Peace Corps Volunteers – Peace Corps Worldwide

Peace Corps Volunteers sworn in to serve in Kyrgyzstan

Aug 27 2024

New Volunteers — AKIPRESS.COM – Twenty-one newly sworn-in Peace Corps Volunteers will co-teach English with local teachers in secondary schools across Chui, Naryn, Issyk-Kul, Talas, Osh, and Jalal-Abad oblasts over the next two years. This is the 30th group of Volunteers to serve in the Kyrgyz Republic since 1993. Guests at the ceremony included U.S. Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic Lesslie Viguerie, Peace Corps Country Director Hoyt Brian Yee, former Volunteers, as well as local teachers and directors of schools where the Volunteers will serve as co-teachers. “For more than 30 years, Volunteers and their communities have collaborated to increase student and teacher capacity in English and have built relationships that continue long beyond the two years of a Volunteer’s service. These relationships promote friendship and mutual understanding between the people of the Kyrgyz Republic and the United States,” said Ambassador Viguerie. By working alongside local English teachers, Volunteers . . .

Remembering RPCV Dennis Grubb (Colombia 1961-63)

Aug 18 2024

One of the youngest and first Peace Corps Volunteers, Dennis Grubb began serving in Colombia at age 19 in 1961. He was a sophomore at Penn State when President John F. Kennedy mentioned the idea of a Peace Corps; Grubb left school and became part of the first group of Volunteers. It changed his life. He trained several hundred future Volunteers, and he literally became the Peace Corps poster boy, his face appearing on a flyer displayed in post offices across the U.S. He served as an aide to Sargent Shriver, who esteemed him “one of the first and one of the best” Volunteers. He was a great advocate for Peace Corps on Capitol Hill. Equipped with degrees from the Southern Illinois University School of Law and American University, he went to Tunisia on a Fulbright. His international experience translated to work with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and USAID, introducing reforms . . .

The disappearance of Thomas and Eileen Lonergan (Fiji)

Jan 31 2024

Thomas and Eileen Lonergan (Fiji 1996-98), a married couple hailing from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States, had recently completed a two-year tour of duty with the Peace Corps. Following their service, they embarked on a journey to Australia. On January 25, 1998, the Lonergans decided to indulge in their passion for scuba diving at St. Crispin’s Reef in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Despite being experienced divers with 80 dives each, tragedy struck during their outing. Accompanied by 26 fellow passengers and five crew members on the boat “Outer Edge,” the couple anticipated a fun day exploring the underwater wonders under the supervision of presumed experts. The final dive at “Fish City,” a vibrant reef teeming with marine life, began around 2:20PM. However, by 3:10PM, the engines of the Outer Edge roared to life, and the boat departed, unknowingly leaving Thomas and Eileen submerged beneath the waves. The Lonergans were . . .

John McAuliff (Peru) | People of the Year Awards Winner

Jan 29 2024

John McAuliff (Peru 1964-66) is Executive Director and Founder of the Fund for Reconciliation & Development, and has been a lifelong activist in student, civil rights, and peace movements. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Peru. In 1985, he founded the Fund for Reconciliation and Development to achieve normal US diplomatic, educational, cultural, and economic relations with post-war Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. After that was achieved in the late 1990s, he changed the primary focus of the organization to obtaining similar normal US relations with Cuba, working especially in policy, travel, and educational and cultural exchange. The Times Review Media Group, publisher of The Suffolk Times, Riverhead News-Review, Shelter Island Reporter, Northforker and Southforker, recently gave John McAuliff one of its annual People of the Year Awards. John has been working since the early 1960s to promote reconciliation and healing and build commonality all over the world. John . . .

Maine’s Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (Panama) disqualifies Trump

Dec 29 2023

In the news — On Thursday, December 28, Maine Secretary of State RPCV Shenna Bellows disqualified former President Trump from the 2024 ballot. Bellows cited Section 3 of the 14th Amendment’s insurrection clause, which prevents a person who has engaged in any rebellious activity against the country from holding office. “The U.S. Constitution does not tolerate an assault on the foundations of our government, and Section 336 requires me to act in response,” Secretary of State Shenna Bellows wrote. Bellows’ decision to block Trump from the 2024 ballot comes a week after the Colorado Supreme Court barred the former president from the state’s Republican primary ballot, citing the 14th Amendment, seemingly referencing Trump’s role in the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress. Bellows’ move against Trump has sparked disbelief online. Social media users accused the Maine Secretary of State of hindering the democratic process and began circulating her picture with . . .

Places that “Made” Me — Tony Headrick (Poland)

Nov 10 2023

I was a Peace Corps Volunteer and was sent to PĨock, Poland, a beautiful and fascinating city located on the Vistula River, to complete my Pre-Service Training (PST), a demanding educational regime that was designed to see if I’d be up to the various challenges I’d certainly encounter once I was sent off to the town or city I’d be living and working in. A very exciting moment came in late summer, at the conclusion of the third month of PST. It was referred to as “placement day.” I’d already successfully survived what amounted to the Peace Corps’ version of “boot camp” and was about to be told the name of the place in Poland I was going to be sent off to do my service, which amounted to teacher training, educational consulting, among other duties. On this day, we gathered together in the “aula,” the auditorium, the . . .

Nyle Kardatzke (Ethiopia) meets President Kennedy at the White House, Summer ’62

Oct 30 2023

In summer 1962, six hundred Peace Corps volunteer trainees were in Washington, DC, preparing for assignments around the world. A visit to the White House was a highlight of our training time. When our Ethiopia group returned from lunch that day, several buses were waiting in front of the dorms. We boarded the buses and waited about an hour until motorcycle policemen arrived to lead us to the White House. They started their thundering motorcycles and turned on their sirens and led us out onto quiet Georgetown streets. Other police were at every intersection, and we zoomed through traffic lights at highway speeds. We were, after all, going to see the President. At the White House, staff members arranged the Peace Corps people into a semicircle on the south lawn, facing the White House. We chattered quietly out of respect for where we were. (My roommate Danny Langdon was . . .

US Ambassador-Designate, RPCV Mark Toner (Liberia)

Oct 23 2023

In the news— US Ambassador-Designate to Fight Corruption, Lawlessness, in Liberia Front Page Africa – 10/23/2023 The newly nominated U.S. Ambassador to Liberia, Mark Toner, has said that the George Weah government has recognition for corruption and lawlessness and that he will do all in his power to fight against these vices during his assignment here. Addressing the U.S. Congressional Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing on Friday, October 20, Toner said progress made in Liberia since the end of the war in 2003 has been eroded by corruption and lawlessness in the current administration. “The United States is the largest bilateral donor to Liberia, with more than US$5 billion in bilateral assistance since 2003. That assistance has paid concrete dividends in the economic, education, security, and public health sectors,” Toner told the committee. “But that progress has also been heavily eroded by growing lawlessness and corruption within the present administration.” If . . .

PCVs To Moldova

Oct 12 2023

A new group of U.S. Peace Corps volunteers is coming to Moldova for two years. According to the Embassy of the Republic of Moldova in the USA, this group is the first after a three-year break due to the pandemic. After a training course in Moldova, the 19 volunteers will go to the localities of the country that submitted requests to participate in the program. They will serve as either educational volunteers in schools, community development volunteers, or health education volunteers in schools/organizations. Many of the former Peace Corps volunteers who served in Moldova, upon returning to the US obtained important positions in public and non-governmental offices. Currently, Peace Corps Moldova is celebrating its 30th year of service in our country.

Danielle Guerin (Cameroon)— “Farm Girl”

Sep 18 2023

In the news by Karl Schneider Indianapolis Star Rural landscapes blanketed with row crops and pastures peppered with faded red barns are the stereotypical scenes of Indiana agriculture. But a new type of farming is taking root in a far different setting — crops growing amid bustling streets, residential neighborhoods and commercial districts. These urban farms are tucked into inconspicuous vacant lots, oases where leafy greens and vegetables flourish in areas once overgrown and strewn with trash. In many cases, the hidden gems provide a rejuvenating source of healthy foods in areas where grocers and supermarkets may be sparse. Danielle Guerin (Cameroon 2014-16), an Indianapolis native who took a roundabout route to growing food in the city, is one of the new breed of farmers. She’s well on her way to helping her community — and, hopefully, inspiring a new generation of urban farmers. Farming wasn’t part . . .

Father Ted Hesburgh and the Peace Corps: A Story Not Often Told

Sep 08 2023

by Tom Scanlon (Chile 1961-63) Father Hesburgh was leaving his office at the Civil Rights Commission on March 1, 1961, walking through Lafayette Square across the street from the White House, when he encountered two friends – Harris Wofford, a former legislative assistant on the Commission, and Sargent Shriver, with whom he had a long-time friendship, and who was the brother-in-law of President Kennedy. Wofford and Shriver were ebullient. They held in their hand the text of a Presidential Executive Order that President Kennedy would sign that day, creating the United States Peace Corps. Returning to South Bend and the Notre Dame campus, Father Ted was working late in his office that same evening and received a call from Wofford and Shriver, still together and still “celebrating.” In the call they challenged him to “bring us a Peace Corps project.” Father assembled the Notre Dame Latin American faculty and . . .

Peter Navarro (Thailand) convicted

Sep 07 2023

WASHINGTON — Former Trump White House adviser Peter Navarro (Thailand 1973-76) was convicted Thursday of criminal contempt of Congress for failing to comply with a congressional subpoena related to the plot to overturn the 2020 election. The jury deliberated for about four hours before finding Navarro, 74, guilty of two counts of contempt for refusing to testify before the House Jan. 6 committee and turn over subpoenaed documents. U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta scheduled his sentencing for Jan. 12. The two counts each carry a minimum of 30 days and a maximum of one year in prison, in addition to a maximum fine of $100,000. “There’s no mistake, no accident,” prosecutor John Crabb told jurors in the Washington, D.C. federal courtroom during closing arguments Thursday morning. “That man thinks he’s above the law,” Crabb said. “In this country, nobody is above the law.”

The Bruneels in Cambodia

Sep 07 2023

In the news — A decade after applying, Mr. Bruneel reflects on his family’s experience in the Peace Corps By Ava Faghani SEPTEMBER 6, 2023 After establishing a successful early start to his teaching career at Whitman, English teacher Matthew Bruneel put his Maryland life on pause in 2014 to venture to Cambodia alongside his wife Leshia. The next two years would be filled with adjusting to the culture in a village, living with limited money and experiencing life-changing moments in the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps is a government agency first founded in 1961 with the mission to work on important, sustaiable projects in local communities around the world and build relationships while exchanging culture. Studying abroad in Spain during college, Bruneel first met Leisha, who inspired him to join with her. The process of applying consisted of a medley of interviews and essays, he said, . . .

“A Gabon Memory” by Bonnie Black

Sep 01 2023

by Bonnie Black (Gabon 1996-98) August 31,2023 • The coup that occurred in Gabon this week was a yawn to most news consumers in the West. Just another disputed election and military takeover in another African country; there have been many in recent years. So what. At the time I read about this coup in the New York Times early Wednesday morning, it had drawn only ONE comment, whereas normally by this time lead NYTimes articles garner comments in the hundreds, sometimes thousands. Who cares about Africa after all? And Gabon? Where’s Gabon? Well, I, for one, care, as do most of my fellow Peace Corps volunteers who served there decades ago, when such doors were still open to us. I was (informally) adopted by a Gabonese family in Libreville, the capital, in 1996, when I was in Peace Corps training there, and I’ve stayed in touch ever since with one special member of the family, . . .

The Volunteer Who Became an Astronaut | Joseph M. Acaba (Dominican Republic)

Aug 06 2023

by Jeremiah Norris (Colombia 1963-65) Joseph M. Acaba spent two years in the Peace Corps serving in the Dominican Republic, 1994-96. Ten years later, in May of 2004, he became the first person of Puerto Rican heritage to be named as a NASA astronaut candidate when he was selected as a member of NASA Astronaut Training Group 19. He completed his training on February 10, 2006, and was assigned to STS-119, which flew from March 15 to 28, 2009, to deliver the final set of solar arrays to the International Space Station. In 1990, Joseph had received his bachelor’s degree in geology from the University of California/Santa Barbara, and in 1992 he earned his master’s degree in geology from the University of Arizona. He then went on to earn an M.Ed. in 2015 from Texas Tech University. In between these higher educational endeavors, he somehow managed to . . .