Lesotho

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Stories from Lesotho

Every Peace Corps Volunteer has a story to tell. Read stories from Volunteers about what it's like to live and work in Lesotho.

1-20 of 33 results
Coach Percy getting her certificate.

I have been a GRS Coach since 2018, I started with a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) at Koali Primary School, Berea. A few years later I was transferred to Leqele Primary School where I found the information also very essential for the learners here.

Coach Percy getting her certificate.

I have been a GRS Coach since 2018, I started with a Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) at Koali Primary School, Berea. A few years later I was transferred to Leqele Primary School where I found the information also very essential for the learners here.

Coach Matsepo Sepanya geting GRS Certificate

One would wonder why I call this a blessing! Oh yes it is a blessing as a female coach to have a group of participants mostly as boys in the rural areas at high school level. The community influence, the peer pressure, the cultural barriers and gender diversity among other issues usually become stumbling blocks in allowing a smooth collaboration between males and females and in most cases between female teachers and boys.

Coach Matsepo Sepanya geting GRS Certificate

One would wonder why I call this a blessing! Oh yes it is a blessing as a female coach to have a group of participants mostly as boys in the rural areas at high school level. The community influence, the peer pressure, the cultural barriers and gender diversity among other issues usually become stumbling blocks in allowing a smooth collaboration between males and females and in most cases between female teachers and boys.

Youth at Camp

Truth be told, the idea of a camp at my site started because my first VRG deadline was approaching and I had to make up a planned activity.

Youth at Camp

Truth be told, the idea of a camp at my site started because my first VRG deadline was approaching and I had to make up a planned activity.

Teacher at Leqele Primary School

I am Mateboho Mapesela, a former Koali Primary School teacher and GRS Coach. I have changed sites and currently teaching at Leqele Primary School. I did Skillz when I was a teacher at Koali Primary School.

Teacher at Leqele Primary School

I am Mateboho Mapesela, a former Koali Primary School teacher and GRS Coach. I have changed sites and currently teaching at Leqele Primary School. I did Skillz when I was a teacher at Koali Primary School.

Coach Sepanya accepting her GRS Certificate. Graduations

It has really been an awesome journey!! In one of the good days, in February, one GRS coach from nearby made me aware of the refresher training workshop and without hesitation I wrote the letter of interest. I was like, this is the opportunity I have been waiting for. I had stopped the interventions in 2018 while still with my Karina. The only reason was the reporting which as counterparts were not trained on reporting without PCVs. So, when the opportunity popped, I wouldn’t wait any minute.

Aparna with her host mother, wearing traditional seshoeshoe clothing.

As much as the corporate world contrasts with the Peace Corps lifestyle, I credit my success in my career to the skills I learned as a Volunteer.

A Black woman leans on a school desk, smiling in front of her students, who are working on an assignment in the background

HBCUs, or historically Black colleges and universities, are an important component of Black history in the United States.

Small high school in the brown mountains with a blue sky.

About 7 years ago, I served with the Peace Corps in a small mountainous village in Lesotho where I taught English at a rural primary school.

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Teachers often hear, “Why do I need to know this?” from their students. Although it’s usually coming from a place of frustration rather than inquiry, it’s a fair question. Finding an answer that is satisfactory in my students’ minds can be especially difficult but, as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I try my best to find the response that will motivate them. For my students who want to work in STEM, I’ve recently found a stellar way to answer their question.

11 interesting volunteer opportunities for 12 months or less

Peace Corps Response offers volunteer opportunities for experienced professionals to serve in communities around the world. 

Gabrielle and Host Brother hiking

I had my reservations about meeting my host family. I wondered if I, a first generation Tanzanian American, would fit their preconceived notion of a Peace Corps volunteer. 

Gao with some students
One day as I was sitting in my rondaval, looking at the people who were passing by my host mother’s tiny shop, I saw that my host sister was talking to a boy.
Dave Gorman and Tumi Taabe pose with kids on bikes

It’s been over 25 years since my Peace Corps service in the Kingdom of Lesotho, in southern Africa. 

Primary school mural in Lesotho

If I were to paint a picture of where I spent 24 months as a Peace Corps Volunteer, I would paint steep, green mountains and snow-capped peaks—simultaneously beautiful and, at times, severe. 

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