By Helen Petrozzola (Ukraine 98-00) and Sarah Fuhrmann Thorwirth (Guatemala 07-09)
Before service, many of us understood gender inequality as an idea—something studied in classrooms, debated in meetings, or addressed through advocacy from afar. We read the statistics, organized campaigns, and spoke about fairness and opportunity. But for Peace Corps Volunteers, those abstract concepts take on a different meaning. They become visible in daily routines, in conversations, in barriers faced and overcome, and in the persistent work of communities striving for change.
Across countries, cultures, and sectors, Volunteers encounter how gender shapes access to education, health, economic opportunity, and voice. What begins as awareness often transforms into lived understanding. The following reflections from Returned Peace Corps Volunteers trace that journey—from distant concern to personal commitment—and reveal how service not only deepens our understanding of gender, but reshapes how we engage with the world long after we return home.
Helen Petrozzola (Ukraine 1998-2000)
My awareness of gender issues began before the Peace Corps. As a university student, I helped start a campus organization called POWER (People Organized for Women’s Empowerment & Respect) that led a campaign urging the university to adopt a code of conduct for manufacturers producing university apparel to ensure that women and children were not subjected to sweatshop labor. At the time, we were advocating for people in distant places whose lives we could only imagine. The Peace Corps made those issues real.
Serving in Ukraine placed me in a community where gender dynamics were part of everyday life. Living and working there helped me see more clearly how gender shapes people’s opportunities, expectations, and vulnerabilities. I remember learning how young women could be targeted by scams promising jobs abroad in Europe—offers that sometimes masked human trafficking networks. Later in my career, including while supporting the Peace Corps’ global health and HIV programs, I continued to see how gender norms influence opportunity and risk.
In parts of Kenya and Ethiopia, for example, girls may spend hours fetching water or completing household tasks, which can interfere with school attendance. PC Volunteers do incredible work with schools and communities to support girls’ learning and life-skills programs that help young women stay in school and build confidence in their futures. I’ve also seen how Volunteers have supported practical solutions developed within communities themselves. In Uganda, PC Volunteers partnered with schools and local organizations to support girls producing reusable sanitary pads, helping reduce a barrier that keeps many girls home from school. Across West Africa, I saw how Volunteers supported Village Savings and Loan Associations, where women pool savings, access small loans, and strengthen their economic independence while building networks of support and leadership.
The Peace Corps did not begin my interest in gender equity, but it transformed it—turning distant concerns into lived experience. Those lessons continue to shape how I see the world and the role I can play in expanding opportunities for girls and women to be recognized, lead, and achieve their full potential.
Sarah Fuhrmann Thorwirth (Guatemala 2007-2009)
Working in the local Municipal Women’s Office and serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala significantly shaped my worldview as a woman. I became much more aware of the deep gender disparities that exist in access to education and opportunity. The influence of machismo was present in many aspects of daily life and often affected my work in the community. As an outspoken woman, I sometimes struggled to be taken seriously in spaces where women’s voices were not always valued. At the same time, having a college degree lent credibility and helped me build trust and respect over time.
The experience strengthened my understanding of gender dynamics globally and reinforced my commitment to supporting greater equity and opportunity for women and girls. My Peace Corps experience also helped shape the direction of my career. It focused my interest in leadership development and training, particularly in working with adults who are committed to making a difference in their communities. I discovered that I was most energized by facilitating learning, helping people build skills, and creating spaces where individuals could reflect on their experiences and grow as leaders.
After returning, I pursued roles that allowed me to design and lead leadership development programs within nonprofit organizations. Through this work, I have been able to support emerging leaders, strengthen community-based organizations, and continue engaging in the kind of meaningful education and capacity building that first inspired me during my Peace Corps service.
These stories remind us that gender equity is not an abstract goal—it is lived, negotiated, and shaped within communities every day. Peace Corps Volunteers do not arrive with all the answers, but they listen, learn, and work alongside communities already leading change in their own ways. In that process, something shifts. What once felt distant becomes personal. What once felt overwhelming becomes actionable.
The lessons do not end when service concludes. They carry forward into careers, communities, and commitments to leadership, education, and advocacy. Whether supporting girls’ education, strengthening economic opportunities, or creating spaces for women’s voices to be heard, these experiences continue to shape how Returned Volunteers show up in the world.
Peace Corps teaches many things—but perhaps one of its most enduring lessons is this: real change begins with understanding, grows through partnership, and endures when we commit ourselves to expanding opportunity for others.