Archive - November 2021

Memorial Service          November 16, 2021 Time: 12 pm ET Location: Washington National Cathedral Address: 3101 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC 20016  live stream link to the service for anyone who can’t travel to D.C. but wish to join online is here: https://youtu.be/qbjbNMRznrE W. Dennis Grubb  Member of Colombia One group of Peace Corps Volunteers (1961-1963), Dennis peacefully entered into eternal rest on October 25, 2021. The Peace Corps, education, global development, and the church have propelled his lifelong service to help others in developing nations on five continents.  “I have worked in 23 countries, which included some of the world’s poorest nations. I experienced suffering and plain simple happiness first hand. I have left many of these countries leaving behind most of my belongings, as I felt the poor people needed my clothes and shoes more than I did.” (sermon St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 2014). Sargent . . .

  Peace Corps Volunteers Fall Through the Cracks of a Student Loan Fix “Your Money” By Ron Lieberm New York Times Nov. 13, 2021   A deserving group of dedicated people has been left out of the government’s latest patch for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.   When the Education Department announced fixes for its deeply dysfunctional Public Service Loan Forgiveness program last month, hundreds of thousands of long-suffering borrowers were suddenly given a chance at the kind of relief that the federal government had long promised them. But a small, highly deserving group was left out, even though its volunteers passed through a particularly venerable government service program: the Peace Corps. Many Peace Corps alumni say they — like others who are now getting help, including members of the armed forces — received bad advice that set back their attempts to wipe away their loans. But the federal government hasn’t seen . . .

  The Serpent of the Nile: A Novel by Robert Gribbin (Kenya 1968-70) Independently Published August, 2021 138 pages $13.99 (Paperback), $3.99 (Kindle) This novel is about an RPCV who is now a Nairobi based free-lance journalist pursuing stories of corruption, arms smuggling and human trafficking in war-torn South Sudan. He becomes caught up in the violence and intrigue that plagues the world’s most desperate nation. Set against the grim reality and history of the region, this novel accurately portrays the despair, hope and aspirations of South Sudan’s beleaguered people. Reviewed by Alan Johnston (Kenya 1968-71) • The last place that you want to end up is in a prison cell in some remote part of Africa, whether that cell is controlled by a rebel group, an opposition warlord, or a government.  Especially if you happen to be a journalist. Bad things happen in those cells. Yet that is exactly . . .

Here is our new list — as of November 2021 — 407 RPCV & staff authors who have published two or more books (of any type). If you know of someone who has and their name is not on this list, then please email me at: jcoyneone@gmail.com. I know I don’t have all the writers who have been Volunteers or Staff in the Peace Corps over these last 60 years. Thank you. Jerome R. Adams (Colombia 1963–65) Tom Adams (Togo 1974-76) Thomas “Taj” Ainlay, Jr. (Malaysia 1973–75) Elizabeth (Letts) Alalou (Morocco 1983–86) Jane Albritton (India 1967-69) Robert Albritton (Ethiopia 1962-65) Usha Alexander (Vanuatu 1996–97) James G. Alinder (Somalia 1964-66) Richard Alleman (Morocco 1968-70) Hayward Allen (Ethiopia 1962-64) Diane Demuth Allensworth (Panama 1964–66) Paul E. Allaire (Ethiopia 1964–66) D. Allman (Nepal 1966-68) Nancy Amidei (Nigeria 1964–65) Gary Amo (Malawi 1962–64) David C. Anderson (Costa Rica 1964-66) Lauri Anderson (Nigeria 1963-65) Peggy . . .

    Peace Corps Continues to Strengthen Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Response Work with Release of New Report November 10, 2021   Today, the Peace Corps released a Sexual Assault Advisory Council (SAAC) report outlining recommendations for the agency to further strengthen its Sexual Assault Risk Reduction and Response (SARRR) program. In April, Acting Director Carol Spahn requested that the SAAC, an independent advisory council established by Congress, examine the group’s last five years of recommendations and provide updated guidance on how the agency can bolster its systems to mitigate risk of sexual assault and provide victim-centered and trauma-informed care to survivors. “I am very grateful to the Sexual Assault Advisory Council members for their service. These leaders are at the cutting edge of their respective fields and have come forward at a time when we are called to help tackle an issue that is all too pervasive – both here . . .

This week, we celebrated a special moment in Peace Corps history. It was on November 2, 1960, that John F. Kennedy first gave a name to the idea that would become the Peace Corps. Running for president, in a speech at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, he declared, “I am convinced that the pool of people in this country of ours anxious to respond to the public service is greater than it has ever been in our history.” We know what it means to meet historic moments. Since March 2020, we have seen how the Peace Corps community has met unprecedented times with an unparalleled response. From working to support evacuated Volunteers to helping amid the COVID-19 pandemic, from advocating for a better and stronger Peace Corps to helping refugees, we’ve seen time and again how Peace Corps ideals make an impact. Just last week, the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee convened . . .