As newlyweds, they had the usual adjustment period. Part of the experience has been more difficult than they imagined, while other adjustments have been easier. "During our first two months, I felt we learned something new about each other every day," Stephanie said. "Sometimes I feel like we're taking a five-year Marriage 101 class and trying to do it in just a few months." The city turns off the water each night from 11 until 5:30 or 6 the next morning. "It's a mad scramble when we realize we only have a few minutes of water left to finish the laundry or the dishes or take a bath or brush our teeth," Stephanie said. Sometimes, she added, they don't turn on the hot water at all. They clean house, do laundry (by hand, of course), cook and eat most every meal together. They rarely eat out -- only when they go to Kiev -- so they spend a lot of time learning how to make and create new meals.
Matt and Stephanie Clark serve as Peace Corps Volunteers in Shostka, Ukraine about an hour from the Russian border
Former Shockers get different take on life
A Peace Corps mission has added another dimension to married life for Matt and Stephanie Clark.
BY LES ANDERSON
Wichita Eagle correspondent
Stephanie and Matt Clark had a lot in common as athletes at Wichita State.
Both were known as team players. Stephanie Whitcomb was the first four-year player in the Chris Lamb volleyball era. Matt was the first four-year player in Mark Turgeon's stint as basketball coach.
Both were on the athletic director's honor roll every semester. They helped lay the foundation for the success of future Shocker teams.
Their similarities didn't end on the courts. Both graduated in May 2004. Neither was sure what they wanted to do with their lives, but both had a desire to travel, experience different cultures and serve others.
The Peace Corps
It was Matt's idea to enlist in the Peace Corps. His first exposure to the volunteer organization came during his physics class his junior year of high school in Fort Collins, Colo.
He says he was an awful physics student. But he enjoyed the energy of his teacher, who one day brought slides of his experiences serving in the Peace Corps in Africa.
Matt can't recall the country, but he saw an opportunity to travel the world, basically free.
He stored the idea in the back of his mind, forgetting about it until he finished college.
After graduation, Matt moved back to Colorado, as did Stephanie. During that time, they talked often about joining the Peace Corps. She hadn't heard of the organization before discussing it with Matt.
The two former athletes talked to some former Peace Corps volunteers, who raved about their experiences.
Before long, their plans were made: They would get married and then apply to join the Peace Corps together. It seemed like a perfect fit.
Matt proposed in February 2005, and they married in a backyard ceremony that summer at Stephanie's parents' home in Moundridge. They waited 11 months before accepting an invitation to head for a new adventure.
Learning to teach
Matt and Stephanie live in Shostka, Ukraine, a city of about 85,000 about an hour from the Russian border. Both are teachers.
They lived and trained in Uzyn, which has a population of 10,000, for three months before moving to Shostka. They had intensive language classes, cultural training and preparation for teaching.
In some ways, they recalled, coming to their new home was similar to college recruiting trips. The community welcomed them.
Stephanie, a communications major with an emphasis in broadcasting at WSU, is teaching communicative English to fifth- through 11th-graders. Her school, called a lyceum, is advanced with English, but the focus is on math and science.
Matt teaches in a gymnasium -- which unfortunately, he said, has nothing to do with athletics. It's a school that emphasizes arts and languages. He has students in grades eight through 11, also teaching primarily communicative English. With older levels, however, he has started studies on other countries -- America, Canada and Great Britain.
The Ukrainian education system is much more rigorous than in America, both say. School days are long and include Saturdays.
For Stephanie, the interaction with students and teachers is the best part.
"I love getting to know them and seeing the similarities and differences between them and Americans," she said.
The part she dislikes is planning for classes. It was a challenge for her to adapt to the Ukrainian educational system.
They are on summer break now, spending some of their time traveling. Both look forward to next semester. They said teaching is still a learning process.
Matt said friends back home who teach told him the first three years are the most difficult. He, too, dislikes the planning, but realizes how necessary it is. Despite the Peace Corps training, he said, at times last semester it felt as if he still had to invent the wheel.
"Anytime I feel tired of being a teacher," he said, "I simply look at the teachers that surround me. They are getting paid $180 a month to work more than me, with nowhere close to the quality of a medical plan that we have. And they do it with gumption and a generally positive outlook."
Initially, Matt and Stephanie were intimidated by their students' abilities.
Their challenge was to find ways to keep them engaged with the English language, not teaching them the alphabet, like they naively thought.
Stephanie soon decided she could throw away the children's books focusing on letter sounds that she brought with her.
Finding a place to live
Matt's principal, with the help of the city's mayor, helped them find housing.
They have an apartment on the top floor of a nine-story building in the center of town. They can see a massive statue of Lenin out their window.
Shoskta has a fireworks factory, so they often hear and see fireworks during concerts, weddings and holiday celebrations. Everything they need is within walking distance, they said, including their schools.
As newlyweds, they had the usual adjustment period. Part of the experience has been more difficult than they imagined, while other adjustments have been easier.
"During our first two months, I felt we learned something new about each other every day," Stephanie said. "Sometimes I feel like we're taking a five-year Marriage 101 class and trying to do it in just a few months."
The city turns off the water each night from 11 until 5:30 or 6 the next morning.
"It's a mad scramble when we realize we only have a few minutes of water left to finish the laundry or the dishes or take a bath or brush our teeth," Stephanie said.
Sometimes, she added, they don't turn on the hot water at all.
They clean house, do laundry (by hand, of course), cook and eat most every meal together. They rarely eat out -- only when they go to Kiev -- so they spend a lot of time learning how to make and create new meals.
What's next?
When they return to the United States, both would like to continue their education. But they're not sure in what subject area and where.
They have access to the Internet, so they can research graduate schools and careers. Still, they haven't made any decisions. Their 27-month commitment to the Peace Corps ends in December 2008.
Both stress, however, that they want to be near their families if possible. Both say that's what they miss the most.
After family, Matt said he misses the recreational opportunities back home.
"Almost every school in America has a gym, tennis courts, football field, soccer field, baseball diamond, weight room, etc.," he said. "Shostka has one basketball court that you won't severely injure yourself on. Try to avoid the right wing on the north end, and never dribble there."
Of course, there are no nets, no lines and the hoops look like they will snap off with the next shot, Matt said.
"I will never take parks, athletic facilities, museums, libraries, bike paths, campgrounds or hiking trails for granted -- ever," Matt said, adding that he also misses ESPN, the Shockers and washing machines.
Stephanie said care packages and gifts that family and friends send help them not be so homesick. But she also admitted she could go for some Starbucks, or a late-night run to Taco John's, Wendy's or Spangles.
There's also an upside to living in Ukraine, they say. Stephanie said she has more opportunity to read and take frequent walks. She and Matt eat most every meal together.
Matt said he can't think of what he misses the least about home. Surprisingly, he said, the Peace Corps experience has made him more patriotic.
"We came here hoping to learn about a new culture and experience a new approach to life," he said, "and we have certainly done that and will continue to do that. But people will always view foreign countries through past experiences of their native land.
"Pretend ideas are clothes. Each time I see something I like or dislike in Ukraine, somewhere in the back of my mind I'm trying it out in America. Would America look nice in this? Could this fit? I love America, and this experience makes me want to help it continue to grow and improve in whichever facet I am able."
Les Anderson is an associate professor of communication at WSU. He may be reached at les.anderson@wichita.edu.
