Community Corner

From Burlington to Azerbaijan; Local Set to Begin Volunteer Job of a Lifetime

Holley Hayes, of Burlington, is excited to be leaving for Azerbaijan as a volunteer with the United States Peace Corps.

A Burlington resident is going to take on the "hardest job she'll ever love" with a two-year tour with the United State Peace Corps.

Holley Hayes, 54, of Burlington, has been accepted into the Peace Corps and will depart for Azerbaijan on September 20 to begin training as an English Education Peace Corps volunteer. During her Peace Corps service, Hayes will live and work in an Azerbaijani community to teach English language skills to local community members.

Hayes said joining the Peace Corps was something she had wanted to do for decades now and has been planning on volunteering for years. She said she originally went to college in order to be able to be a Peace Corps volunteer but "life took her in a different direction" and she ended up getting married and having children, delaying her life dream.

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She attended The University of West Florida in Pensacola, Florida, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in special education. She has been working with children with special needs since and recently retired.

“Serving in the Peace Corps as a teacher has been my goal since I was a teenager,” said Hayes. “Various obstacles in life have delayed me from achieving that goal until now. At this point I can bring many more strengths and attributes with me than I could have at a much younger age.”

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Now, she said, she's ready and very excited to get overseas and begin her work as a volunteer. 

"I've sold my possession (except my car) and am ready to go," she said. "I'm very excited."

Hayes is a bit older than the normal Peace Corps volunteer, most of which are in their twenties or early thirties. She also has three children, Melissa, 25,  Rachael, 23, and James, 19. 

As for her age, Hayes said she believes that will be a strength to her while serving. She said some friends and family members have told her "she's too old," but she disagrees.

“After spending over thirty years teaching handicapped and disadvantaged youth in the United States, I am prepared to help people build better lives in other countries,” said Hayes. "I think that now that I have better coping skills than I did when I was younger. I think that the way I handle situations, deal with people and my professional skills are much better than they were before. I'm much more confident."

Hayes added she did not want to have a normal post-retirement life.

"I don't want to live like most retired people," she said. "I want to keep living as much as I can. I'm happy when people are around me and just thought 'I"m going to do the Peace Corps' gets me excited."

As for her children, Hayes said they are all in favor of her decision to volunteer.

"They are very supportive," she said.

However, missing them is forefront in her mind.

"Missing my children is what I'm worried about the most," she said. "I know they're going to be fine. I raised my kids to be very independent. They have always traveled and I believe in my children leading their own lives. Also, they can come visit me."

Her oldest child is actually already overseas, working with victims of human trafficking in India.

Her other concerns, common among almost all Peace Corps volunteers, is working and living with the cultural differences in her host country. Azerbaijan, of course, has its own customs, many that are quite different from those in the United States. It is also a predominately Muslim country with conservative customs where women are subservient to men.

"I think that will be the hardest thing," she said. "I'm not subservient. But I'm not going there to change their culture so I'm going to have to blend in and that will be difficult for me."

Hayes said she also has concerns about the food. She said it is common in Azerbaijan for families to slaughter animals right at the house, something she is not accustom to seeing.

"I'm going to just keep and open mind," she said. "I don't want to be rude."

Though there will be difficulties, immersing herself in the culture is also what Hayes is looking forward to the most. During the first three months of her service, Hayes will live with a host family in Azerbaijan to become fully immersed in the country’s language and culture. After acquiring the language and cultural skills necessary to assist her community, Hayes will be sworn into service and be assigned to a community in Azerbaijan, where she will live and work for two years with the local people.

"I can't wait to live with my host family," she said, getting excited during the interview. "I Can't wait to be at a wedding and dance and jump over fires. I cannot wait to learn to cook and chat with the women in the kitchen."

Finally, she's also excited to get back into a classroom.

"I can't wait to teach again," she said. "I'm a teacher, I just am, it's always been in me. I retired last May and by July I was missing school already."

Any words of luck and/or encouragement for Holley? Let her know by putting them in the comments section below.


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