One of the joys in living abroad is meeting other individuals who, too, are living away from their country of origin. It allows for a more enriching and diverse experience while engaged in a shared experience. There are quite a few ex-patriots living in Baku, Azerbaijan's capital city, but none as dynamic and engaging as Steve Hollier and his partner, Sandra.
During our Writing Olympics event this year, I was introduced to Steve, a writer and photographer from the United Kingdom. He served as a finalist judge, reading dozens of our students' essays to help choose the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners. I believe one of my first interactions with him was through email when I flubbed something in the details of what the judges needed to do. I remember feeling embarrassed and he was very kind and comedic about it.
Steve was an incredible advocate for Peace Corps and for Peace Corps Volunteer projects. Steve would frequently hear about a PC project and respond with "That sounds great! Would you be willing to write about that? What other projects do you have going on? What other projects are PCVs working on, do you think they'd write about it?" The October edition of AZ Magazine, a lifestyle periodical magazine to which Steve was editor, held three articles written by PCVs; the September edition two, with dozens of pictures of Peace Corps projects scattered throughout.
Steve could often be found off roaming the countryside with Sandra, an English teacher in Baku and Steve's partner of several years. If he wasn't exploring a new place with Sandra, he could be found on hikes in a Peace Corps region with Mason and Jessi, his Peace Corps "children." He took beautiful photographs of the people and locations within Azerbaijan, often writing about many of his excursions on his blog. Steve wanted to know about the country he lived in, and he did.
Steve and Sandra have opened their home to countless Peace Corps Volunteers; within those walls they have offered kindness, laughter, absorbing conversation, delicious food, wine and a comfort of home. I've loved the conversations at their home, not just those of politics (and those were plentiful), but those exchanged between Sandra and Steve. I wish I could express the love and care shared between the two. When I met Steve and Sandra together, I asked them how they met and they told it as two parts of a whole. Where one sentence ended in ellipsis, the other would pick up without hesitation. There is a love between the two which is ever apparent and enviable. It is one which left me with a feeling of hope in what I might someday obtain.
On Thursday, Steve went on to his next big hike, a journey which, this time, he has taken alone. His death is a loss to the Peace Corps Community and to Azerbaijan. It is a loss to those who loved him dearly and to those who had come to know him as a dynamic and generous man. He is, and will continue to be, well missed.
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