Joseph was not considered athletic when he was young, he was too afraid of crowds to really get into the fray, and he was too small to control things physically. But in 8th grade he ran track and field and had some success at EHS, and even briefly held a school record in some running event. In 9th grade he played JV tennis for Fordham Prep and at one of the matches a coach came up to me and told me what a natural athlete he was!
Joseph was asked to be the fitness coach at the school in Ndanda. He would take his students (sometimes over a 100 of them we've heard) on 10 to 20 km runs. Last summer we sent basketballs to him, and he started a regular basketball game. He even ran the Kilimanjaro Marathon! He talked about doing triathlons when he came home. In September 2010 Kyle, Ray, Daniel and I did the Nations Triathlon in Washington DC.
In Joe's memory I will be running (very slowly) the Westchester 1/2 marathon on the day of what would have been his 25th birthday. One of my oldest friends, Sarah Coble, will also run it with me. We are doing it to remember Joseph on what would have been a very special day, and to raise money for the scholarship fund. If you would like to support us in our endeavors, please send donations to:
Joseph Lawrence Chow Scholarship Fund
c/0 The Generoso Pope Foundation
1 Depot Square
Tuckahoe, NY 10707
Thanks for your support!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
September 22, 2010
Today marks the one year anniversary of the tragic death of Peace Corps Tanzania Volunteer Joseph Chow. Joe died in a rock climbint accident near the village of Mbuji, in the Mbinga District of the Ruvuma rEgion on September 22nd, 2009.
Joe was a graduate of Amherst College in 2007, and was first invited to serve in Peace Corps/Kenya as a math and science teacher. He was sworn in as a volunteer in November and placed in the village of Ndalat to teach chemistry and physics at St. Clement Secondary School. Following the suspension of the Peace Corps/Kenya Program in early 2008, Joseph volunteered to transfer, along with four others, to Tanzania to continue his service as an education volunteer. In February 2008, he ban teaching chemistry at Ndanda Secondary School in Mtwara Region.
Along with teaching chemistry, Joe Chow also chose to teach advanced physics and math. He was active in his community raising HIV/AIDS awareness with an after-school health club for his students, HIV testing and counseling, and a community theatre program. Joe loved atletics - especially swimming, travleing to visit other PCVs, and cooking for himself and friends.
In his 2007 Peace Corps aspiration statement, Joseph wrote that one of the reasons he decided to serve with Peace Corps was because he had never spent a long period of time in a different culture. He hoped to meet the challenge of teaching in a classroom in Africa and understood that the work he faced would be much more difficult than any work he had previously accomplished. Joseph not only adapted to his new surroundings, he flourished. Please join us all at Peace Corps Tanzania in remembering the very rich life and service of Joe Chow and in carrying on his legacy.
Joe was a graduate of Amherst College in 2007, and was first invited to serve in Peace Corps/Kenya as a math and science teacher. He was sworn in as a volunteer in November and placed in the village of Ndalat to teach chemistry and physics at St. Clement Secondary School. Following the suspension of the Peace Corps/Kenya Program in early 2008, Joseph volunteered to transfer, along with four others, to Tanzania to continue his service as an education volunteer. In February 2008, he ban teaching chemistry at Ndanda Secondary School in Mtwara Region.
Along with teaching chemistry, Joe Chow also chose to teach advanced physics and math. He was active in his community raising HIV/AIDS awareness with an after-school health club for his students, HIV testing and counseling, and a community theatre program. Joe loved atletics - especially swimming, travleing to visit other PCVs, and cooking for himself and friends.
In his 2007 Peace Corps aspiration statement, Joseph wrote that one of the reasons he decided to serve with Peace Corps was because he had never spent a long period of time in a different culture. He hoped to meet the challenge of teaching in a classroom in Africa and understood that the work he faced would be much more difficult than any work he had previously accomplished. Joseph not only adapted to his new surroundings, he flourished. Please join us all at Peace Corps Tanzania in remembering the very rich life and service of Joe Chow and in carrying on his legacy.
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