Interview with Joan Borsten Vidov, May 31, 2023

Interview Summary

Joan Borsten Vidov joined the Peace Corps in Panama after graduating UC Berkeley, heeding JFK’s quote. She was posted in a remote village without electricity or running water, accessible only by driving through 2 rivers. She taught villagers about personal hygiene and nutrition, and, in her spare time, made mobiles from straw interwoven with colorful embroidery thread. The villagers learned to make these, and the sales of these handicrafts became the village’s second income. From this, Borsten Vidov learned the small acts make differences in others’ lives. Because of internal strife, Volunteers left Panama in 1971, and Borsten Vidov returned to the US to study bilingual education. Peace Corps changed her life; after leaving Panama, she studied and worked in Israel, becoming a journalist covering politics and entertainment. In that role, in Rome, she met her future husband, a Russian movie star, Oleg Vidov. Married to him, they restored and marketed beautiful Russian animated movies around the world, an endeavor that led to several other commercial ventures including coordinating air cargo planes under contract to the UN and Red Cross to deliver humanitarian relief. Currently, Borsten Vidov produces documentaries and lobbies for the addiction treatment industry in California and Washington, DC.

Interview Keyword

Panama JFK quote Remote village Personal hygiene Nutrition: Mobiles: Straw Embroidery thread Small acts Bi-lingual education Israel Journalist Politics and entertainment Oleg Vidov Movie star Russian animations Air cargo planes Humanitarian aid Substance addiction Lobby

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