Nine Peace Corps Volunteers sworn in

Nine United States (US) citizens will reside in St. Vincent and the Grenadines for the next two years assisting various communities as US Peace Corps Volunteers.{{more}}

The men and women were sworn in last Thursday at a ceremony at Frenches House. They are the eightieth group of Peace Corps volunteers.

They are Courtney Niederer, assigned to work in Questelles; Ericha Sappington who will work in Brighton; Kellan Meitzenheimer to work in Rose Hall; Kelly Wagner who will work in Buccament Bay, and Neely Thompson who will work in New Grounds. Sarah Ward, Sheena Williams, Theodore Fischer and Toussaint Hill will work in Barrouallie , Biabou, Chateaubelair and Sandy Bay, respectively.

Speaking at the ceremony, Country Director of the US Peace Corps Marjorie Jeanchild explained the objectives of the organization which was established in 1961 and developed from an idea of then US President John F. Kennedy.

The organization, Jeanchild said, was built on a premise of goodwill, hard work and youthful cooperation and has three goals: to provide technical assistance, to educate host countries about USA and for volunteers to take back what they have learnt about the country to share with Americans.

Relating her experiences while she was a Peace Corps Volunteer, Jeanchild encouraged the volunteers to think of their work as more than a job. She added that they should think of how they are doing their jobs, just not what they are doing.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of National Mobilization, Rosita Snagg, giving the feature address, told the volunteers that they have the chance to change the lives of the people they will work with.

Mentioning the beauty of St. Vincent and the Grenadines through the popular song by Alston Becket Cyrus: “St. Vincent My Homeland”, Snagg added that there will never be a dull moment as they will share in the experiences and stories of others. She also encouraged volunteers to persevere through struggles and mistakes.

Eleven Peace Corps are currently serving in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. To date, over 200,000 volunteers have served in seventy-four countries all over the world.