Officially a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer

Hello everyone!

Currently I am back home with my parents relaxing and catching up on things. I flew home from Cameroon on December 11th and spent the rest of the month with my family and visiting friends. Because of electricity problems in my town in Cameroon, I was unfortunately not able to do many blogs the last few months or keep in touch with many people. In August, we had a very successful girls' summer camp with over 100 girls that attended! After the camp, I had three months left and spent a lot of my time continuing to work with the youth club in the surrounding smaller villages and finishing up with the health project in the health centers. The rainy season started late and therefore went late into 2010. I had to travel to the capitol, Yaounde, twice (a two day voyage) at the very tail-end of the rainy season on very muddy, rutted roads that I thought I would never get through! They were memorable trips to say the least! I worked with the neighborhood girls' group and girls' soccer team right up until my departure date. I had a wonderful send-off party with colleagues and friends one week before I left my town and got to say bye and thank you to everyone. While I knew it was time to move onto something new, I will really miss many aspects of life in Cameroon, starting first with the girls from these groups and my neighbors and friends. They all made the experience so rich and have enhanced my life in many ways. I will not miss the dust, heat, corruption and bad roads that come with being a Peace Corps Volunteer (alas!) but all the wonderful people there and hope to return very soon. I am currently spending my time presenting on Peace Corps and Cameroon to school classes and other local organizations and am really enjoying discussing my experiences there with others. I would be very happy to speak at your group or take any questions you may have-just leave a message on this site or contact me at my parent's house.

I have decided to attend graduate school starting next August to get a Masters in Public Health focusing on Health Education and Behavior/Communication. I applied to Tulane (New Orleans), Emory (Atlanta), Boston University, University of Michigan and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill so I hope to move to the school of choice possibly by early summer. Between then and now I am taking some much needed R&R and staying with my parents as I get readjusted to life in the US. I also hope to be able to visit with lots of people that I have not seen in awhile and spend time with my family.

I would like to say thank you to those in Cameroon who continue to work so hard towards an equitable and sustainable Cameroon and to all those current and future Peace Corps Volunteers who are doing the hard work towards a more peaceful world for all of us. Du Courage!

All my best wishes in 2011 for you and your family and friends.

Sincerely,
Anna Stormzand

Photos on October 24th, 2010

Photos of the following: Small transport car stuck in the mud during rainy season on the "national highway" connecting Banyo to Bafoussam, view of Yaounde from above, rainbow before the storm in Banyo, road "en brousse" to Ndiwawa Health Center, myself and the Chef of Ndiwawa, and myself with the youth club teaching in a nearby village.

"En brousse" with the Youth Club in a local village about an hour motorcycle ride from Banyo and a photo of the participants and group leaders of Banyo's second annual All-Girl's Camp held August 9th thru the 14th (we had almost a hundred participants in total!)

Close of Service Photo

Picture of Agriculture/Forestry and Health 2010 Close of Service group in Yaounde!

More photos today...

Monsieur le Lamido (local religous leader)riding in the 20th of May/50 years of independence parade in Banyo, girls' group activities and Mt. Djoumbal, Banyo in the rainy season.

Photos August 27, 2010

Photos of girls' football team playing in the 20th of May (Independence Day) celebrations, students marching in the 20th of May/50 Years of Independence Parade and girl's group playing hop scotch on my front porch.

More photos...

Photos of the International Day of Women in Banyo, my cat Sophie (still a kitten), almost-ripe mangoes, a private car loaded to the max with goods between Mayo-Darle and Banyo, nurses teaching an health education class with me at the District Hospital in Banyo and a Youth Club member teaching about sanitation and health for Earth Day at the elementary school.