service.
By the end of the summer groups had already begun serving, the first groups went to Ghana and Colombia, or were preparing to leave.
As volunteers were preparing to leave they were given travel itineraries, packing tips, and even guidelines for dealing with the press. Along with formal congratulation letters from Governors and Senators, volunteers were also featured in local newspapers.
Once training was over and all the packing was done, volunteers were sent on to their designated countries. The first groups served from 1961 to 1963.
Maureen Carroll served in the Philippines from 1961-1963 in Education.
After two years of service, they were all welcomed home.
While some things have changed since 1961, the life of a volunteer is still very much the same with training and living abroad. 58 years later the Peace Corps is still meeting Kennedy’s challenge of serving the U.S. and the cause of peace.
Every year, to celebrate this anniversary, the Peace Corps holds Peace Corp Week which “celebrates all the ways that Peace Corps makes a difference at home and abroad and renews its commitment to service.”
This year, Peace Corps Week is February 25 – March 3 and the theme is “Highlighting Home: What does home, family, and community look like in your Peace Corps country?” You can attend a Peace Corps event near you or vote for the best video in the Video Challenge.
