press releases
Death of American Peace Corps Volunteer Trainee in Kitwe
LusakaNovember 21, 2005
American Peace Corps Volunteer Wyatt Ammon, 24, died on Friday,
November 18, in Kitwe as a result of injuries sustained in a fall. Mr.
Ammon arrived in Zambia three months ago and was to be officially sworn
into the Peace Corps on the day of his death. Peace Corps/Zambia
Country Director David Morris said, "This is a personal tragedy for the
family of Wyatt Ammon. It is also a terrible loss for the entire Peace
Corps/Zambia family, and for the people of Mwinilunga whom he was
trained to assist. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the parents of
Wyatt in their grief."
Mr. Ammon was from Dell Rapids, South
Dakota and graduated from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, in
May of 2004. As a trainee, he was assigned to the Rural Aquaculture
Promotion program, a community fish culture project designed to provide
supplemental income and improve the nutrition of rural Zambians.
Mr.
Ammon was seen as a leader among his Peace Corps training class, and he
was chosen to deliver an appreciation speech to a delegation of Zambian
officials in the local language of Lunda at his swearing-in ceremony
scheduled for November 18. He was known as a dedicated trainee who was
very motivated to expand his knowledge and understanding of other
cultures. From his aspiration statement, Mr. Ammon said, "I don't want
to work for money or prestige, I want to work for change and
satisfaction."
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