Peace Corp Memories

I loved that Joe was always very welcoming and hospitable. Being in Africa that is so important and Joe was always happy to have visitors, whether he knew you were coming or not and he always knew to share something to drink and eat right away. I am so sad to lose Joe He was one of the volunteers who truly reached out to everyone, even staff, and reminded us all why we have peace corps , and what we bring to the world Joe is exceptional. Thank you for sharing him with us
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I must say that Joe made a positive impact on me the first time I met him. He was so full of energy and eager to offer words of advice He must have had a strong and loving family to develop the character he showed as a PCV in Tanzania. Also I want to say on behalf of all the PCV's we all appreciated the letters you wrote that were read during Joe's service at PC headquarters Joe was truly blessed to have you as a mother ,father and brothers I'll continue to keep you all in my prayers Joe's death is just a reminder of the short time we have on earth, and just as Joe did to make the very most of life.
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Arusha is about as far as you can go from Mtwara, and still be in a region with PCVs So I was surprised when Joe texted me this March. Hi this is Joe from Mtwara I am thinking of going to Arusha in a few days, can I come visit your site?

A grim bloomed on my face. A visitor? There is nothing, absolutely nothing, that's better than a surprise visitor Especially for a PCV at an isolated site with few visitors.

Karibu sana! I wrote. Though I didn't actually believe he would come- there were only two PCV's in Arusha at the time and besides I had only met him once. Even if he was already in Kilimanjaro region, the six hours from Moshi to my village is a long way to travel

but two days later, in the evening there was a knock at my door There was Joe with one of my neighbors beside him I was tongue-tied at the rare and sudden appearance of an American in my village "ER hey welcome, come on in!"

We spent a good evening doing the usual PCV activities, cooking eating and swapping stories about Tanzania I always forget how truly cathartic it is to speak in rapid English and to exchange stories with someone else who is experienced the life of a PCV teacher. We spent much of the night sitting in my courtyard under the stars, just talking and the break from school left me feeling refreshed and ready for another week of teaching Joe even made my day again several weeks later when I opened my PO box to find a postcard of his site thanking me for my hospitality.

Mgeni ni baraka An unexpected mgeni from far away ni baraka zaidi. I'll always remember Joe for making the effort to travel to a distant site and putting a grin on my face when I needed it.