Finally an Update!

Written March 10th, 2010

I haven’t written a serious blog since July 2009! Let me summarize what has happened since last July. I am sure there is much detail left out but Ill do my best while being brief.

I visited home for the first time in July. Visiting home revitalized me. I spent my time with the people I care most about. To be honest with you, over the past two years the appreciation I have for my family has grown. I think more about how nice it is to live close to home, even if home life has its occasional drama. Before I left for St. Lucia I was determined that when I return to the states I would live at home for the holidays then, make my way out to California and settle myself there. However, the longer home is not readily accessible the more I just feel like moving back to Austin; home being only a 3 hour drive away. On many an occasion while living in St. Lucia, how I would have killed to retreat home, just for the weekend.

I came back to Lucia feeling grounded and more myself. I had been in a pretty big rut. I came back with the renewed understanding that it is important to be who you are regardless of the culture you are in. When you move to a new country with a different culture from your own adaption is essential to your wellbeing. This adaption process, for most, happens naturally, and it need not be over analyzed. I have spoken with several volunteers about this adaption process and its relevance to maintaining ones identity. When you are in Peace Corps, there is an overemphasis on adaption. They tell to observe the way people dress, eat, think, act, etc. you can begin to feel like the more you adapt, the more you lose who your know yourself to be. After all, you are actually changing certain pieces of yourself. For example, its not common place in St. Lucia for men and women to be platonic friends, so maybe you decide to be less friendly with men, and this just doesn’t feel right to you. Perhaps you are used to going out in jeans in a t-shirt, but all the young women are dressed very sexy so you feel you need to ‘adapt’ and mimic the styles, and behaviors of the people around you. You get caught between staying true to yourself, and ‘adapting’. It really is a fine line. After being here for two years, I say that most people adapt naturally and there is no need to over emphasize or force the adaption. Be culturally sensitive but stay true to who you are. When I went home last July I realized how important that is. I have found that there are many things I do or ways I act here that are taboo or just different from the way locals live, and I think that is ok.

There have been a few complications with my work here. Actually, who am I kidding, it’s been frustrating and difficult nearly every single day. Creating a successful, sustainable program that produces results is not easy as it is; now try doing it in a place where people have different priorities, work-ethics, and management styles. Nevertheless, I have made WhyTry a success, or course, not with out the help of my community partners.

The first thing that happened is I revised my original proposal to include funding for a week long training of 80 – 100 secondary school counselors, teachers, and community youth workers. In mid march of this year all school counselors will be (and now have been) trained and certified in facilitating the WhyTry Program. The training is necessary to help create sustainability. I have been quite luck actually and have a lot to be thankful for. Not only did JQ Charles Group of Companies agree to extend our funding to $10,686 USD with a promise for further funding, but Why Try has agreed to do the training for a fraction of the usual costs. The week long training is marketed at $15,000 in the states for a group of 100 and they have agreed to do the training for $2,500 + travel and accommodations for the trainer! It truly is a blessing.

We started the pilot of 4 schools in district 2 in January and we are now half way through the pilot. The counselors from my initial 2 schools are practically running the program all on their own now and have really taken ownership of the groups. Currently we have 96 students in the program between the 4 schools.

Also, the Ministry of Education put in a request for a new volunteer to come in to replace me for when I have to leave in October. JQ Charles has stated that they only feel comfortable funding the project further if Peace Corps is involved. This would make certain that there is a volunteer championing the project and ensuring its continuation as her primary work task. Washington granted the request and Elizabeth arrived in February and is currently going through Peace Corps training. If she decides that she likes the project and makes it her primary project, I will be returning home in October. There is a chance of me extending my stay if things don’t work out for her for some reason, or if it seems that the expansion into more districts will require the support of two volunteers. If all goes as planned, we will hopefully be getting 10 more schools their materials next year and the last 10 schools the year after.

I will begin writing the new proposal soon. I created measures to track the success of the program but I will be revising these, as J, the president of Why Try In who came down to conduct the training, has sent me some very valuable tracking measures. That is where the program is now.

We also had a huge media launch for the program at the beginning of the current school term. I gotta say, it was really neat and I felt so honored that the work I am doing here was becoming so big. I gave a speech to the principals, vice principals, counselors, JQ Charles CEO and business managers, Peace Corps staff, and Ministry of Education officers. I was also interviewed by one of the national media networks and got to see myself on national television that evening. All very nerve racking, very cool, and very useful to my professional development. Since then I have been interviewed at the why try training and got to be in the paper and news again. Eek!

Finally, I was also involved in the planning and implementation of our first Peace Corps Expo in St. Lucia. We got the idea from the JOCV Japanese Volunteers who had a JOCV Expo. At their expo they introduced the public to what JOCV does and Japanese culture. We had a day long Expo from 10 – 4 where we set up different activities that reflect the work we do here as volunteers. We also had cultural displays, food, and games. The expo was held the first weekend of March and was a huge success. I would say that nearly 1000 people flowed in and out throughout the day. My main station was creating compliment boxes with kids in the youth development/life-skills corner. We also had chess, disability awareness, trivia, US map with our locations, face painting, an information corner, and a steel pan performance by us volunteers that are learning to play the steel pan. We even did the chicken dance. It was an enjoyable day.

Okay this has gotten too long, and I will add some of my journal entries from between then and now a little later.