Interview with Adventurer, Peggi Tabor
I met Peggi, age 60, at her home in Farmington Hills as she was preparing for a 27-month stint in Africa with the Peace Corps. She is a marketing consultant whose mission will be to teach economics and business development to the local people. Her inspiration for such a venture is a deep-seated conviction that as the world power we Americans have an obligation to share the advantages we enjoy with others less fortunate. When she returns, she hopes to recruit other seniors to share their business, educational or technical experience in third world countries. She is a truly remarkable woman and here is her story…
Katana: Peggi, you are such an adventurous woman—I still remember you telling me about traveling with a group of women across the Austrian Alps on horses and now you have this new adventure to tell me about.
Peggi: Actually, all my adult life I’ve had the opportunity to travel extensively for both business and pleasure. One of the most satisfying rewards of this wanderlust has been the opportunity to learn a little about other peoples, their culture and their worldview. This opportunity to serve in the Peace Corps as a vocational management advisor fulfills a lifelong goal of completely immersing myself in another culture; learning the language, acquiring an understanding of the people and lending a helping hand.
Katana: So tell me why you chose the Peace Corps and how the African assignment came about.
Peggi: There are actually lots of international volunteer organizations that do great work in third world countries. I came very close to accepting an assignment with a group out of New Zealand to work in Nepal helping NGO’s (non-governmental organizations) develop business plans. However, I wanted to serve in the name of this country, my country. Since the Peace Corps is our premier international volunteer organization, it was an easy choice.
Katana: I was worried you wouldn’t be selected for Africa.
Peggi: I was worried I wouldn’t be chosen at all! Getting through the medical clearances was time consuming and difficult. It took almost a year. What’s that old saw, “If I’d known I would have lived this long I would have taken better care of myself.”
I actually turned down the initial African invitation. It was for an assignment in Kenya. My doctor said I wouldn’t want to be taking malaria pills for two-plus years. However, Lesotho, the country I’m going to is in a very mountainous region. The lowest elevation is 3300 feet and it goes up from there. It’s called the Alps of Africa. Malaria is not an issue there. If I travel to other parts of Africa, as I’m sure I will, I can take malaria medicine for 2-3 weeks. AIDS is also pandemic in Africa, but there is no better training in AIDS prevention than what the Peace Corps gives you. Lesotho has about a 40% infection rate. The average lifespan is something like 45 years. The adults are simply dying out leaving thousands of orphans wandering about without food, family or hope.
Katana: Who will take care of all these children?
Peggi: That’s a very good question. Lots of orphanages have been set up. Also, the culture of Lesotho stresses an extended family so the adults who survive have many children on their hands. Our job, as Peace Corps volunteers is to encourage and teach AIDS prevention – it’s part of every volunteer’s job.
Katana: What’s the language like?
Peggi: It’s one of the Bantu tribal languages – quite difficult. It even has lots of CLICKS in it like in the film “The Gods must be crazy”. Let me say something in Sesotho, “Khotso, pula, nala motsoalle oa ka”. This is a friendly greeting and it means: “Peace, rain and prosperity my good friend”.
Katana: Is that how you would greet someone?
Peggi: That’s one way. The Africans are very friendly people—and just walking in the streets, you always say a friendly greeting to anyone with whom you make eye contact. It’s actually considered quite rude to ask a stranger for, say, directions without first a friendly greeting. The people are very polite.
Katana: When are you leaving?
Peggi: On or about June 5th. Our group will stage in Philadelphia for three days. There are about 30 volunteers going with my group to Lesotho. Most of us are business development people but I recently found out that there will also be AIDS specialists and some other health care workers with us. We fly together to Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, for three months of pretty intense training. As part of the training we are sent individually to native villages to live with African families. We eat, sleep and work with them. It’s called “total immersion” training.
Katana: Where will you live?
Peggi: Well, I don’t know. With the type of work that I will be doing, I could work and live at one of the vocational centers that were originally set up by missionaries, or I could end up in a village living in a traditional thatched hut. I received a letter from a woman who has job going from village to village setting up women’s cooperatives. She lives in a village without running water or electricity and lives in a traditional hut or rondavel. The walls are made of mud and cow dung and the ceiling is a thatched roof.
Katana: Just like the Masi!
Peggi: She loves her job and wouldn’t trade it. She says waking up in the cool beautiful mountain air looking out at absolutely spectacular scenery is worth the inconvenience. She is doing a great job helping women to earn a little money and says these are the best two years of her life. She travels from village to village on horseback.
Katana: You don’t need to learn that at least!
Peggi: No. And the question is: Am I going to tell the Peace Corps that I am an equestrian before I get there and see the villages? My friends are saying, “Don’t–don’t tell them!” They are going to say, “She can ride, so put her as far out in the boon docks as possible!” So, I think maybe I won’t mention it until I getter a clearer “lay of the land”.
Katana: You’ve got a couple of months before you leave. Are you doing anything special to prepare yourself?
Peggi: Now that I have received my invitation, I have lots to do. The invitation package contains information on what to bring and suggests several books and web pages in which to get background information the country. I sent away for language tapes and am practicing my Sesotho every day. I’ve also been able to contact several people who have served in Lesotho and their insights have been invaluable. Then, of course, there is the task of putting my business and financial affairs in order to survive a two-year absence. You have certainly made that easy for me. My will, trust and power of attorney documents are all complete. I have a dear friend who will live in my house while I’m gone and take care of my dog, car etc.
Katana: Now when you are there and you have this assignment, do they pay you?
Peggi: I will be given a monthly stipend of about 1300 Maloti – that’s about $130.00 Believe it or not, that’s enough to cover my housing, food, transportation etc. The Peace Corps encourages you to live at the standard of the native people and 1300 maloti is considered a reasonable wage.
Katana: And you will be able to live on that?
Peggi: I’m really going to try – it’s an important part of the experience. The Peace Corps also pays to fly you over and bring you back at the end of your service. So it doesn’t cost an individual anything to volunteer for the Peace Corps. Volunteers also receive a “post-service readjustment allowance”. This is $250.00 per month that is deposited into an account and given to you when your service is over. When people come back to the US some may need to find a place to live, a job and so forth so this money can be used for those things. From my point of view joining the Peace Corps is a very timely thing for me to do financially. I can leave my portfolio in your capable hands for a few years and when I come back it will be great – right? I don’t have to take money out of my portfolio while I am gone. I love that! That’s worth a lot to me.
Katana: And Social Security will be kicking in! (laughing)
Peggi: Social Security will be kicking in the moment I get home, in fact! And by that time, I will think Social Security is a fortune! (more laughing)
Katana: I know! Isn’t that great!
Peggi: It is great. The Peace Corps also completely covers my medical expenses during my service.
Katana: What happens if you are sick and you are there?
Peggi: One of the reasons I was invited to Lesotho is that they do have excellent medical facilities there as well as in neighboring South Africa. I made it clear in my application that good medical care was very important to me and they listened. I’ve heard very good things about the Peace Corps medical staff in Lesotho.
Katana: Are you a little scared?
Peggi: Well, I’m a little nervous but I’m not as scared as I thought I would be— maybe I will be more scared when I get there. What worries me is that I’m already lonely for my friends and family. When I think about this point in my life and the legacy I want to leave to my children and grandchildren the Peace Corps is exactly the right thing for me to do. However, leaving my loved ones for such a long time is excruciatingly difficult. I get a little teary-eyed just thinking of it.
Katana: Let’s pretend that we are sitting here three years from today and we are looking back to today. What do you think you’ll be doing?
Peggi: Well, I’m really kind of a devoted volunteer – helping others succeed is what I want to do for the rest of my live in one way or another. But, after this Peace Corps assignment, I am going to stay home for at least six months and I am going to take hot baths and eat good food. Here’s an insiders joke. When talking to Peace Corps volunteers they will say, “So, what’s your real reason for joining up?” Sometimes it is to get away from a bad relationship, to see the world, to avoid getting a ‘real job’ etc.
Katana: So, Peggi…what is your real reason for going to the Peace Corps?
Peggi: I need to loose a few pounds! (laughing) And I guess I can count on loosing between 20 and 30. In Lesotho the mainstay is a gruel type dish of sorghum or maize. Here is a real delicious dinner: They take ground up corn, they mix it with water and they fry it in sheep fat. That’s a really good dinner!
Katana: Is that what you will be making too?
Peggi: I’m hoping that cooking can be a part of the cultural exchange I share with the women in Lesotho. I am going to take some of my favorite spices and share food every chance I get. I love to cook and I love music; so I hope to exchange knowledge in both of these areas with the people I meet there. I bought a book, “Camp Fire Songs” and I am hoping to learn a lot about their African music. I’m taking a tape recorder.
Katana: So I want to go back to what do you think you will be doing with the rest of your life?
Peggi: My life has been more wonderful, exciting and interesting than I ever would have imagined. When I retired in 1999 after a successful career in business the enormity of the blessings and benefits I’ve received over my lifetime was very apparent to me. My success would never have happened without untold help from others. Teachers, mentors and business associates have, throughout my life, given me the skills and guidance I needed to succeed. I feel compelled to do the same for others. Helping others succeed is what I hope to devote my energies to for the rest of my life. I want these wonderful “golden years” between retirement and senility to be very productive.
Katana: Will you write about this?
Peggi: Absolutely. I will write while I am there. And I am hoping that once per month, I can get to the University where I’ll have the ability to send out an email on what is going on. You, of course, are on that email list, Katana, so you’ll be hearing from me.
Katana: And I think at this point in your life to be able to give back is so important.
Peggi: I’ve just got this little window before I start forgetting everything! (laughing)
Katana: Keep your mind active—never retire—or you’re going to lose it! Do you think you will ever do it again?
Peggi: Who knows what will come next? Maybe becoming a recruiter of other senior Americans for Peace Corps service will be the next adventure. We, as American citizens, have such unlimited options and there are so many worthwhile ways for us to spend our time. My hope is just to be able to stay healthy, happy and useful for as long as possible. And, to have a whole lot of fun doing it!
