On the recordApril 18, 2018
America's Peace Corps volunteers are our angels abroad. They represent the very best we have in America, but right now, we are not doing enough to protect them. One volunteer, Jennifer Mamola, her life was forever changed after an accident while she was serving in Uganda. Early one morning, Jennifer was walking with two friends to a bus stop. Out of nowhere, a drunk driver rammed into them; one volunteer was killed and Jennifer's legs were broken. When she returned home to America, still bedridden and loaded on pain medication, she faced an uphill battle to get treatment because of bureaucracy. After months of fighting the system, she was finally approved for disability, but her nightmare didn't end there. Her case was regularly reopened, and she struggled to get the surgeries she needed and was not always approved. Still traumatized by her experience in Uganda, she reached out for mental health treatment, only to be ignored. I have heard too many stories like Jennifer's, volunteers eager to make a difference in the world, return home to America, seem to be abandoned by an organization they gave so much for. Others tell of their struggle to receive quality medical care and protection while they are overseas. A brave volunteer opened up to me about the daily sexual harassment she experienced while serving in a country overseas. During broad daylight, men would grope and threaten her as she walked home from school.…
