About this event:

This morning Locklin’s dad, Shannon Taylor, visited the class to tell us about his time in Mali. Shannon spent about 3 years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Douenza, Mali. Shannon greeted us in the Bambara language. He had a slide show prepared for us and brought several artifacts for us to touch and look at. In the slides we could see a child having a bath in a bucket, how people eat with their right hands from a communal bowl, Shannon and villagers digging a well, Baobab trees and the desert landscape, the local mosque and village meeting house. He showed us a picture of himself with his pet goat Jolie too. He shared  a carved mask, a drum, a bowl made from a calabash (pumpkin), and two blankets; an indigo dyed blanket made by the Tuareg people and a blanket from Ghana made by the Ashanti people.  Shannon’s work in Mali helped villages improve health and sanitation by digging wells to provide clean water for the communities. We learned a lot about how the people of Mali live and how we can help them improve their lives through organizations like the Peace Corps. Thank you Shannon for sharing your time and experience with us!