Interview with Sarah Twing, October 10, 2020

Interview Summary

Sarah Twing was born in Uzbekistan. She was adopted by an Irish-American couple at 3 ½ years of age. Twing graduated from Allegheny College with a degree in Middle Eastern and North African studies, including studying in Egypt. Twing worked with refugees as an AmeriCorps volunteer. Her Peace Corps Pre-Service Training in language and technical skills prepared her for her Youth Sector role. However, she also needed to learn Creole because she was assigned to a Haitian cane cutters community. Her community, Batey 80, had a population of 300. She lived with a host family of a mother with five children in one bedroom and her in another. Neither the corporation nor the government-owned school wanted her in the Batey. She developed community partners and created a running club, a library, and provided workshops on the weekends for boys, girls, and women in the community using a "training of trainer’s" approach to promote the sustainability of her work.

[A second interview with Twing is available here: https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt79t2jtx8m1m]

Interview Keyword

Uzbekistan Adopted Allegheny College Host family Creole (Language) Batey Running clubs Environmental groups Community partners Library World Wise School Training trainers Health workshops Life skills workshops Environmental workshops Dominican Republic (Country of service) 2013-2015 (Date of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Youth in Development Asian Americans Diversity in the Peace Corps

Interview LC Subject

Peace Corps (U.S.) Peace Corps (U.S.)--Dominican Republic Dominican Republic 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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