Site Visit

Pre-service training has been going well and I returned from my visit to permanent site in a small village in Balkan region this week. The village has a population of around 1,500 people and is surrounded by the beautiful Kopet Dag mountains. Its very remote and my host family are farmers that grow tomatoes, garlic, chilis, apricots, honey and other tasty fruits and veggies in the spring and summer. They have three small children who are quite energetic and I met several girls my age who are carpet weavers and they taught me how to weave a little bit and promised to help me learn their art. My counterpart is a really sweet older lady who is a midwife and there is a birth room at the small but cozy house of health. They are very excited to have me work there and although the winter months don't seem very inviting I think my work in the village will be interesting and the people are very welcoming.

Arrival

I've been here in Turkmenistan for 1 week. I'm healthy and very happy with my host family and learning the language quickly. Stay tuned...!!!

Getting Ready

I said 'goodbye' to all my Pittsburgh friends Sunday September 7th at a get-together at my Pittsburgh host family's house. It was hard to say goodbye to all the people that have made Pittsburgh my home over the past four years and I know I will miss all the little things about life there. My last few days were a montage of my favorite burgh activities, like spending Saturday in the Strip District, contra dancing and hanging out on the Southside. It was a lovely distraction to be able to share these things with some wonderful friends from Germany who were visiting Pittsburgh. I was also pleasantly surprised when I showed up for my last day of work and found my boss had made his own powerpoint version of "Turkmenistan Jeopardy" for me and coworkers to compete in. Thankfully, the questions were from Wikipedia so I didn't have to be embarrassed and my coworkers got to learn a bit about where I'll be.  

The last couple of days were spent packing and cleaning up both my place and Michael's place as we loaded our good friends down with all our good junk that we just couldn't fit in our parents' attics. After we finally loaded our Penske truck, we drove across the city, tearfully saying our goodbyes to our favorite bridges.

Back in Fleetwood, PA, I'm enjoying sleeping in, reading and visiting family, while I run errands and get all my finances and other things in order. This Sunday September 21st will be Part II of my Farewell Party to be held in the Fleetwood Community Park and the start of my last week in the States. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone here and spending my last few days enjoying hot showers, carrot cake, and using my debit card among other little luxuries.

About Turkmenistan

Turkmenistan on Wikipedia:

Turkmenistan (Turkmen: Türkmenistan; also known as Turkmenia) is a Turkic country in Central Asia. The name Turkmenistan is derived from Persian, meaning "land of the Turkmen". The name of its capital, Ashgabat, derived from Persian as well, loosely translating as "the city of love". Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic. It is bordered by Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the southwest, Uzbekistan to the northeast, Kazakhstan to the northwest, and the Caspian Sea to the west.

According to CIA World Factbook 2006 figures, Turkmenistan ranks 5th in the world for GDP growth rate. Although it is wealthy in natural resources in certain areas, most of the country is covered by the Karakum (Black Sands) Desert. It has a single-party system, and was ruled by President for Life Saparmurat Niyazov until 21 December 2006, when he (and his term) expired. Presidential elections were held on 11 February 2007. Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedow was declared the winner with 89% of the vote. He was sworn in on 14 February 2007


Read more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkmenistan



Read about Peace Corps Program in Turkmenistan:

http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=learn.wherepc.easteurope.turkmenistan

Peace Corps Resume

Mary Carroll
Turkmenistan
September 2008

Experience

2008 Adagio Health- Pittsburgh, PA
Peer Educator, CAPP Program
Gave health education presentations at high schools, middle schools, after-school programs and community health fairs on topics including Puberty and Anatomy, Hygiene, HIV/AIDS and STD’s, Pregnancy Prevention, Abstinence, Goal Setting, Self Esteem, Decision Making, Assertiveness and Communication. Learned comprehensive sexual education curriculum and class management skills.

2008 Allegheny Reproductive Health Center- Pittsburgh, PA
Patient Advocate/Nurse Assistant
Assisted nurse in patient care in post-abortion recovery room by taking vital signs, charting patient progress and providing patient education and support. Worked with a team of excellent women’s healthcare providers and learned much from their expertise in medical and emotional issues associated with reproductive health.

2008 Center for Research on Healthcare, University of Pittsburgh- Pittsburgh, PA
Research Assistant- “Content Analysis of Substance Use in Popular Music” Primack, BA
Analyzed popular music for studies on adolescent substance use, sexuality, violence and depression and their relationship to media use. Authored several articles including one published in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine and several forthcoming articles. Also gained skills in database management, Excel, Access and basic statistics.
Primack, B., Dalton, M., Carroll, M., Agarwal, A., Fine, M. (2008) Content Analysis of Tobacco, Alcohol, and Other Drugs in Popular Music. Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine 162(2):169-175

2008 Homestead Community Center- Pittsburgh, PA
Bellydance Instructor
Taught belly dance class to a group of 5-10 girls from a local charter school, stressing positive body image and creativity.

2008 Private Arabic and English language instructor
Taught private lessons to American students learning Arabic and Arab students learning English several hours per week.

2007 The Midwife Center for Birth and Women’s Health, Pittsburgh, PA
Anthropology Internship
Assisted in office duties and outreach opportunities at a women’s health center and initiated grant-writing projects. Attended birthing classes, shadowed midwives in gynecological and post-partum visits and assisted midwives in the births of two babies through labor support, logistics and fetal heart tone monitoring.

2007 University of Pittsburgh-First Experiences in Teaching
Arabic Teaching Assistant
Assisted Arabic 1 professor during class, taught lessons, prepared worksheets, assignments and other supplementary materials such as movies and audio clips. Gave office hour tutoring and exam review sessions.

2007-2008 Freelance Henna Artist
Created henna body art for various parties and community events.

2007 Ruwwad Community Center- Amman Jordan
Children’s Library Volunteer
Read to children in the community center library and gave informal English lessons.

2006 Prevention Point Pittsburgh
Needle Exchange Volunteer
Filled orders for clean syringes and supplies for exchangers.

2006 Gudran Community Center- Alexandria, Egypt
International Art Camp Volunteer
Organized and taught workshops on painting, drawing, origami and games for local children in a fishing village community center.

2005-2007 Student Global AIDS Project, University of Pittsburgh
President and Community Outreach Chair
Led group meetings and officer meetings, organized events such as the annual World AIDS Day event and benefit Prom fundraiser, organized volunteer activities such as Shepherd’s Wellness Dinners – weekly dinners for those affected by HIV/AIDS-, trips to Washington D.C. and coordinated partner projects with other campus organizations.

2005 Global Links- Pittsburgh, PA
Medical Supply Assistant
Sorted and packed surplus unused medical supplies from local hospitals for shipment to needy hospitals and clinics around the world. Set-up volunteer projects and assisted volunteers.

2004-2005 America Reads Challenge, University of Pittsburgh
Reading Tutor
Tutored several 5th grade students at Vann Elementary School in supplementary reading skills three times per week.


Degree

2004-2007 University of Pittsburgh
Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Linguistics

Training

2007 Critical Language Scholarship, US Department of Education and US Department of State
Intermediate Arabic Language Program- Amman, Jordan

2006 Study Abroad Scholarship, Study Abroad Office, University of Pittsburgh
Semester abroad at American University in Cairo, Egypt

2005 Brackenridge Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Linguistics Research Presentation “Narrowing the Gap: Language, Gender and Authority”

2004-2008 Medical Anthropology Credits- 3

Islamic Civilization Credits- 3

Language, Ethnicity and Nationalism Credits-3

Bird-dogging Political Action Training- Health GAP/ACT UP Philly

2001-2002 Rotary Youth Exchange Program
Exchange Student- Pune, India

Foreign Languages
Arabic- advanced proficiency
Hindi- basic proficiency
Spanish- basic familiarity

Personal Interests/Hobbies
Hiking, Dance (Belly dance, Modern, Folk), Henna/Mehndi, Middle Eastern and Indian Culture, Reading, Poetry, HIV/AIDS education and political activism, Charity events, Public Health, Biking, Running, Religion and Spirituality, Women’s Rights, Non-violence, Social Justice, Couch-surfing, Sewing, Crocheting, Singing.

Aspiration Statement

ASPIRATION STATEMENT
Mary Carroll
Turkmenistan
September 29th, 2008

Each Peace Corps applicant and future volunteer has a store of images of Peace Corps service that have influenced their view of the Peace Corps and inspired them to apply. These images multiply from the time we first decide to apply until we arrive in our host countries. They grow to include us and our hopes and dreams until we have created our own Peace Corps promotional video in our minds and we are the stars. In my Peace Corps fantasy, I am riding a beautiful Akhal Teke steed from village to village, wearing intricately embroidered Turkmen garments, assisting local midwives as they catch healthy, fat babies thanks to my promotion of pre-natal care and pregnancy education.

I know this snapshot leaves out all the sickness, frustration and loneliness that a volunteer is bound to feel at some point in their two years of service. However, when I take away all the glamour and lights, I can see the essence of my dreams and expectations. For me, this means that I hope to work with local healthcare providers to educate patients on women’s health issues and to learn from their knowledge and skills. Specifically, I’m interested in working with midwives and doctors in rural areas to help them make improvements in areas where they see need. I feel very passionate about the importance of health education, especially for women, who are often the primary healthcare providers for their families. Reproductive health is intricately tied to women’s education and women’s rights. Supporting women’s active roles in their families’ and their communities’ healthcare is a crucial step to equality and development.

I hope to be able to put my skills as a patient educator and health education teacher to work in new and challenging situations in Turkmenistan. However, if I would be assigned to work more closely with populations outside of my experience, I’m sure it would enable me to expand my interests and extend my skills to other areas. I hope that there will be an exchange of knowledge and skills between me and my colleagues and they will see me as an apprentice of sorts, as well as someone that can help them on new and continuing projects.

No matter what I find myself doing, communication with my colleagues and community members will be the key to accomplishing goals. I expect that there will be a huge learning curve when trying to communicate, especially when communicating health messages and trying to address needs. Dealing with sexual and reproductive health topics, that I am very comfortable expressing in my own language and culture, will prove particularly challenging for me to learn to mediate in a new language and culture. Therefore, gaining the respect and confidence of local community members will require me to tailor my behavior to local norms and customs whenever possible.
Earnestly learning a second language as an adult is a good way to integrate into a community. It is a very humbling experience that by nature makes one less intimidating and more accessible to native speakers, since everyone can easily feel like they have something to teach the language learner right from the beginning. This is an excellent way to foster reciprocity. By sacrificing one’s comfort level- and at times one’s dignity-, it is not only easier to learn to communicate, but easier to make friends and be included in community life.

Another useful adaptation skill is my personal knack for keeping myself busy. Somehow I am able to create work for myself, even when other people feel like there is nothing to do (which can be either a benefit or a challenge depending on the context). I like to make simple tasks into “jobs” for myself so I always feel like I’m accomplishing things. I grew up with very minimal television exposure and I have never relied on technology for entertainment. As long as there are people to talk to, things to read or materials to sew, paste, weave or otherwise put together I believe I’ll be able to avoid the boredom that many volunteers speak of when they discover the amount of free time they have while serving.

I know from my past experiences abroad that I can expect to have highs and lows, emotionally and physically as well as personally and professionally. I know that I will have to work hard to see the results of my work. This will require me to be extremely patient and flexible in my ideas of progress. It will be important to try not to take things personally that may be based on cultural disconnects and it will be necessary to consult several sources when it comes to addressing problems.
Pre-service training will prepare me with adequate proficiency in the language to build on throughout my term of service. I am also convinced that living with local families is necessary to truly understand a people and their culture. I look forward to that opportunity and I prefer to live in that situation throughout my time there, if possible. The technical skills that I will learn will also be important and will enable me to adapt my skills to the new projects that will present themselves. Reading up on Turkmen culture, learning as much as I can about the language and people, and meeting RPCV will also help me prepare myself before I arrive at staging. What these sources can’t prepare me for I will make up with a sense of humor, keen observation and persistence once I arrive.

My professional goals include building on my practical skills in public health and applying the knowledge I already possess, learning Turkmen and possibly other languages, starting my own projects or building off others’ projects and getting local people motivated to participate, gaining a better understanding of navigating “the system” when it comes to bringing projects to fruition in the face of daunting bureaucratic quagmires , and to obtain hands-on experience that will help me decide where my next career steps will lead me; either to nursing school to become a Certified Nurse Midwife or to graduate school to do a Masters in Public Health or Education, or possibly a combination of these.

My personal goals are to do everything I can do to be respected in the community I live and work in, to have a good relationship with my host families since I have always relied heavily on these relationships for strength and support in my past experiences living abroad, to be grateful for everything I have there and not be a complainer, to ask for help when I need it, to be a positive role model for the young people and women I’ll meet there, to learn a traditional Turkmen craft or art, and to create nurturing bonds with other volunteers. With patience, perseverance and a generous spirit, I’ll be able to accomplish these goals, no matter what the details of my life and work there may be.

My Peace Corps Timeline

Summer 2007- Seriously considered Peace Corps, made a list of everything I wanted to do in the next three years, realized that it had everything that I was looking for and decided to apply.

September 2007- Met with University of Pittsburgh Peace Corps Recruiter to discuss application process.

October 2007- Submitted Peace Corps Application online.

early November 2007- Peace Corps recruiter interview

November 28th, 2007- Nominated to Health Extension in Eastern Europe.

December 2007-January 2008- Medical Packet exams, blood work, dental x-rays, etc.

February 2008- Decided to move date of departure back to late summer. Moved to Central Asia recruiter.

May 2008- Invited to Turkmenistan.

June 2008- Re-took x-rays and was dentally cleared for service.

September 27th, 2008- Staging/Orientation