Interview with Dean Hessler, September 19, 2023

Interview Summary

Dean Hessler served as a Peace Corps volunteer in the Agriculture Program in Honduras from 1985 to 1987. Originally from a rural town outside of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, he applied for the Peace Corps while he was finishing up his Bachelor’s Degree in Animal Science from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Upon completion of training, he was first assigned to the town of La Soledad in the Southern mountains where he tried to build living fences with the Government organization, Recursos Naturales. For his second year, he moved to San Jose de Intibuca in the Northern mountains where he worked to build a farmer’s cooperative. After completion of service, Dean first worked with a meat packing company in Kansas and eventually found his way to getting his MBA from Iowa State and becoming a Certified Financial Planner. He resides in Madison, Wisconsin with his wife, whom he met in university and was a PCV in Guatemala.

Interview Keyword

Dean Hessler Agriculture Volunteer Honduras 1985-1987 Oshkosh, Wisconsin Animal Science degree University of Wisconsin at Madison Military New Mexico Ranching Tegucigalpa Language training Mountains La Soledad Recursos Naturales Farmers Living fences San Jose de Intibuca Hitchhiking Animal pens Fish pond Farmer’s Co-operative Guatemala Belize Isolation Confidence Married PCV from Guatemala Carcass sales Meat packing Kansas Ames, Iowa Financial Planning MBA Iowa State CFP Wisconsin

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