In Search of Self: Reflections from the Eastern Caribbean

Author Mary Ann Bachman Kollenberg has always had a lust for adventure, and that lust has taken her all over the world. One of her dreams was to serve in the Us Peace Corps. In 1992, at the age of fifty-eight, that became a reality. Kollenberg spent two years on the island of Dominica in the Caribbean where she helped preserve the environment while keeping tourism alive.

Through In Search of Self, Kollenberg shares a collection of letters and journal entries written to family and friends during her two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Dominica. With photos included, this memoir documents her many and varied experiences. She narrates stories of her interactions with her homestay family and the island's inhabitants as well as descriptions of the culture, the food, the beautiful island setting, and the work she did on behalf of the small country.

In Search of Self provides insight into the feelings and emotions experienced by a Peace Corps volunteer during her service, and it offers a look at the beauty and culture of one small Caribbean island.

Mary Ann Bachman grew up in the small Northern California town of Lincoln. She and her husband Lowell Kollenberg raised three children. Mary Ann spent most of her adult life working in the field of education.

After graduating from Sierra College with an AA she went on to earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Protection and Management from the University California at Davis and a Bachelor of Science Vocational Education from the California State University Sacramento.

One of her goals in life was to volunteer for US Peace Corps. In1992 at the age of 58 this became a reality. She spent two years as a Peace Corp Volunteer working with other volunteers, the local government and community groups on the Island of Dominica in the Eastern Caribbean. Currently Mary Ann resides in Lincoln where she spends a lot of time with her children and grandchildren. She will be 80 years old in April 2015.