Life Is Calling ...Help Out

    On Thursday, April the 10^th, a man by the name of Travis Axton came to class to preach the good word about the Peace Corps. It all started with a brief introduction of his background and ending in an hour long conversation of the beauty of helping others. Travis is the Regional Peace Corps Recruiter for the San Francisco Bay area. Travis’s goal speaking to us was not just to come tell us to be somebody and enroll in the Peace Corps, but rather to share with us the life changing possibility one can incur from such a well developed organization helping the less fortunate.

    Travis was unreal to state the obvious. He reeled me in from the first words he shared with us. “First things first, this is a twenty seven month commitment that will not only look good on a resume for future jobs but becoming a better person is what this is all about, life changing that is.” He not only kept our attention through his great speaking presence but also demonstrated the actual language to us by showing us a few things such as greeting and asking the Zambians how they were doing. Before going to Zambia Travis was challenged for three months on the lifestyle that he was about to get himself into for the next two years.

     When Travis arrived in Zambia the culture and lifestyle changed began to hit him right away; living in a mud hut, no running water and no tourists to associate with. He was given an allowance of $100 U.S. dollars which in Zambia was like being that of a millionaire. The culture shock did hit Travis but he knew that he had to make the best of what he had and seeing that the Zambians could do it on a daily basis made him realize it wasn’t as bad as he thought. We live like Gods in the U.S. and in Zambia it’s as if there was nothing.

    The process to apply takes around nine months and is very important to get all the paper work right the first time. Travis handed out brochures in class; they were very informative and useful. I talked with a classmate and we both told each other if we hadn’t already signed and got such a great job as we did this opportunity would have been something we would have done. I love to be adventurous and do things out of the ordinary and joining the Peace Corps or the Marines are a few things that I would love to do before I get to old.

    Looking at the Peace Corps website, there are a lot of great and useful information that can basically answer any questions one may have. Since 1961, the Peace Corps has shared with the world, America's most precious resource, people. There are 74 countries that the Peace Corps serve. I enjoyed reading the personal experience of those people that have gone through the two year program in the past. They weren’t all positive ones but they all shared how they felt to a personal level.

    Do you want to become useful? Life is calling, how far will you go? Help out then! It's easy all you have to do is visit the website and share a little about yourself and apply. In order to be eligible to join the Peace Corps you must be over 18 years of age and a U.S. citizen. One quality that I found to be valuable is that you can join with your husband, wife, or life long partner and as long as you have been together more than 6 months you will be placed in the same location together. Also coming from diverse areas the american volunteers range from college students to retirees. there's no age to old for someone to help make a difference.

    Having Travis come to class opened my eyes a lot. I would had never took the time to look at information on the Peace Corps but after all his work and preaching to us, I can honestly be thankful that he made the trip to Chico to talk to us. I look up to the people that gave years of there lives to the less fortunate if only everyone was like this we wouldn’t have to battle poverty and issues of that sort ever. Life isn’t that way so the Peace Corps makes things happen. Good work to them all!