Monday Meetings

Troy Hoppenjan

Born and raised in a small Wisconsin town perched on the bluffs of the Mississippi River, Troy grew up visiting his grandparents farm, canoeing the many local tributaries, and riding his bike over the hills and valleys of the badger state. Prior to receiving his undergrad degree from the University of Wisconsin in 2001, he spent a year abroad tracing his Dutch roots in the Netherlands, sailing the Ijsslemeer, and delivering Heineken. Troy joined the Peace Corps and served in Mali, where he DJ’d a weekly educational radio show and raised funding for the construction of a village health clinic. He stayed in Mali following his volunteer service and worked for USAID-Mali, installing Internet connections at local radio stations and later worked on a micro-finance project reinforcing the agribusiness sector of the country. Troy returned to the University of Wisconsin to pursue a Masters of International Public Affairs at UW’s La Follette School.  Since his return with his wife, Awa, they have worked with the UW’s African History Department as a translator, assisting in the documentation of the Malian Diaspora in Lagos, Nigeria.  Troy and Awa also have a busy 1 year old son, Vincent, who has developed an appreciation for Tuvan throat singing.

McCall Ashby

A native of Spanish Fork, Utah, McCall studied Speech Communications and Human Resources at Utah State University.  She began working in the HELP International office in 2010 as the Human Resource Manager.  While working at HELP she volunteered on the El Salvador team in 2010 and performed a site visit to the Belize team in 2011.  McCall also spent 18 months living in and serving the people of the Philippines, using her fluent Tagalog. McCall is excited to implement her previous HELP experience in this year’s Lugazi team.  She enjoys spending her time with family and friends while seeking new adventures.  She loves boating, running, 4-wheeling, and other outdoor activities.

Yours Truly, HELP Headquarters