A Welcome Letter

Dear Prospective Peace Corps Volunteer,

You are fortunate to have been chosen for service in the
Philippines. This is a fascinating country with wonderfully
friendly people where geography and history have cooperated
over many centuries to produce a vibrantly diverse culture set in
some of earth’s most beautiful scenery.

The Philippines is also a nation of great contrasts. Metro Manila
includes extravagantly luxurious hotels, gated communities of the
super rich, congested highways, mass transit, enormous shopping
malls, American restaurant chains, modern airports, and futuristic
skyscrapers. However, throughout the mega-city, millions of
people struggle to sustain life in dangerous and heavily polluted
slum neighborhoods and shanty towns. Among them, legions of
homeless children scramble every day to collect discarded bottles
and bits of plastic and metal to sell for money for food. Hunger
and disease co-exist in close proximity to rampant consumerism
and displays of wealth that many Americans would consider
unimaginable.

Our Volunteers join the ongoing work of national, regional,
and local government agencies and nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) and work alongside Filipino teachers,
youth development workers, and environmental officers either
as school faculty members or staff members of youth centers,
local government offices, or community organizations. The
most important purposes of a Volunteer’s assignment are the
expansion of knowledge and skills that Volunteers give and
receive with colleagues, students, friends, and others whom
they encounter.

At the beginning of your service, three months of training will
offer you a solid orientation in your future work assignment,
a local Philippine language, and standard Philippine cultural
usages. You will simultaneously receive crucial information
about staying healthy and safe. The pre-service training also will
provide you with a good base from which you can continue to
expand your knowledge and skills after you arrive at the place
where you will live and work for the next two years. Living in
a Filipino household and working together with Filipinos will
be integral parts of your pre-service training. Later, on arrival
at your site, you will be hosted for the first three months by
another Filipino family who will help you learn about your
new community while offering you continuing opportunities
to practice cultural awareness and increase your ability to
communicate in the local language.

Please accept our sincere congratulations on your decision to
become a Peace Corps Volunteer. You will soon join one of the
world’s most effective human development organizations. Peace
Corps’ success derives directly from the central emphasis on
positive learning that is featured in all aspects of our program.
We are confident that your service will continue to strengthen
Peace Corps’ effectiveness. And we are eager to welcome you in
person and to help you become a fully integrated and successful
part of the Peace Corps/Philippines team.

With best wishes for a smooth departure from home and a safe
journey to Manila,

Peace Corps/Philippines Volunteers and Staff

______________________________________________________________

After emailing the Peace Corps my updated resume along with my aspiration statement, I was required to apply for a special passport and visa. I could not help but feel anxious as I slid my current passport into the mailing envelope along with the other forms. What if it gets lost? I am hoping for the best.

A few days ago, I also recieved access to my packing list which includes a ridiculously huge list of items. Some of the most notable: a snorkel mask and a head lamp :)