Butler grad, wife pulled from Peace Corps mission
Peace Corps volunteers Colin Blackburn and his bride of 18 months, Abigail Scanga Blackburn, had settled into their mission in southern Morocco, which was to empower local youth by teaching them to set goals for success and how to take the steps to achieve them.
But instead of continuing to make connections with the Moroccan locals, Colin, a 2011 Butler Area High School graduate, and his wife are back home and self-quarantined with Abigail's family in her native Apollo, Armstrong County.
Neither are experiencing symptoms of the coronavirus, but have shuttered themselves away in an abundance of caution.
“It's a bit of a shock to have been six months into a 27-month contract (and be evacuated),” Colin said.
He explained that the couple spent three months in northern Morocco in intense training to learn the language and practice hands-on in the community to study customs and traditions.
Both immediately became enamored of the North African country, which contains recognizable and exotic cities such as Casablanca and Marrakesh.
Colin explained that joining the Peace Corps was a lifelong dream of Abigail's.“So I just kind of stumbled into it,” he said.Colin worked with youth in a town in southern Morocco where they were assigned after training, teaching English and soft-skill classes.He also helped youth with community engagement and job skills that would increase their employability.Abigail worked with a women's club, teaching English and showing women how to determine their goals.“A big thing was a self-care workshop, so they could start prioritizing themselves as well as their general daily lives and responsibilities,” she said. “One of their big goals was to put themselves first sometimes.”The couple got to know the shopkeepers and locals in the town as well.“Even though we had a basic understanding of the language, we knew enough that the people we saw on a weekly basis, we had jokes and could talk to them and have conversations,” Colin said.One particular shopkeeper, from whom the Blackburns bought their produce, would shout a greeting at the couple each time they approached.“We didn't get to say goodbye to that guy,” Colin said.Abigail said the Peace Corps recommends volunteers go into the communities where they serve to get to know residents and integrate into the local landscape.“The people we knew well, like our friends, we were able to let them know (we were leaving),” she said.An inkling that their status could change came on a Friday night in mid-March, when Peace Corps officials told them they would be heading home.Colin said the organization told them that although there were not many cases of COVID-19 in Morocco, they wanted the couple to return to the United States, where they could receive medical care more efficiently, if necessary.
“Everything moved very quickly,” Colin said.On Saturday, they were given the word to “stand fast,” or pack their bags in case of a quick evacuation.Between Saturday and Monday, flights to many European countries were being prohibited.“There was a very rapid response from the Moroccan government to close down flights because they wanted to avoid getting more cases,” Colin said. “They didn't have many.”With airports closing all over the world, the Moroccan Peace Corps made the call.“They decided the best option would be to evacuate the volunteers from Morocco just so we would be back home and safe,” Colin said.The couple spent two nights at a hotel with other Peace Corps volunteers while flights were reserved and volunteers were debriefed.“We flew out of Morocco on March 18th,” Colin said.Abigail said at the hotel, Peace Corps volunteers who had been in Morocco for 18 months were devastated to learn they would not be returning.“Our group was told 'Hey, you have already been here six months, so we are going to try to get you back into Morocco,” she said.The couple got back to the U.S. on Thursday, and on Friday learned that all Peace Corps volunteers were given “completion of service” notifications and were evacuated to their homes.“That was awful,” Abigail said.
Colin said they understand the organization's decision to cease all volunteer efforts during the pandemic.“It was a decision that the Peace Corps headquarters had to make for the safety of the 7,000 volunteers around the globe that the safest place for us to be would be back home,” he said. “It was what they had to do in this unprecedented time of global uncertainty.”Still, the couple can't help but think about their assignment in Morocco and the people they affected and were growing close to.“We just feel very heartbroken,” Abigail said. “That's the goal of Peace Corps, to get to know your community and integrate.”She and Colin agree that while it's nice to see friends and family, America is not where they want to be right now.“If you know someone who was in the Peace Corps and was affected by this, please be patient with us,” Colin said. “We weren't expecting to be home and we might be processing this a little differently than you are.”The Blackburns will remain in self-quarantine at Abigail's parents' home in Apollo for about another week.They hope to return to the organization when it returns to action.
