Teaching a Man to Fish by Raising Chickens

Teaching a Man to Fish by Raising Chickens is the personal story of the struggles of a young Iowa farmer who becomes a Papal Volunteer, attempting to teach farming 1,500 miles upriver in the Amazon jungle from 1964 to 1966. Author Marvin Schuttloffel shares his inspiring tale of the loneliness, trials, failures, and triumphs of his efforts to teach farming to a local population in South America. He describes his encounters with entrenched beliefs, an unfamiliar culture, and traditional ways of agriculture.

Working on his father's farm at the age of twenty, he was recruited to be a Papal Volunteer and teach modern farming techniques to native Brazilians in the Amazon jungle. His interactions within the Brazilian culture proved to be life-changing experiences. Sometimes humorous and sometimes overcome with life's sad reality, Teaching a Man to Fish by Raising Chickens offers a compelling perspective on Marvin's life as a Papal Volunteer in a faith-based service program that influenced President John Kennedy to found the Peace Corps. As he reflects back upon his time in Brazil, Marvin realizes that this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that will forever tie him to the other Papal Volunteers who now meet each year to reminisce, for only they truly understand the depth of this service.