She's not shying away from risk. "Everyone writes home: 'I finally got malaria,'" Ramos said. "I'm strangely attracted to the idea. What am I going to get? Everyone gets a parasite during their service in the Peace Corps." While Ramos is expecting culture shock, she tried to avoid the additional difficulties of a language barrier by attending an intensive French language school in Montreal for three weeks. She said that initially she was lost, but by the third week she was beginning to understand what was being said. She'll use that experience to remind herself that even though it will be difficult in the beginning, in a couple of weeks it won't be so bad. Ramos said she's pushing herself beyond her comfort zone to improve herself and her surroundings. "I can't think of anything less comfortable than Africa," Ramos said. "So, I know if I can meet the challenges, I know that I have that confidence to meet any challenge that presents itself in the future."
Candee Ramos has sold her car, given away most of her clothes, written a living will and sent her cats to live with her parentsl in preparation for spending 27 months as a Peace Corps volunteer in Guinea
Locals to join Peace Corps
KRISTIN LARSEN
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
Posted: 11/8/2007
Modified: 11/8/2007
Candee Ramos, 28, has sold her car, given away most of her clothes, written a living will and sent her cats to live with her parents.
She did it all in preparation for spending 27 months as a Peace Corps volunteer. She'll live with the residents of a West African nation, where she will earn a salary typical for the region and learn the community's culture and needs.
She's happy to part with the creature comforts of her hometown, Sun Valley, for the promise of a more fulfilling activity.
She'll fly to Guinea on
Dec. 1, where she will work as a small enterprise development adviser. Her goal: to foster business ventures.
She's not shying away from risk.
"Everyone writes home: 'I finally got malaria,'" Ramos said. "I'm strangely attracted to the idea. What am I going to get? Everyone gets a parasite during their service in the Peace Corps."
Preparing for departure
She and fellow Reno resident Erin Aldrich will be departing for their Peace Corps adventures within the next couple of months.
They'll join the 34 other Nevadans serving in the Peace Corps and become part of the 819 individuals from the state who have served since 1961.
The minimalist lifestyle that many Peace Corps volunteers endure while overseas fosters a practical nature.
Ramos said that practicality inspired the saying, "Optimists see a glass of water as half-full. Pessimists see a glass of water as half-empty. Peace Corps volunteers see a glass of water and say, 'I can take a bath with that.'"
Ramos said she will be working on projects assigned to her by the Peace Corps, but volunteers are encouraged to work with residents in order to identify their needs and create projects outside of a volunteer's daily duties.
Learning the finer parts of Guinean culture might be arduous since she's just begun to learn French, and it's the official language of Guinea.
While Ramos is expecting culture shock, she tried to avoid the additional difficulties of a language barrier by attending an intensive French language school in Montreal for three weeks.
She said that initially she was lost, but by the third week she was beginning to understand what was being said. She'll use that experience to remind herself that even though it will be difficult in the beginning, in a couple of weeks it won't be so bad.
Ramos said she's pushing herself beyond her comfort zone to improve herself and her surroundings.
"I can't think of anything less comfortable than Africa," Ramos said. "So, I know if I can meet the challenges, I know that I have that confidence to meet any challenge that presents itself in the future."
Erin Aldrich, 27, currently works as a mapping analyst at the University of Nevada, Reno, and will be volunteering for 27 months on a Peace Corps assignment to Romania.
She'll be working on youth development with an emphasis on environmental education.
Aldrich also will face a language barrier.
"I've heard Romanian is really hard to learn," Aldrich said. "I've only had two semesters of French and it was rough, so we'll see how it goes."
She said she looked into other opportunities but most were only for about one month, and she didn't think that would be long enough to become integrated into the culture.
Even though she graduated with degrees in geography and information systems, she was drawn to anthropology because she loves different cultures.
Aldrich said she enjoys hiking and the outdoors, so she's looking forward to romping through Romania's wilderness.
She said she most looks forward to seeing a new landscape and the kids she'll be working with.
"Everyone I've ever talked to said (the Peace Corps is) one of the best things they've ever done in their life," Aldrich said.
