Peace Corps recruiter to answer questions

Kirsten Franklin was a typical Peace Corps volunteer.

After graduating from college, she decided to help the less fortunate far from home. From October 1997 through December 1999, Franklin did agricultural work and environmental projects and taught English in the African country of Gabon, a former French colony, just south of Cameroon.

“Gabon is a very peaceful place. That’s why no one has ever heard of it,” Franklin said.

Franklin, 29, is now a Peace Corps recruiter from the Seattle office, one of 10 recruitment centers in the United States. She will be in Spokane next week to share her Peace Corps experiences, show slides from her time in Gabon, explain the application process and answer questions.

While many volunteers come from colleges, applicants from all walks of life are encouraged to apply.

“Many volunteers are recent college graduates that aren’t ready to enter the job market quite yet. It’s a good time in their lives, before they have families or mortgage payments,” Franklin said.

“But we’re seeing an increase in the number of retired people. They are retiring younger, are healthy and want the experience.”

The Peace Corps has hundreds of opportunities in the fields including agriculture, business, education, health and the environment. Volunteers serve 27 months and receive free transportation to and from their assignments, a living allowance, medical and dental care, 24 days vacation each year, and three months of training in their country of service.

When their assignment is completed, volunteers receive $6,075 readjustment allowance to help them get settled when they return.

Franklin said that after she returned from her assignment, she had many interviews from potential employers who recognized her service in the Peace Corps as a valuable learning experience.

The Peace Corps works in countries that have invited it there, and the volunteers’ safety is always a top priority.

Since the Peace Corps’ founding by President John F. Kennedy in 1961, more than 171,000 Americans have served.

Currently more than 7,500 volunteers serve in 71 countries around the world.