The Close of Service (COS) procedure was relatively painless for me seeing as I hadn´t had any health problems during my service. I had to go to the dentist and doctor for exams (all went well…no cavities, no HIV), close my bank account, turn in my cell phone, get almost everyone in the office to sign a sheet saying that I had concluded all work with them, talked to the nurses about post-Peace Corps health care, and finally had an interview with the Country Director to go over my Description of Service (DOS) document and give her any feedback I had about my service.
Here is my DOS if you´d like to see what I did (or at least said that I did during my two years in Ecuador)…
(OMNIBUS 97)
DESCRIPTION OF PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER SERVICE
Jay L. Verhoff
PROGRAM No. 518-07-01 - ECUADOR
DESCRIPTION OF PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER SERVICE
Jay L. Verhoff
PROGRAM No. 518-07-01 - ECUADOR
After a competitive application process stressing applicant skills, adaptability and cross-cultural understanding, Jay Verhoff was invited into Peace Corps service in Ecuador. Jay Verhoff entered training on February 5, 2007, participating in an intensive 12-week program of community based training in Cayambe, Ecuador which included intensive instruction and field work in Spanish, cross-cultural studies, personal health and safety, and the technical skills required in the Sustainable Agriculture Program.
Jay Verhoff successfully completed training and was sworn in as a Volunteer on April 20, 2007. During his service in Ecuador, he was assigned to the Asociación de Mujeres (Women’s Association) - La Libertad, Cotopaxi, where he served as a technical consultant.
During his two year service, Jay Verhoff acted in a wide variety of work roles and responsibilities. The first and often hardest of these tasks, was to integrate himself into a small mestizo community high in the Andes Mountains. Faced with such difficulties as adapting to the cultural norms, building trust and confidence with an entire community, and perfecting a new language, Jay not only survived, but in fact thrived. By the end of his two year service, Jay had fully integrated himself into the fabric of La Libertad and was considered not as an outsider, but as a community member. He even was asked by his neighbors to be a co-Godfather to two of their daughters, a great honor in Ecuadorian society.
Working with his counterpart agency, the Asociación de Mujeres, Jay was able to participate in the daily operations of a local community bank. The bank was started in 2004 with US Government funds in the form of a PL-480 loan and with the help of a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV). Jay’s tasks included helping with computer problems and maintenance of their accounting system. Jay spent several days a month helping the women manage client payments and report the bank’s financial status to PL-480 officials. With over $130,000 in capital from the original loan and accrued interest, the bank stands as a great example of a successful Peace Corps project and demonstrates the sustainability and inter-volunteer cooperation that Peace Corps stresses.
Jay also assisted the teachers at La Libertad’s grade school and high school. Although Jay never received any formal training in the teaching of English as a second language, he successfully completed two years as an English professor at the local grade school. During his first year in La Libertad, Jay worked with the school’s oldest two levels. During his second year, he was asked by the principal to expand his curriculum to be able to work with four grade levels. Jay also taught nutrition, health, and agriculture classes at the local high school. Outside of a classroom setting, Jay taught computer and cooking classes to members of the Women’s Association and to any adults who asked for these courses.
One of the biggest problems facing rural Ecuadorians is the rising price of food. According to recent studies, up to 80% of Ecuadorian children already suffer from slow growth rates and an inability to concentrate at school due to Anemia. The problem of under-nourished children will only worsen with Ecuadorian inflation at close to 9% in 2008. In order to help alleviate in a very small way some of the pressures placed on Ecuadorian families by rising food prices and to improve childhood nutrition, Jay started school and community gardening projects at 15 locations near la Libertad.
Most of the communities that Jay worked in did not have a strong agricultural tradition and did not maintain any small gardens for household consumption. Jay consulted and planned with teachers and parents to determine the best method for implementing the school gardens. With the input of local communities, Jay and another PCV were able to work with students, teachers, and parents to clear land, plant, manage, and harvest their crops. In many ways, the actual gardening was the easiest facet of this project for Jay. What proved more difficult was that, because he was working in communities where he did not live, Jay had to build new relationships and show the community members that he was there to help and not to exploit them. After over a year of working, several of the communities took the initiative to plant gardens on their own at the schools or at individual’s homes. Now that the communities have confidence in Peace Corps’ commitment, Jay has passed this project on to his successor to begin expanding the program to include composting, soil erosion prevention, and pest management.
While in La Libertad, Jay also started a small scale yogurt project whose aim was to increase family incomes. Most families in La Libertad own cows and have a small amount of milk production that is sold for a very low price. Jay constructed a fermentor and researched the process involved in converting milk into yogurt, which would be much more profitable for the members of his community. Jay produced many sample batches and taught several of his neighbors how to produce yogurt. Although, the project did not reach the point where product was being sold, he did arouse interest in many women from his community and his successor will be able to build on that success, insuring that Jay’s efforts will continue to have an effect after he leaves.
Not all Peace Corps projects are successful, and Jay worked hard on one project that was finally deemed unfeasible. Many of the women that Jay worked with showed interest in starting egg production in their homes. Jay visited similar projects, researched costs and procedures, and performed market and feasibility studies. After analyzing the proposed project, Jay realized that it would not work as designed. Jay and the women made many changes to the proposal and their concept of what the project would entail. Finally, Jay wrote and presented a detailed study of their proposed project to Peace Corps officials. Unfortunately, the project was rejected because of the inability of the women involved to dedicate the sufficient amount of time to the management of the project due to their numerous domestic and work commitments.
The last four months of Jay’s service were quite different from his first 20. Jay applied for and was offered the position of Peace Corps Volunteer Technical Co-Trainer for the group of Trainees that arrived in Ecuador in 2009 to replace Jay’s Omnibus. The Co-Trainers provide a first-hand view for Trainees of Volunteer life and role of the Volunteer in development work, and assist in cross-cultural adaptation, the community entry process, safety and security aspects, and other job and Volunteer life-related issues. They also assist Technical Trainers in the design and execution of technical training, in collaboration with the other training components.
Prior to the arrival of the newest group of Trainees, Jay and the other Co-Trainers prepared and planned technical sessions, technical trips, reviewed technical materials, and advised other staff members on ways to improve the training plan. During training they assisted in the implementation of the training sessions, and after training, assisted in the final reporting and evaluation of the training program. Participating in training allowed Jay to pass on much of his knowledge, insights, and experiences to future PCVs. This was a rewarding and enjoyable way to end his 27 months in the beautiful country of Ecuador.
Pursuant to Section 5(f) of the Peace Corps Act 22 U.S.C. 2504(f), as amended, any former Volunteer employed by the United States Government following his/her Peace Corps Volunteer Service is entitled to have any period of satisfactory Peace Corps service credited for purposes of retirement, seniority, reduction in force, leave and other privileges based on length of Government service. That service shall not be credited toward completion of the probationary or trial period of any service requirement for career appointment.
This is to certify in accordance with Executive Order 11103 of April 10, 1963, that Jay Verhoff served successfully as a Peace Corps Volunteer. His service ended on May 4, 2009. He is therefore eligible to be appointed as a career-conditional employee in the competitive civil service on a non-competitive basis. This benefit under the Executive Order extends for a period of one year after termination of Volunteer service, except that the employing agency may extend the period for up to three years for former Volunteer who enters military service, pursues studies at a recognized institution of higher learning, or engages in other activities which, in the view of the appointing agency, warrants extension of the period.
Everything went well that day, but it took forever. It was a strange feeling to walk out of the office and know that I completed what I had set out to do so long ago. It was late in 2005 when I resigned from my job in Chicago with the intention of doing the Peace Corps. Now, all that is behind me and I´m ready for the rest of my life to begin.
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