Peace Corps Volunteer Spotlight: Tim O'Malley

Country of Service: Belize
Title: Small Business Development
Time in Country: 2003–2005

During his Peace Corps service, Tim worked with the Music Industry Association of Belize, supporting it by leading trainings sessions on best–business practices and festivals, and helping a record label find local musicians to keep local culture and music alive. He also worked at a center for employment training to help at–risk youth learn how to use computers. O'Malley remained in Belize for three years after completing his Peace Corps service and now runs a business that builds rain encatchment systems.

Smithsonian FolkLife Festival: Tim will accompany the Umalali Women Singers, a pre-eminent musical group that blends traditional Garifuna sounds influenced by Belizean and Honduran cultures. Garifuna culture is a hybrid of native Caribbean (primarily Carib and Arawak) and West African culture. Its music is characterized by drums and a shaker called the sisera, along with dance.

Next Volunteer Spotlight
Back to Folklife Festival 2011