Interview with Dolores Trevino Smith, April 19, 2021

Interview Summary

Dolores Trevino Smith served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Colombia from 1966 to 1969 in the Agriculture and Applied Nutrition Program. Smith is Mexican-American, from Pearsall, Texas. She knew of Peace Corps through John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign, and applied on impulse after seeing a recruiting poster in a Post Office. Smith trained at New Mexico State University. Training included language; history and culture; agriculture; nutrition; physical fitness; and a two-week homestay in Calixtlahuaca, near Toluca, Mexico. Her assignment was in Pitalito, in the state of Huila, where she worked with the Integrated Program of Applied Nutrition (PINA). Smith worked at the hospital treating malnutrition in children. She traveled to villages in the area to teach, and implement nutrition-related projects. Working with C.A.R.E., Smith helped to build a school in one of the villages. The interview discusses training; experience with a host family in Mexico; projects in Colombia; reflections on Peace Corps service, and a life of community service.

Interview Keyword

Colombia (Country of service) 1966-1969 (Date of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Agriculture and Applied Nutrition Latinx Hispanic Mexican Americans New Mexico State University Calixtlahuaca, Mexico Toluca, Mexico Pitalito, Colombia Huila, Colombia Integrated Program of Applied Nutrition (PINA) C.A.R.E. Cooperatives Co-ops

Interview LC Subject

Peace Corps (U.S.) Peace Corps (U.S.)--Colombia Colombia Peace Corps (U.S.)--1960-1970 Acculturation Communication and culture Culture Culture shock Intercultural communication Interpersonal communication and culture Interpersonal relations Interpersonal relations and culture Language and culture Language and languages Lifestyles Manners and customs Voluntarism Volunteers

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Interview Usage

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