Katie Mader is a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala and part of a team that teaches cooking classes to encourage people in the area to eat more fruits and vegetables



“I invite them into my house and we just have the cooking class there. What I try to do is take a typical recipe of theirs and add a vegetable or add two vegetables. Just to try and get more vegetables in their diets,” said Mader.

Katie Mader is a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala and part of a team that teaches cooking classes to encourage people in the area to eat more fruits and vegetables

'This family just took me in and treated me like family'

Story Published: May 28, 2009 at 6:30 PM PDT

By Arrianee LeBeau KVAL News
Video

EUGENE, Ore. -- Katie Mader is a Peace Corps volunteer in Guatemala and has lived in the country for 10 months. She is part of a team that teaches cooking classes to encourage people in the area to eat more fruits and vegetables.

“I went down knowing very little Spanish. This family just took me in and treated me like family,” said Mader.

“I invite them into my house and we just have the cooking class there. What I try to do is take a typical recipe of theirs and add a vegetable or add two vegetables. Just to try and get more vegetables in their diets,” said Mader.

She has even helped people plant their own gardens. And while she didn’t know much Spanish when she arrived, she has learned a lot more from the experience.

“I've learned so much both about myself and about the world and how the majority of people live on this planet. And it is not like us here in the United States,” said Mader.

More than 4,464 Peace Corps volunteers have served in Guatemala since the program was established in 1963.

Currently, 197 Peace Corps volunteers are serving in Guatemala.

Links to Related Topics (Tags):

Headlines: May, 2009; Peace Corps Guatemala; Directory of Guatemala RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Guatemala RPCVs

When this story was posted in June 2009, this was on the front page of PCOL:




Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers

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Join Us Mr. President! "We will double the size of the Peace Corps by its 50th anniversary in 2011. And we'll reach out to other nations to engage their young people in similar programs, so that we work side by side to take on the common challenges that confront all humanity," said Barack Obama during his campaign. Read how RPCV's rallied and and marched to the White House to support a bold new Peace Corps for a new age.

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May 30, 2009: Peace Corps' Roadmap Peace Corps' Roadmap for the Future 26 May Who are the Candidates for Peace Corps Director? 24 May Have French Atomic Tests put PCVs at Risk? 1 May Obama asks Congress for 10% increase in PC Budget 7 May Guy Consolmagno debunks "Angels & Demons" 22 May Obama praises Dodd at credit card signing 22 May John Garamendi front runner in California primary 22 May Al Kamen writes: New management structure at PC HQ? 22 May Damian Wampler's play Twin Towers opens in NYC 21 May Michael Volpe learns that DC is networking capital 21 May Dr. Mike Metke returns to Costa Rica 10 May Jesse Fleisher Lives well on less 14 May Al Kamen writes: PCVs peak at 11,000 under Obama Budget 11 May James W. Kostenblatt is making a difference in Mozambique 10 May Karen and Warren Master host Kyrgyzstan teen 9 May Alberto Ibargüen writes: The Future of Newspapers 9 May PC Monitor 2009 H1N1 Flu Virus in Mexico 1 May Paul Theroux writes: Obama and the Peace Corps 1 May Johnnie Carson to head State Department African Affairs 29 Apr Michael O'Hanlon writes: Grading Obama's First 100 Days 29 Apr Amy Potthast writes: The Peace Corps Lottery 23 Apr Read more stories from April and May 2009.

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PCOL's Candidate for Peace Corps Director Honduras RPCV Jon Carson, 33, presided over thousands of workers as national field director for the Obama campaign and said the biggest challenge -- and surprise -- was the volume of volunteer help, including more than 15,000 "super volunteers," who were a big part of what made Obama's campaign so successful. PCOL endorses Jon Carson as the man who can revitalize the Peace Corps, bring it into the internet age, and meet Obama's goal of doubling the size of the Peace Corps by 2011.

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Director Ron Tschetter: The PCOL Interview Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter sat down for an in-depth interview to discuss the evacuation from Bolivia, political appointees at Peace Corps headquarters, the five year rule, the Peace Corps Foundation, the internet and the Peace Corps, how the transition is going, and what the prospects are for doubling the size of the Peace Corps by 2011. Read the interview and you are sure to learn something new about the Peace Corps. PCOL previously did an interview with Director Gaddi Vasquez.

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