It did not happen as we expected… and we got a different message than we expected.
After reading some Peace Corps journals, we had thought we would be getting an email from the Placement Office, to set up a phone interview. What we did not expect was the phone call, cold, out of the blue. Which is the way it happened last night.
We were visiting with Tish’s brother and his wife and their grandson when my cell phone rang. I noticed it was area code 202, but didn’t even think of that being Washington DC. The caller was a very nice person named Kristen from the Placement Office asking if it was a good time to call. Alarm bells went off in my brain. Since I was dying to get a call from them and was not about to ask her to call back, I said it was a great time. My wife and I ended up stepping out into the kitchen and using my Blackberry’s speaker phone feature to have the interview.
Kristen asked us a few of the questions we expected, “What have we been doing to prepare yourselves for Peace Corps service”, “What did we feel would be the biggest challenges”, etc, etc. Then she dropped the bombshell. She said that since my wife had a medical restriction (she requires an annual screening mammogram) that prevented her from serving in the area for which we were originally nominated (Eastern Europe), they found another location to place us and asked, “Are you interested in Sub-Saharan Africa with an April departure date“.
Sub-Saharan Africa. Wow… what a shocker. That is so very different from Eastern Europe in so many ways. One thing Tish and I had agreed on from day one was that we may prefer one place over another, but in the end we would go wherever they could use us. It is hard to place a married couple and we feel lucky to be able to serve.
Also, my job changed slightly. Tish was still going to be in a health related job, but I was going to be in Business Development (instead of English teaching) which actually is better for me.
All along she was gauging our reaction, “does that time frame work for you”, “do you think you would be interested in this job”. All the while we were attempting to communicate with each other without Kristen hearing, we were mouthing words and making hand gestures. The bottom line was that long ago we had agreed that we would serve wherever they asked us to, so the answer was an emphatic YES.
Kristen gave us more detail on our job descriptions as I furiously took notes. She was very complimentary, saying we had excellent references and everything checked out just fine. I asked her if an invitation would be forthcoming, and she said she would drop one in the mail Monday. She asked what address to send it to and suddenly I found that I could not talk. Tish had to give the address. At this point I was overwhelmed with emotion. She was about to send us the invitation to serve in the Peace Corps, which we had been working for for over a year, and I couldn’t speak. Joy is what I felt, and the most wonderful relief.
We hung up and hugged each other and then left the kitchen to share the good news with Scott and Kim.
So the bottom line… the Placement Office is sending us the official invitation to serve in the Peace Corps — in Sub-Saharan Africa.
This morning there was a check in the last box of our “toolkit”
More to come…
Congratulations.. sometimes when one door closes another opens. I can tell you from experience that serving in Sub-Saharan Africa ( I’m in South Africa) is an incredible experience.
Congratulations! I am a RPCV and remember receiving THAT call while driving. I had to pull over for my interview. My invitation was to Botswana SSA April departure… perhaps you too will be blessed to serve in Botswana. Blessings and Peace.
Wow! Congrats!! That’s really great to hear! I’ve been chatting with another Peace Corps nominee for Sub-Sahara Africa leaving in April and there’s only one country we can think of: Botswana. I’m so happy to hear that you two finally got invited, and can’t wait to hear where you land!
I believe you have to be right — Botswana. I am pretty happy about that. Perhaps we will meet your nominee friend!
Congratulations! I have also been nominated to do Business Development/NGO Capacity-Building in Sub-Saharan Africa leaving in April so I am really excited to find out what your invitation says about location! Fingers crossed for Botswana! Kati and I have been talking and that’s where it seems to be (and I couldn’t be happier)! Once again, congrats to you both!
May I infer from your “About Us” section that your invitation is to Botswana?! I am anxiously awaiting an update! Again, congratulations! 🙂
Good catch ! Actually we have not received the envelope yet, but are just guessing based on the staging date. Yikes, I hope I have not jinxed myself by posting that. After the little bit of research I have been able to do I think Botswana could be a really nice place to serve.
What is your status in the application process?
Haha, oh no Marion! You’re going to have both me and Tija checking back everyday till you update to confirm your Botswana placement. 😛 Regardless of where you land, it sounds like you both have had quite a struggle with it, so I hope you really enjoy it. 🙂
Kati’s right! We are going to be checking back at your blog daily now! I’m so excited for your update! My fingers are crossed for Botswana – I have heard great things about the people and the country! As for my status, I’m playing the medical clearance waiting game. Peace Corps received my packet 5 weeks ago so I’m hoping to hear back any time now…
Hey! We are scheduling a time to talk to our PO for next week. I was wondering if you could remember any of the other questions yours asked you so we can kind of prepare. 🙂