Peace Corps Volunteer Rachel Ingram is back from Kyrgyzstan



Ingram joked that she could barely pronounce her host country's name, let alone find it on a map, but she said volunteering two years of her life to spread goodwill was every bit as vital as the war many men and women her age are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. "We've gotten a pretty poor reputation around the world with our president and I wanted to dispel the rumors," Ingram said.

Peace Corps Volunteer Rachel Ingram is back from Kyrgyzstan

2-Year Peace Corps Volunteer Returns Home

POSTED: 6:08 pm EST November 20, 2007

A local Peace Corps volunteer is back home for the holidays. Rachel Ingram spent more than two years overseas and this is the first Thanksgiving that Ingram has been home for the holiday.

Just back from the Peace Corps, the 24-year-old Deptford native, was eager to share her story about her time spent in Kyrgyzstan. Some would consider the conditions less than picture perfect.


"Most people in the village didn't have running water. You had a well and you would have an outdoor sink. I would hand-wash my laundry," Ingram said.

There were many things Ingram had to take time to adjust to, like going weeks without a shower and using outhouses. Technology like computers and TV are luxury items there.

But Ingram said the social impact of her two years in the Central Asian country were as valuable as they were memorable. From the English classes she taught to local high schoolers, to the women's rights groups she helped form.

"Basically we talked about women's issues in Kyrgyzstan, also pertinent issues in Kyrgyzstan. We had leadership sessions. We had educational sessions," she said.

The sessions are not widely accepted in the underdeveloped Democratic country.

Ingram joked that she could barely pronounce her host country's name, let alone find it on a map, but she said volunteering two years of her life to spread goodwill was every bit as vital as the war many men and women her age are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"We've gotten a pretty poor reputation around the world with our president and I wanted to dispel the rumors," Ingram said.

But she is back for the holidays and her last assignment is to spread the word of peace. But she is also thankful to be home.

"I'm so happy to be back. I love heat and hot water so much," she said.

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Headlines: November, 2007; Peace Corps Kyrgyzstan; Directory of Kyrgyzstan RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Kyrgyzstan RPCVs