St. Kitts-Nevis welcomes new Peace Corps volunteers

By Melissa Bryant
Reporter-SKNVibes.com

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – TWELVE young men and women committed to serving humanity were sworn in as the newest members of the Peace Corps contingent in St. Kitts and Nevis on Friday, October 31.

The Peace Corps was founded on September 22, 1961 with the mandate to promote world peace and friendship by making available to interested countries and areas men and women of the United States qualified for service abroad and willing to serve, under conditions of hardship if necessary, to help the peoples of such countries and areas in meeting their needs for trained manpower.

Since 1960 more than 190 000 people have served as Peace Corps volunteers in 139 countries.

Peace Corps Country Director Marjorie Jeanchild stressed that joining the organisation “is not a nine to five job, as volunteers may undergo physical hardship and mental challenges”.

The Federation’s newest delegation consists of five men and seven women, who will be deployed in a range of departments, schools and non-governmental organisations including the Department of Gender Affairs, Violet Petty Primary School, Save Our Sons (SOS), National Youth Skills and the Disabled Association.

The volunteers underwent a seven-week orientation of acclimatisation and training to ensure that they were ready to deliver their services from day one, receiving instruction in areas such as community and youth development, teaching, AIDS and disease education, cultural practices, and safety and security.  ~~Adz:Right~~

The induction ceremony was held at Manhattan Gardens and was attended by Deputy Prime Minister Sam Condor, Deputy Premier Hensley Daniel, the course instructors and the volunteers’ home-stay mothers, who had given them lodging over the seven-week period.

Geoffrey Matranga, a newly-inducted member and the delegation’s spokesperson, thanked those who had assisted the group “in any possible way” and vowed to live up to Minister Condor’s declaration that the volunteers “would do work with lasting impressions that will long be remembered and will make a change”.

“The world of tomorrow requires much understanding and this understanding must begin today,” said the Hon. Sam Condor.