Fifty years of peace

Carrie Hessler-Radelet was 26 years old and serving in the Peace Corps in Samoa when her host mother, Losa — who already had nine children — became pregnant again. She had given birth to all of her children on the floor of her home, with no midwife or prenatal care.

It took the two women four months to convince Losa's husband to allow her to seek medical help for her next delivery. And without care from a Samoan medical center, Losa may not have survived the labor after she went into post-partum hemorrhaging.

"She would have died if she wasn't with the midwife," said Hessler-Radelet, who is now Peace Corps deputy director. "Now she's thriving. That whole nine months of going through that pregnancy with [Losa] was transformational. I found my life's calling. She changed my life entirely. She really spoke to my heart."

More than 50 people listened to Hessler-Radelet's story last night in a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps at Stamp Student Union, and many student attendees said they felt that call, too.

"I want to have a job where I can feel like I'm actually making a difference," junior sociology major Jacqueline Tobar said last night. "I've been thinking about it for a long time, and the more I heard about it, the more I realized that it's what I want to do. It's the right time."

A panel of former Peace Corps volunteers joined Hessler-Radelet to speak about their experiences abroad and share stories about women, such as Losa, who stood out during their years spent volunteering.

"My first impression when I arrived is that women work very, very hard every day," panelist Skyler Badenoch said. "It gave me so much more respect."

This university was ranked No. 24 on the Peace Corps' annual list of the universities that produce the most volunteers for the organization. Since the Peace Corps' inception 50 years ago, 1,076 alumni from this university have volunteered.

The experience is life-changing, Peace Corps Director Aaron Williams said, adding he hopes more people sign up for the two-year experience like he did.

"The Peace Corps makes you feel at home," Williams said. "It opened doors that I didn't even know existed. Wherever Peace Corps volunteers are, they share something in common: They share the spirit of service."

Although last night's panelists served in all corners of the globe, their discussion centered on empowering women across the world.

"This is so important because gender inequality is critical and present in every single country, including our own," Hessler-Radelet said. "Gender equality and women's empowerment are mission critical to Peace Corps."

Williams praised the university's recruitment last night, noting that 50 university alumni currently serve abroad for the organization.

Ben Burnes, the Peace Corps recruiter for this university, said he hoped the event inspired students — regardless of their academic backgrounds — to consider joining after graduation.

"Our recruitment comes from a variety of disciplines," said Burnes, who served in the Peace Corps in Tanzania for two years. "We get people from the science departments, health department, education department and engineers. I want to increase the volunteers from the university because I really think we could be in the top 10."

Badenoch said he hopes future volunteers work to change gender inequalities that exist all over the world and create opportunities for underprivileged women.

"One of the most important things that I came away with during my time in the Peace Corps was that intelligence and ability is equally distributed around the world," he said. "But, opportunity is not."

egan@umdbk.com