WESTBOROUGH – John O’Connell wants to be a doctor someday.
But not now.
For the next 27 months, he and his girlfriend, Isabelle Davenport, will be part of the Peace Corps. They will be assistant English teachers in Colombia.
“I was motivated to join the Peace Corps by my interest in bolstering my linguistic and cultural competencies ahead of joining the medical field,” said O’Connell. “I am most looking forward to becoming fluent in Spanish, as well as gaining new friendships and experiencing a new culture.”
O’Connell has lived in Westborough since 2009, attending Mill Pond Elementary, Gibbons Middle and Westborough High schools before graduating in 2017.
He is a graduate of the University of San Diego with a bachelor’s degree in biology. He said he was thinking about applying for medical school but “not immediately.”
Davenport was about to volunteer for the Peace Corps, and suggested that O’Connell could volunteer as well.
The first steps toward volunteering included submitting a personal statement, resume and letters of recommendation, along with an interview and what O’Connell called “rigorous” medical clearances.
In February, O’Connell and Davenport were notified of their acceptance. They were supposed to go to Peru, but they were switched to Colombia because O’Connell has a peanut allergy.
He explained that in Peru, peanuts are part of the native cuisine, and he and Davenport would have been housed with host families. Rather than inconveniencing their potential hosts, O’Connell and Davenport will have their own apartment in Colombia.
In late August, O’Connell and Davenport will head to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., for three months of training. This will include intensive language courses, along with learning about the local culture.
O’Connell and Davenport are among the first Peace Corps volunteers to head overseas following the COVID-19 pandemic; in March 2020 the agency had to evacuate nearly 7,000 volunteers from more than 60 countries.
The Peace Corps was founded by President John F. Kennedy in 1961. Their volunteers carry out people-to-people public service and citizen diplomacy at the grassroots level.
Drawn from all corners of the United States, volunteers work to address challenges in agriculture, community economic development, education, environment, health, and youth development across the globe.
Currently, the agency is recruiting volunteers to serve in 59 countries around the world at the request of host country governments to connect through the Peace Corps’ grassroots approach across communities and cultures. Volunteers have already returned to a total of 55 countries around the world.
“I am extremely proud [of them],” said Tanim Choudhury, public affairs specialist for the Peace Corps. “It’s a testament to ongoing service. We have 1,700 volunteers out there.
“We didn’t know when we were going to be back in the field, and where to fill the gaps,” he said.
According to Choudhury, potential volunteers must be U.S. citizens, but a college degree is not necessary. He added that retirees and those in “mid-career” are encouraged to apply.
“We would absolutely welcome you,” he said.
Those interested should apply to the Peace Corps via www.peacecorps.gov/apply. Apply before Oct. 1 to make a global connection by mid-2024.
