Since September, 20o7, just two weeks after our wedding, Jon and I have been in the process of applying to the Peace Corps. It has been a long, long process of applications, interviews, medical exams and waiting...and waiting and waiting...
But alas, it has finally paid off! In May we both became invitees of the Small Business Development program in Morocco, and are set to depart for our staging on September 6th.
"Small Business Development" (SBD) means that we will be working with small, community based artisans and artisan groups to improve their economic opportunities. The primary goals of our program are to improve the quality of products and services, improve business planing and management, increase organizational awareness, and to empower individuals, particularly women, to become effective role models in their respective communities.
With our backgrounds we feel that this program is a perfect fit for both of us. We both graduated from Art Schools (myself from the Cleveland Institute of Art, major in Fiber and Material Studies; Jon from the Atlanta College of Art, major in Printmaking.) and we both have similar business experience from working for the same company, Kaman's Art Shoppes. Also, this past winter I started volunteering for a fair trade organization called the Wide World Shop, and have been trying to educate myself about fair trade philosophies and practices.
We are so excited about this experience, but it still feels so far away and unreal. There is much to be done before then and I'm sure that the time will just fly by. Right now we are both VERY occupied with our jobs at Kaman's, and although it has been especially challenging this year, at least for me, I think that it will all work out in the end.
