Bianca Flokstra leaves for Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries in the world



Flokstra, however, is different. She's not the average American 22-year-old. She's an MK — missionary kid. She grew up mostly in a town called Baguio City in the Philippines. Chad Phillips, who works with missionary kids over at Assemblies of God headquarters, tells me that missionary kids have their own flag. Blue and yellow with a green chameleon in the middle. Not quite a camouflaged chameleon if you can see it so clearly. But that's the way it is with missionary kids. They don't quite fit into the cultures where they grew up, but they don't fit in here in America, either. They're able to blend and see things from both perspectives. That's far different from the typical American view that the world revolves around us.

Bianca Flokstra leaves for Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries in the world

Peace Corps life demonstrates real American spirit

Toughest job you'll ever love.

Small business development volunteer? That's Bianca Flokstra's assignment for the next two years and three months with the Peace Corps.

It strikes me as a fairly cushy gig. Not that helping someone start a small business is ever easy, but how tough can it be?

Well, she says, she won't have any electricity or running water.

In a couple of weeks, Flokstra leaves for Burkina Faso, one of the poorest countries in the world.

When she applied for the Peace Corps, she said she had no preference on where she would serve. Flokstra, an Evangel University graduate, asked to go wherever the need was greatest.

That's what being an American is all about. That attitude is what makes this country great.

In the five years since Sept. 11, 2001, we've all pondered the question. Why do they hate us? Why is the world embracing an irrational streak of anti-Americanism?

The answer: They don't hate us, they hate our culture. What Hollywood exports to the world does not show us in a good light. But that's not America.

Why do they hate us? They don't even know us. Most of us don't even know ourselves.

Flokstra, however, is different. She's not the average American 22-year-old. She's an MK — missionary kid. She grew up mostly in a town called Baguio City in the Philippines.

Chad Phillips, who works with missionary kids over at Assemblies of God headquarters, tells me that missionary kids have their own flag. Blue and yellow with a green chameleon in the middle. Not quite a camouflaged chameleon if you can see it so clearly. But that's the way it is with missionary kids.

They don't quite fit into the cultures where they grew up, but they don't fit in here in America, either. They're able to blend and see things from both perspectives. That's far different from the typical American view that the world revolves around us.

The MK experience can be both a blessing and a curse. Flokstra's family moved back to the states right before she started high school at Kickapoo. "The hardest year of my life" is how she describes that first year back.

Little things like getting dressed in the morning had to be addressed differently. In the Philippines, it didn't matter if your clothes matched or not, she said. In America, people notice.

"Here, I feel that social status is such a big thing," she said.

Thing is, nothing's wrong with not fitting into the culture of an American high school. Now, Flokstra's returning to a foreign culture. She's taking the skills she learned in her classes at Evangel and more importantly, in a club called Students in Free Enterprise.

What Flokstra will do in Burkina Faso is basically the same thing she did in SIFE: Find a problem and solve it.

One project the SIFE students at Evangel did was going through all the mail that one resident of a nursing home received over three months.

The students sorted through the solicitations, separating the scams from legitimate organizations. Then they developed a presentation for senior citizens to help them decide about the merits of the organizations seeking their money.

The problems and issues will be different in Burkina Faso, but the process will be similar. Find a problem; find a solution. Show people how to apply it.

Toughest job you'll ever love.

Currently, Peace Corps volunteers are at a 30-year high. Perhaps a desire to respond to Sept. 11 in a charitable way is part of that trend.

Flokstra, clearly, is doing what she is called to do — preparing to help people in one of the world's poorest countries succeed in business.

"Sometimes I'm so excited I want to leave tomorrow," she said. "Sometimes I'm so scared I don't know what I'm getting myself into."

What is she getting herself into? No running water, no electricity. Going where the need is greatest. Following her faith. This is what Flokstra is banking on: No job is too tough if you care about people and love what you're doing.

Contact associate editorial page editor Brian Lewis at blewis@news-leader.com or 836-1275.

When this story was posted in September 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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The Peace Corps Library The Peace Corps Library is now available online with over 40,000 index entries in 500 categories. Looking for a Returned Volunteer? Check our RPCV Directory or leave a message on our Bulletin Board. New: Sign up to receive our free Monthly Magazine by email, research the History of the Peace Corps, or sign up for a daily news summary of Peace Corps stories. FAQ: Visit our FAQ for more information about PCOL.

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