Connections - An Alumni and Friends Magazine by Holy Cross College, Notre Dame, IN
It's Off to Samoa
Editor's Note: Just after dawn on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009, a towering tsunami wave caused by a powerful earthquake in the Pacific rolled over the low-lying communities on Samoa, Tonga and American Samoa flattening villages, destroying harbor facilities, and killing hundreds of people. Kyle Kincaid is scheduled to fly into Samoa exactly one week after the tragedy, Tuesday, October 6. His initial work now will likely be in helping his new community recover from the devastation. We hope you will pray for Kyle and consider donating to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
Kyle Kincaid '08 visits Dr. Holland before leaving for Samoa
In December, I began considering joining the Peace Corps. To help make my decision, I spoke frequently to one of my sister's friends about her experiences. After graduating from Saint Mary's in 2002, she served in the Peace Corps in South Africa. Her stories sounded exciting and the thought of my taking on this challenge seemed like a good idea. I have always enjoyed service work and in the current job climate in Michiana, adding more experiences to my resume can only help.
I prayed about it a lot, and finally I decided to start the application in February. It was a long process. I submitted my online application in the middle of February. My first interview with a Peace Corps recruiter came in the middle of March. The recruiter wanted me to have experience teaching ESL (English as Second Language) so I began volunteering two nights a week in a local adult class. I also began taking an online course for TESOL (Teaching English to Students of other Languages).
At the end of March, I was nominated for the Peace Corps, which means that I was assigned to a general region (The South Pacific) and a general area of work (the Primary Teacher Program.) This program involves teaching teacher's methods and strategies. This program involves co-teaching in English language classes for elementary school children. I have since been told that I may also work on general development projects such as repairing and building fresh water systems.
Being nominated allowed me to begin all my required medical tests. It took a lot of doctor's appointments but I was finally medically cleared. After that, my placement officer looked for an opening for me in a specific program in one of the five island countries the Peace Corps serves in the Pacific (Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Samoa, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau).
I was assigned to Samoa. My assignment will last 27 months, which includes three months of training in Samoa. I will be learning the language and learning about the culture during that training time. I will also be living with a native family, sharing their work, eating what they eat, and living according to the norms of their customs.
The climate in Samoa is about 80 degrees and mostly sunny year round! (I think I can get used to that.)
My tentative departure date is October '09, so it is coming fast!
Some days I wake up and can't believe I'm doing all of this, but I have prayed about it a lot, and believe that God wouldn't give me more than I can handle. It isn't the same plan I had during my Capstone, but all of my college experiences still apply and have helped me feel confident in taking this next step.