It was 35 years ago today that a bunch of recent college graduates in agriculture, forestry and environmental education and I landed in Central America to begin our two-year Peace Corps Costa Rica Volunteer assignments.
We all got to know each other a few months earlier in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. The Peace Corps flew all us in for a bit of psychological testing. For a few days we had to do all kinds of role playing or small group discussion under the watchful eye of some psychologist types. The idea was to try to weed out any of us who they thought couldn’t withstand the rigours of a long-term assignment in a developing country.
A few months later we rendezvoused in Key Largo, Florida. I have no idea why we were there and I can only recall eating Key Lime pie for the first time and drinking enough American beer to last a couple of years.
Upon arrival in Costa Rica on 15 June 1981, we were sent to a small town and assigned to live with host families. For about 10 weeks we had very intensive training not only in environmental and agricultural issues but in language. We were not allowed to speak English to our fellow Volunteers and lived with families who didn’t speak a word of English. We came out of that training speaking Spanish well and ready to tackle the toughest of assignments.
Finally, on 1 September 1981, we were sworn in as Peace Corps Volunteers by the US consul in Costa Rica and sent off to do our jobs.
When we shipped off, 35 years ago today, we were promised to have the ‘toughest job you’ll ever love’. Indeed, we did and I still rank my Peace Corps service as the best career choice I ever made.
And I can’t help but see the relevance to the Peace Corps today. When John F. Kennedy outlined his dreams for the Peace Corps during a campaign stop in Ann Arbor in late 1960 and in the midst of the Vietnam War he called for an organization which would promote world peace, friendship and understanding.
I think of the tens of thousands of volunteers who have served in the 55 years since Kennedy created the Peace Corps and think about how all of those returned volunteers have helped foster a better understanding, compassion and appreciation of the diverse people of the world.
And then I turn on the television and see an orange faced bigot spewing hatred and I think to myself. Imagine a world where Donald Trump would have served as a Peace Corps Volunteer.
