Here we are.

For the first time in the agency’s history, the Peace Corps has suspended global operations and is evacuating over 7,000 volunteers.

If you haven’t read Director Judy Olsen’s letter, it’s here.

Some Peace Corps community members are mad - basically all of them are sad. I strongly believe that when the email came through, there was a concentrated ‘sigh’ of disappointment that echoed out into the world from PCVs and RPCVs alike.

It’s a shit situation and it’s unfair.

But, it happened. Now what?

Finding Resources

If there is a silver lining to this mayhem, it must certainly be the overwhelming empathy and support of the Peace Corps Community.

The Returned Peace Corps COVID-19 Evacuation Support Group is a must join Facebook group that has over 6k members connecting with each other to offer resources and support.

In this group you will find community generated summaries of what the heck is going on, along with links to useful shared documents where volunteers are offering information in order to assist with housing, transportation, and employment needs.

The admins of this group are doing an incredible job!

Not to be left behind, the National Peace Corps Association is also rallying around the evacuated RPCVs by offering free ‘Global Reentry’ NPCA membership. With this membership you get access to scheduled virtual meetings with the association’s leadership and connections with the 180+ affiliate groups around the country.

For evacuated RPCVs that are in dire circumstances financially, the NPCA has created a Benevolent Fund to support those in urgent need. So far the fund as raised close to $9k toward its goal of $15k.

Finding Income

Since the timeline of this emergency is so unknown, finding stable income is paramount.

If you have earned your Noncompetitive Eligibility (NCE) status, you might consider reviewing the Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Career Link page.

Surprisingly, they are still posting new jobs on the board, but, there is likely to be a run on the NCE positions. While it might seem silly to apply for a job during this crisis, it can’t hurt to get your name into contention.

A second option is online work.

There are many opportunities to choose from, but teaching English online has been RPCV bread and butter for a long time now.

VIPKID is an online platform with an abundance of children from China that want to learn English. There is a whole community of RPCVs that teach on this platform and at $21+ an hour, its a great short-term option.

If someone who uses our referral link is hired, we receive $100. We’re happy to give 50% to you or donate it to a cause of your choice. It’s been a great resource for our team and we hope it can help others in the Peace Corps Community.

If you need help applying, email us!

Finding Scholarships

At some point, normalcy will return.

When that time comes, you’ll likely be very happy with yourself if you began preparing, even slightly, for what comes next.

If going to graduate school was on your mind post Peace Corps service, you might consider getting aquatinted with the Coverdell Fellows Program. You can find a lot of information about the program in this article. Here you can get, in some cases, significant financial assistance for a variety graduate programs at partner schools.

Finding Laughs and staying positive

While this might be tough to do, it’s probably the most important.

It’s no secret that Volunteer life changes you regardless of how long you were there. Now that everyone is returning home to this strange life, having a group that you can laugh with will be key to know losing your mid.

Follow @howapcvputsitgently to share in different evacuee experiences and to laugh at some well thought out memes.

In a time like this, it’s easiest to focus on everything that is going wrong - to ask who are the people making these stupid decision and why is this so mishandled?

But let’s be honest here, that’s the entire life of a Peace Corps Volunteer. At this point, we should be slightly more accustomed to the ridiculousness that is raw life. Imagine everyone else that hasn’t had the practice adapting like we have.

Everyone’s official service just came to an abrupt end. But this does not mean the work ethic and care for others needs to disappear.

Peace Corps Volunteers will be the most influential and needed group in the U.S at this time. I hope that we can all stick together and continue working to support the world we’re all chasing.

Good luck. You’re not alone.