'Think local; act global': Peace Corps volunteer Shay Priester inspired by culture, friendship and understanding in Ecuador

Shay Priester has had a passion for helping others since she was a teenager.

Priester, a Jackson native, graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 2010 with bachelor's degrees in anthropology and Spanish. Her interest in the Peace Corps and traveling the world began while she was still in high school.

"In 2005, I was 17 and traveled with a medical brigade to rural villages in the Bolivian Altiplano. It was a tumultuous time for the country, as their first indigenous president, Evo Morales, was rising to power. I remember most American agencies had left. At one point I remember being deep into the Bolivian countryside where there wasn't much Spanish spoken, only Quechua. This town had no attention from the Bolivian government, NGOs (nongovernmental organizations), nobody ... it seemed forgotten. And I came across a Peace Corps volunteer residing there. I was so curious as to how a U.S. American found her way to the thick of Bolivian forests," Priester says.

She became interested in the Peace Corps after hearing the volunteer's story, and the following year, she became even more convinced the program was right for her.

"During my senior year of high school, a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) spoke in one of my high school classes about his service in Tanzania. I was sold," she says.

A parade going by Shay's house and featuring the traditional Diablo Humo dance. (submitted photo)

After she graduated from Southeast, Priester began working professionally and volunteering with various organizations. In 2012, she started working at the Cultural Exchange Network in Cape Girardeau, helping with international education and cultural exchange programs.

"Peace Corps had been in the back of my mind for almost a decade, and while helping the world come to the United States, I found myself constantly thinking about Peace Corps," she says.

Priester applied for a position with the Peace Corps in August 2013 and arrived in Ecuador to start working in May 2014. She will complete her service on Aug. 6, 2016.

"When I applied for the Peace Corps, the system did not allow one to choose their location, so I was placed in Ecuador as a community health volunteer based on their evaluations from my education, experience and interviews," she says. "Since then, the process is much more streamlined, and applicants are allowed a choice in their work sector and location."

This is Priester's first time serving in the Peace Corps, but she spent time studying abroad, traveling and volunteering in Costa Rica, Panama, Bolivia and Peru before going to Ecuador to help research and improve the quality of life there.

"My original site placement was in a small, indigenous town of about 2,000, deep in the mountains of the Central Sierra in the foothills of Mount Chimborazo, the point on Earth closest to the sun," she says. "I worked alongside the local government with potable water projects, climate change, conservation, hygiene and sanitation and general health promotion."

Shay and her host mom at the soccer field when she was the Madrina de Colta 2014. (submitted photo)

While in Ecuador, Priester has made some lifelong connections and lasting memories. She shared one in particular that highlighted her experience in a traditional cultural beauty pageant preceding a soccer tournament in which she also would compete.

"Futbol is, of course, the most popular sport, so the municipality hosted a tournament for all employees. I grew up playing and wanted an anchor activity to integrate more with community members, so I joined a team. They were so excited that I wanted to play," she says. "A few weeks later, on the opening day of the tournament, I was swept away to a nearby city to have my hair and makeup done, and then fitted for the traditional indigenous dress -- an anaco, a floor-length skirt wrapped tightly high at the waist; small, sandal-like shoes that surprisingly fit my gringa [a slang term for a female foreigner] feet; a bordered blouse and a sash declaring me the 'Madrina de Colta 2014,' more or less the adult queen of the town.

"Arriving at the soccer stadium, the most well-maintained facility in town, I found myself among six other women about my age, none of whom seemed surprised to be standing there. Walking in, I heard people praising the appearance of the gringa in their traditional clothing, and I was proud to honor it in a way not to appropriate or objectify their culture. I was humbled that they would ask me to share in something so special. Ladies I worked with said not many gringas wear their clothing, so it was a proud moment for them to share it. *... My team was called to play first, so in full hair and makeup, I traded my anaco for shorts and a jersey and did a much better job on the field than in the pageant."

Priester says the best part about her position with the Peace Corps is "being forced out of my comfort zone, learning to be comfortable with discomfort, being challenged every day and making a small difference in building better understanding between countries on a grassroots, human-to-human level."

By line:Various photos of Shay Priester's experiences serving in the Peace Corps in Ecuador. (Submitted photos)

On a deeper level, she says she has found meaning in her work, and that her service is profoundly rewarding.

"The most fulfilling part of my job is mutual learning with regard to technical skills as well as cultural exchange. Whether alongside grandmothers, young fathers, schoolchildren, health-care providers or other Ecuadorean nationals, I'm always learning, and my hope is that they are, too," Priester says. "Peace Corps' legacy of promoting world peace and friendship while providing technical capacity building attracted me and continues to inspire me during my service today."

Priester's plan for the future and returning to the United States holds not only the creature comforts of home, but also the possibility of some more personal ventures.

Shay and her counterpart, Elva, hiking into the mountains to evaluate homes to see if they could propose the government to help build better housing for those in need. (submitted photo)

"Right now my mind doesn't get much further than the prospect of enjoying a dark beer, a medium-rare steak and my mom's chocolate chip cookies," she says. "I'm considering graduate school, but if I were to find potential personal fulfillment from a professional endeavor, I would pursue it. I still have a lot of the world to see and will continue to travel, and I recently got married and would like to honeymoon after completing service."

She says people who are interested in volunteering and activism should take action sooner rather than later, and she encourages everyone to follow their dreams, whether big or small.

"Think local; act global. It's never too late to join Peace Corps. I hear so many people say that they would have done Peace Corps 'if only...'" Priester says. "You'll never be more ready than now. Now is the time, and you're as ready as you'll ever be. That shouldn't just be said for Peace Corps service, but whatever endeavor lies ahead for you."