Tim S.

1. What were your primary responsibilities during service?

I lived in a farming village in the far north of Kazakhstan near the Russian border. I worked in a rural secondary school as an English teacher. I team-taught English lessons alongside local English teachers for grades 4 to 11. I also led and participated in various community and educational programs to promote English education, like summer camps, teacher trainings, English and book clubs. During my time in the village, I lived with a Kazakh host family in my first year and a Russian babushka (grandmother) for my second year.

2. What projects did you collaborate on with your community?

Some of my favorite and most memorable collaborations were working at summer overnight and day camps with local teachers and students. The camps provided the fun and flexibility to teach English outside of a more structured classroom setting.

During my first year, another Volunteer and I worked with the regional education board to get approval for Volunteers to work at the regional summer camp near Petropavlovsk. It took a lot of negotiating on our local counterparts to get the approval by the local government, but eventually we were able to jump through the bureaucratic hoops to get approval to work at the summer camp. We worked as summer camp counselors for two weeks, along with four other Volunteers. We also secured work for four of our best senior-level English students to help as junior counselors at the camp. Our main job was to implement an English education curriculum and activities at the camp, and we also worked with the local counselors to put on camp-wide programming. We were invited the following summer to work at the camp again.

3. How did Peace Corps service influence your professional development?

My work as an English teacher in Kazakhstan influenced me greatly in my career path. My service experience made me realize I wanted to continue working with students in schools. After leaving Kazakhstan in 2009, I enrolled in a graduate program for school counseling at the University of Nevada. I’ve now worked as a school counselor for over 13 years.

My experience in Kazakhstan also influenced my artistic and creative pursuits. In addition to school counseling, I work as a professional artist. Many of my paintings and illustrations draw direct influence from the unique style and aesthetic of Kazakhstan and Central Asia.

4. How do you use the skills you honed during service in your current job?

The need for flexibility, problem solving, and initiative required by Peace Corps service was impactful on my professional skill set. These skills are very much needed for school counseling, and I improved them because of my Peace Corps service. Additionally, the cultural exchange and interpersonal nature of service helped tremendously in my career. Understanding empathy and human connection translates across borders, nations, and ethnicities, and the Peace Corps helped me fully understand and appreciate this aspect for my counseling profession.

5. How have you shared your experience to help those at home understand the value of Peace Corps service and communities abroad?

I wrote a book, A Five Finger Feast: Two Years in Kazakhstan, Lessons from the Peace Corps, about my experiences serving in Kazakhstan. I published it in 2022 through a small imprint called Peace Corps Writers, which specializes in publishing books by Returned Volunteers (RPCVs).  I really kept the Third Goal in mind during the decade it took took me write, illustrate, and publish my book. Rick Steves, the Europe travel guru, even read A Five Finger Feast, and I was asked in April 2024 to be a guest on his radio show. My experiences in Kazakhstan and my experience working for the Peace Corps will air in two interviews on Travel with Rick Steves in late 2024 or early 2025.

6. What Peace Corps benefits have been useful to you?

The readjustment allowance helped pay for part of my grad school. I didn’t have to take out student loans. The Description of Service has also come in handy to show future and current employers the type of work experience I performed in the Peace Corps. On a more personal note, the vacation days provided by the Peace Corps during service were a great bonus. They allowed me to travel to parts of the world I only had access to because of my service in Kazakhstan. These included travels to Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, the Aral Sea, and Astana.

7. How have your remained involved with the Peace Corps community following service?

I have kept in touch with my counterpart, host brother, and Russian tutor over the last 15 years. I often exchange emails and pictures with them, but I haven’t been able to return to Kazakhstan. I would like to take my two sons there when they are older. Some of my closest friends are RPCVs that I served with in Kazakhstan. RPCVs make up a network of some of the most solid and reliable people in the country. l was also active with the Returned Peace Corps group in Seattle (SEAPAX) when I moved to Washington. I served as the webmaster for the group for about two years.

8. What tips do you have for Volunteers just returning from their service?

Utilize your RPCV network! For me, this has helped in my personal and professional life. I still connect with many of my Peace Corps friends 15 years after serving. Peace Corps service is a unique experience that can help you shine in job applications and interviews. Leverage that to your advantage. Other candidates just can’t compete with the experiences of Peace Corps service.