The United States has a volunteer group called the Peace Corps. President John F.

Kennedy instituted it in
March 1961. Washington, D.C. serves as its administrative center. The goal of the Peace Corps is to foster
international understanding and camaraderie by sending qualified volunteers to nations that need them. People
from the United States and other nations get a bit more understanding of one another via collaboration.

You must be at least 18 years old, in excellent health, and a citizen of the United States to join the Peace Corps.
There have been over 200,000 Peace Corps Volunteers, and no two have had the same experience. Here are the
tales of two of those Volunteers in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps.

Vice President for Educational Design and Development at National Geographic Education is Kathleen
Schwille. At Tanzania, she worked in Mbekenyera from January 1997 until December 1998.

The National Geographic Society's Coordinator for Foundation and Government Grants is Toni Schneider. From
2005 to 2007, she served as a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) in Pernik, Bulgaria.

What prompted you to join the Peace Corps and how did you initially get interested in it?

Schwille: I'd always wanted to join the Peace Corps. I wanted to travel more while I was in school to become a
teacher. My spouse and I traveled together. A speaker in high school motivated him to attend.

Schneider: My whole upbringing was spent on the Rosebud Reservation in southern South Dakota, an
environment that was identical to the Roma ghettos where I served in the Peace Corps in Bulgaria. [The Roma
are a native population of Turkey and Central and Eastern Europe. They also go by the name "Gypsies." The
majority of youngsters in the Roma ghetto and reserve have little possibility of achieving success in either their
careers or their schooling due to factors such as rising unemployment, below-average life expectancies, a lack of
opportunity, and poor education.

I saw my time in the Peace Corps as a chance to get experience working in underprivileged areas, and the
experience has given me a lot of insight into the kinds of programming and development techniques that I aspire
to one day assist implement in my hometown.

What did you do while you were a Peace Corps volunteer?

Schwille: In Mbekenyera, Tanzania, I taught chemistry to high school students. At the same school, my husband
was a math and physics teacher. This was my first job as a teacher. After completing my undergraduate
education in June 1996, I joined the Peace Corps two months later.

Schneider: I spent my time in the Pernik Municipal Palace of Culture working on programs to promote arts
education. The grant-writing abilities I utilize on a daily basis were acquired while working in Bulgaria.

Three months of training are followed by 24 months of duty for a total of 27 months for all Peace Corps
Volunteers. Did your training make you feel ready for the next two years?

Schwille: I had my training at Tanzania's major city of Arusha. For the first three months, we lived with host
family. In our training session, there were roughly 30 to 40 participants. About the regional traditions and
cultures, we were informed. Everything from how to take a bucket bath to running the educational system was
offered to us as advise. The British O and A level system forms the foundation of Tanzania's educational
system. Before continuing on to A levels, a student must complete the O levels.]

They also showed us what to anticipate from the pupils. Although they don't ask a lot of questions, they are
respectful to the instructor. Students often depend on memorizing via rote.

Even if you don't realize it at the time, you will have an influence on people's lives, we were informed during
our training.

Did you get the necessary training to work in your host country?

Schwille: Our language instruction was excellent. In three months, you do as much as you can. We learnt
Swahili. Because few people in our community spoke English, we definitely needed to learn Swahili at
Mbekenyera. Most of it I can still comprehend even today. I still speak a little Swahili when I'm with fellow
Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs).

Schneider: Peace Corps members get technical and linguistic training with a host family during the first three
months of their service. Being that Bulgarian is a Slavic language and employs the Cyrillic script, learning to
read the alphabet was at first difficult.

The goal of the Peace Corps' language training was to provide us "survival language skills" so that we could
travel without incident, converse with our friends and colleagues, and purchase food at the neighborhood
markets.

Outside of the classroom, Volunteers have plenty of opportunity to interact with their host families, go to events,
watch the news, and find delicious new foods at the grocery store—all excellent opportunities to practice their
language skills!

Developing fluency in a language is undoubtedly a continuous effort, and the program provided a strong
foundation. My language continued to advance rapidly once I relocated to Pernik, where I lived permanently. By
the time I left Bulgaria, I was able to write grants in Bulgarian and routinely translated international visitors'
interviews for the local TV station.

Describe a typical Peace Corps day.

Schwille: I taught ninth through twelfth graders in chemistry. The school day lasted from seven in the morning
to three in the afternoon. The pupils would leave for home at three and return at four to engage in sports or even
farming. From seven till nine in the evening, some students would come back to class to continue their studies.

It was difficult to teach without resources since our school was so terribly undersupplied. To do chemical
experiments, I would get battery acid from automobiles. I could acquire copper sulfate since it was a component
of fertilizer, and sulfur because it was used as an anti-fungal on cashew plants. I made use of anything I could
find. My parents used to purchase materials for me from the Carolina Biological Supply Company, a business
situated in Burlington, North Carolina that offers scientific and math supplies to schools around the country.

Some of the pupils learned how to make a cake from me. To sell the cakes during tea time, we established a
cake-baking cooperative. In my second year as a PCV, we also received a funding to construct a female
dormitory.

Schneider: I initially saw myself working as a personal coach and camp counselor to minority adolescents in
Bulgaria for my program assignment, which was called Youth Development. Flexibility and a willingness to
change are two of the most important traits a PCV can acquire.

About half of my time was spent mentoring young people in their late teens and early twenties to plan events for
local adolescents on issues including human trafficking, AIDS/HIV, drug and alcohol misuse, and education.

The other half of my time was spent working for the municipal arts council, where I lobbied for money for
literary newcomers or regional artists as well as for concert and lecture series.

Although many PCVs work "in the field," I often spent 35 to 40 hours per week in an office, and I wouldn't
exchange my experience for anything.

What kind of accommodations did you have?

We lived in a home that was attached to a row of teacher homes, says Schwille. We had a five-minute walk to
the village from there. It was a calm, simple life. We played the Tanzanian game bao and read a lot of books. It
reminds me of a game called mancala that is available in American shops.

Schneider: At first, I shared a single-family house with a host family. The majority of [Bulgarian] houses have
many generations living there, including children, parents, grandparents, and sometimes in-laws.

I stayed in a ten-story flat in a Soviet-style block when I relocated to Pernik, which I now call home. Although I
ultimately acquired a sofa, stove, refrigerator, bed, and wardrobe, my flat first arrived unfurnished. Although I
had central heating (there was no air conditioning), there were still a few evenings before the city switched on
the heat in the late autumn when I had to wear many sweaters, socks, hats, and gloves just to remain warm.

I was also fortunate to have access to the Internet at my apartment. Although it was a substantial monthly fee, I
regularly used Skype to work with other PCVs on projects or look for grant possibilities.

When you got back, how did you feel? Did culture shock affect you? Do you still communicate with the folks
you met while serving in the Peace Corps?

Schwille: My experience with cultural shock was minimal. We returned just in time for Christmas, and we enjoy
Christmas, our family, and being at home.

I still long for the Peace Corps' more laid-back atmosphere. The youngsters' absence from school is due to their
attendance at the cashew farm—the unpredictability of life! Tanzania allowed us to travel, and we could always
stay with a network of PCVs. In Zanzibar [a tropical enclave off the coast of Tanzania], we went on a safari.
Sometimes after leaving, we wouldn't return for a few days. People were kind and there was a feeling of
freedom; we didn't allow the fact that we lacked a tent stop us from climbing a mountain.

Schneider: I maintain a strong relationship with both the Bulgarians I met and the PCVs I worked with there. I
often write and sometimes contact my old colleagues and pals.

I had the good fortune to go to Bulgaria in 2010 with my friends and adoptive family for two weeks. Though I
had anticipated it would be challenging or embarrassing, going back to Bulgaria was like coming home. I was
greeted with wide arms by everyone, and we all commented that it was as if no time had gone. Being able to see
all of my pals was extremely uplifting for my spirit.

I love Bulgaria so much that I maintain contact with it even while I'm in Washington, D.C. I have many
Bulgarian friends, and I participate in a Bulgarian folk chorus to maintain the culture. I also often throw
celebrations for nearby PCVs on Bulgarian holidays.

What advice would you provide someone thinking about enlisting in the Peace Corps?

Schwille: They need to go. You should go if you wish to. Being placed often takes nine to twelve months, and if
you're married, it will take longer. There are more opportunities if you're prepared to travel anyplace.

The location you're going is not always where you believe it is, so you need to have a spirit of adventure and be
open to the area you're going.

The most important piece of advise I can provide is to resist the urge to evaluate your own Peace Corps service
in the context of that of other PCVs. Every experience is so different from the others and is worth a lot. The
"success" or "effect" a volunteer has on their community cannot be quantified in a single method.

How has serving in the Peace Corps changed your life, and would you consider doing it again?

Schwille: Perhaps I'll try it once again once I retire. It's a significant change in your life. The Peace Corps has
the power to completely alter your life's course. Since I'm still in school, it didn't really influence what I wanted
to do for myself, but it did alter my attitude on life. I have a lot more patience. I make an effort to consider
situations from others' perspectives.

Every PCV is asked, "Would you do it again?," says Schneider. I've already yelled "Yes!" before the inquiry is
even completed for me. My experience as a Peace Corps volunteer drastically altered my outlook on life while
being true to who I am as a person.

Are there any more details you'd want to share about your time in the Peace Corps, such as a recollection, a
favorite story, or a time when you felt like you were making a difference?

I have two, Schwille. In Tanzania, it is quite difficult for female pupils. They face greater difficulties and get
less help than the male pupils. In our school, a kid was picked to recite something in English during the morning
assembly. A rather reserved female student was once chosen. She was quite anxious. For a week, we worked
and practiced. She arrived in front of the school and froze the morning of the assembly. After that, I felt
hopeless as I sat at my desk. She entered my office after that and said, "I want to do it again tomorrow." I was in
awe when she expressed a desire to do it once again. Such little moments are so crucial. My wish is that she
would eventually enroll her girls in school.

In the second, a core group of pupils who were eager to learn everything played a major role. From the United
States, my husband's parents had brought a telescopic lens and an eyepiece. It was an incredible experience to
show them the moon, stars, and Jupiter. We saw them mulling through all the possibilities. One pupil earned his
O levels before earning his A levels. He's now pursuing a master's in chemistry at Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's
biggest city. He wants to study for his PhD in the United States. We communicate through SMS once a month
and are friends on Facebook.

Schneider: We always had an abundance of delicious meals when living with a host family. Even though
everything was so good, my family offered me more food than I usually could eat. I had been in the nation for
about two weeks when I started to learn the language and my jeans started to grow a little snug. I made the
decision to impress my host sister with my Bulgarian by telling her that I was completely filled.

One night, after we had finished a particularly enormous dish of food, my host sister asked me, "Toni, would
you want any more?"

I misunderstood her horribly when she said, "Toni, are you finished?"

I was rewarded by yet another heaping platter of delectable Balkan cuisine after I eagerly said "yes." I never
again misunderstood the terms "more" and "finish" after that!