Am I satisfied with my life? Yeah, yeah I am. I like the people I know. I write poetry and I’ve been able to do that successfully…I have been a teacher in the U.S. and in Nigeria with the Peace Corps, and I was a librarian, too. It’s been a pretty good life.
Janet Shainheit was born on July 4th, 1940, in Montague, Massachusetts. She attended high school in Turners Falls and graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English. Janet met her husband in college and moved with him to Worcester in 1974 where she began working as Worcester Academy’s librarian Before moving to Worcester, she joined the Peace Corps in Nigeria, which she loved. She lived in Nigeria for two years teaching English in a school in a small town. In Nigeria, she also worked with a church choir group and enjoyed interacting with the locals. In this interview, Janet discusses her life growing up and the relationships she has with her husband, parents, and sister. Janet does not have children. She describes her experience as a woman living in Worcester and she focuses on the character of the city, especially its diversity and cultural offerings.