Ogilvy Says Good-Bye

Here are some of the highlights from my going away happy hour from Ogilvy. I was absolutely amazed, thankful, and humbled at how many people came out to say goodbye. I do honestly believe that the people that I have met at Ogilvy over the past two years treat each other like a family. Sure we fight sometimes, and every family has the crazy aunt or uncle, but when it comes down to it the people that I work with is the reason that I have enjoyed coming to work each day.

I am truly going to miss each and every one of them. But it is the pictures and nights like last night that make me certain that this is not the last that I have heard from the crew at Ogilvy PR in Washington DC.

Who am I?

Who?
My name is Chris Schirm, I am 24, and currently live in Washington D.C. but not for too much longer. I have worked for a PR firm in DC for the past two years, and while the people that I have met and the experiences that I have had have been extrordinary to say the least, I will be leaving DC and joining the Peace Corps. I have accepted an invitation to teach English in Turkmenistan.

Where?
The question that most people have asked me when I tell them is, "Where the heck is Turkmenistan?" Well here is a map of where Turkmenistan is http://www.state.gov/p/eur/ci/tx/.

What language do they speak?
The primary language that is spoken is Turkmen, which is a combination of Russian and Turkish. No, I am not fluent in Turkmen nor Russian, nor have I been a teacher in a classroom for more than a couple days before. I will receive three months of intense (6 days a week) training on both teaching and the Turkmen language once I get over there. I am awaiting my staging packet that will have an introduction to Turkmen.

Why?
When people ask me why I am doing this I have two answers. The first for me is that I have a desire to answer the following question, "Who are you as a person when you are in situation that you dont know anyone, dont know the language, but all you know is that you are there to help?" The second answer that I have is simply, because I can. I am at a point in my life where I dont have that many responsibilities or that many people relying on me for sustenance. In part, I know that if I didn't do this now than I would regret it for the rest of my life and always wonder what it would have been like.

When?
I started thinking about joining the Peace Corps when I was still in college. I am glad that I took the advice of my mom and went out into the working world before I decided to join. I have learned more about myself and what I am able to do in the past year and a half then I have the previous four years of college.

I will be leaving D.C. the end of August, spending a month with my parents in Arizona before I leave for staging and Turkmenistan at the end of September. I feel so underprepared for the adventure that is yet to come, but for something like this I dont quite think that you ever could be ready completely.