Interview with Wendell Blubaum, August 13, 2024

Interview Summary

Wendell served in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic as an Agriculture volunteer and extended to work on a new youth development program in Ecuador. He grew up on a farm in Indiana, studied Spanish in high school and college, and worked as a teacher briefly before Peace Corps. His training occurred in Costa Rica and he immediately noticed the differences between cultures and language upon arriving in the Dominican Republic. Wendell described life in his rural community near the border and his work at the primary school creating a community garden. He talked about the many strong relationships he built and his other projects with a youth club and raising rabbits. He extended his service for six months to continue the rabbit project and then transferred to Ecuador to support a new program in youth development with the 5F program (similar to 4H in the U.S.).

Interview Keyword

Dominican Republic (Country of service) 1977-1980 (Date of Service) Ecuador (Country of service) 1980-1981 (Date of service) agriculture youth development Castañuelos Ecuador 5F 4H Cholula Mexico Costa Rica La Guácima carro público public car Santiago Monte Cristi CARE vaina thing cambumbu gallon container Cibao Hurricane David boruga yoghurt basketball merengue Río Limpio Sosúa Barahona Ministry of Agriculture The Ponds of Kalambayi rabbits Peace Corps (U.S.) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Agriculture Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Youth in Development Peace Corps (U.S.)—1970-1980 Spanish (Language)

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