The Peace Corps

Retired and former USAID and State colleagues, implementing partners, and friends are organizing to protest at the Capitol on Wednesday, February 5, at 11:30 am. We will meet behind the Capitol on the sidewalk near the visitor’s entrance. We want to highlight the devastating impact of the administration’s actions on aid recipients and of Congress relinquishing their responsibilities and power to Trump, as well as the damage of the psychological warfare being inflicted on Federal employees. Related reading: Meeks, Shaheen, Frankel, Schatz Demand Immediate Action to Address Trump Administration Efforts to Undermine American Soft Power, press release from the House Foreign Affairs Committee | January 31, 2025. The Path Forward: A Letter to My Constituents, by Rep. Jamie Raskin (MD-8) | February 1, 2025.

I lost my job on Tuesday. Along with almost 400 talented and committed people who have dedicated their lives to improving the lives and health of people around the world. But this is not about my job. My job is a drop in an immense bucket of suffering that the halt on foreign aid is causing, with cascading impacts beyond what I can describe. There is much out there about the scale of these impacts, so I want to focus on my own experience of these last days and the impact on my specific work. On day 1 of the new administration, one of the executive orders was a halt of obligations, or funding currently with USAID (US Agency for International Development) going to projects. I was worried about this (along with orders about return to the office, since as someone who relocated to be nearer to our families, I . . .

Editor’s note: We interrupt our usual programming to share the following message, which is being circulated in the international development community related to the abrupt suspension of U.S. foreign assistance—a move which will ultimately make our country less safe, secure, and prosperous: Please call your Members of Congress hourly and say the following: “The administration must lift the foreign assistance stop work order before it’s too late. In 90 days no implementing partner will exist to restart any foreign assistance activities. Mass layoffs are happening and 173 U.S. small businesses are folding. The USG is not paying its bills. USAID contractors are owed hundreds of millions for work performed in November and December before the stop work order went into effect. This is illegal per the prompt payment act. The stop work order prevents American businesses on contract with the USG to get reimbursed for ANY costs it incurs until . . .

January 28, 2025 Press Release WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA-08), issued the following statement in response to President Donald Trump ordering all federal agencies to cease spending on all financial assistance and grants. “Donald Trump’s latest illegal scheme to freeze nearly $3 trillion in federal aid is a reckless and unconstitutional act that punishes American families,” said Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA-08). “This order blatantly ignores the Constitution, which gives Congress the power over federal spending. His action upends the will of the people while spreading chaos across the federal government. Donald Trump has caused a crisis that will cut assistance to firefighters, teacher’s pay at low-income schools, life-saving medical services, funding to food banks, and will prevent veterans from receiving assistance. Trump’s actions also bring a full stop to construction sites in our area, ranging from fixing our highways to strengthening our water infrastructure – putting hundreds . . .

Editor’s note: Personnel changes in the senior ranks of the Peace Corps, like those at all federal agencies, are not uncommon after a presidential election, and non-career political appointees are required to submit letters of resignation. As political appointees, Director Carol Spahn, Deputy Director David White, Jr., and others departed the agency at midday on Monday. The Peace Corps community commends and congratulates this leadership team that oversaw the return to service of over 3,000 Peace Corps Volunteers since March 2022. — Glenn A. Blumhorst, Peace Corps Worldwide Managing Editor January 20 Update From the Peace Corps Agency (announcement on PeaceCorps.gov): The President of the United States appoints the Peace Corps Director and Deputy Director, and the appointments must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The Peace Corps enjoys bipartisan support in Congress. Senators and representatives from both parties have served as Volunteers. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and . . .

In case you missed it, here are the top online media articles about the Peace Corps community published during the week of December 29, 2024. To receive email notifications, please subscribe to Peace Corps Worldwide. I figured out how to use two-thirds less water — and it only took a week to set up, by Victoria Namkung in The Guardian, December 29, 2024. While droughts are a natural feature of California’s climate, human-induced warming has made them even drier. After Eric Haas (RPCV Liberia 1985-87), 62, moved to Oakland in 2007, California was in a drought so severe a statewide emergency was declared. After experiencing drought conditions for several years, the California professor had a rainwater and greywater capture system installed at his highly efficient urban home to do his part to conserve water. How chocolate, vanilla, and spices brought 7 RPCVs together in Madagascar, By Bill Guyton (DRC 1984-86) . . .

Happy Holidays, everyone! We’ll be taking a break until January 2 (Peace Corps Community in the News will be issued this Saturday). In the meantime, enjoy this story. Santa and Mrs. Claus, by Lee Provost in the Daily Journal | Shawmedia.com | December 24, 2024 . From their home in unincorporated Kankakee, Santa and Mrs. Claus — perhaps better known in these parts as Wayne and Barb Burgess — have been two of the most sought-after people this side of the North Pole for the better part of a month. Wayne, 73, a 20-year employee with the former UARCO Inc., in Watseka, and who also served in the Peace Corps as well as the U.S. Army in the mid 1970s, has been entertaining the young and the not-so-young with his Santa duties for much of the past 32 years, having first started the effort to surprise his then-young son at . . .

“At [the] Peace Corps, we’re calling all Americans, including Gen Z, to turn their passion into meaningful, mission-driven service. And we know that folks can do that through the Peace Corps. If you want to be a diplomat, if you want to be an ambassador, if you want to be a member of Congress, then the Peace Corps is also a fantastic way to start your community, your opportunity, your journey down that path. For example, we look at ambassadors serving around the world. We know that Peace Corps volunteers are represented in the ranks [more] than folks from [any] other backgrounds. If you want to be a business CEO [or] run a business, we have Peace Corps volunteers who have done that. [The] Peace Corps can fit into your own journey, no matter what that path ends up looking like.” David E. White Jr. is the 14th Deputy Director . . .

Excerpt from War History Online December 12, 2024 Hundreds of US service members were taken by the North Vietnamese (NVA) and held prisoner during the Vietnam War. What makes Everett Alvarez, Jr. unique is that he was imprisoned for eight and a half years, making him the second-longest held prisoner of war (POW) in American history. Now, decades after his release, the US Navy veteran is slated to receive the highest honor the US Congress can bestow upon him: the Congressional Gold Medal. Speaking about his survival later in life, Alvarez credited his faith in God and the support he had from other POWs. “We had a philosophy that you didn’t ever let your fellows down,” he said. “If they couldn’t take care of themselves, you took care of them because you knew darned well they would do the same. Alvarez served for another 20 years, before leaving the Navy with . . .

WASHINGTON – Aligned with Human Rights Day and the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign, the Peace Corps today published its Sexual Assault Prevention Strategy and Implementation Plan: Fiscal Years 2025-2029, a guide to the agency’s next phase of action in support of sexual assault prevention. Central to the strategy and plan are measures to further cement the agency’s public health approach to prevent sexual violence before it occurs. The strategy and plan underscore the Peace Corps’ commitment to global, societal-level action to prevent sexual violence for the safety and well-being of volunteers and members of communities where volunteers live and work. “Sexual violence directly threatens the Peace Corps’ mission of world peace and friendship,” said Peace Corps Director Carol Spahn. “This new strategy adds a public health lens to more than a decade’s worth of sexual assault risk mitigation and response work. Today, we further dedicate ourselves to . . .

Today is Giving Tuesday. I encourage you to participate by supporting your favorite charity. Below are those that I personally support in 2024 and to which I hope you will join me in making a generous donation. They are all (except NMCS) founded and led by returned Peace Corps Volunteers: Peace Corps Foundation* – It’s time to tell the rest of America’s story of our ongoing commitment to service and global citizenship by creating Peace Corps Park on a National Park Service site near the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The long-term mission of the Foundation is to support Peace Corps community projects. Chijnaya Foundation – Working in partnership with rural communities in Southern Peru to design and implement self-sustaining projects in health, education, and economic development. CorpsAfrica* – Building the next generation of African leaders and changemakers, connecting rural communities, and nurturing entrepreneurs. Volunteers work in host communities to . . .

Carol Spahn, Director of the Peace Corps, joins Pacific Policy Pulse to discuss her trips to Fiji and Tonga, the challenges the Peace Corps faces, and why she’s reading Chris Voss’ “Never Split the Difference.” Click this link to watch the four-minute video on YouTube. Carol Spahn was sworn into office as the 21st Director of the Peace Corps on December 21, 2022. Director Spahn has more than 25 years of public and private sector experience and has worked in countries around the world on issues ranging from small business development and infectious disease prevention to women’s empowerment. Carol Spahn She most recently served as the Peace Corps’ chief executive officer and, prior to that, as acting director. Previously, Director Spahn was also the Peace Corps’ chief of operations in the Africa Region and the country director of Peace Corps/Malawi. Director Spahn’s Peace Corps roots extend back to when she . . .

The Volunteer Who Became the U. S. Ambassador to Indonesia, by Jerry Norris (Colombia 1963-65) Joseph R. Donovan attended Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, earning a B. S. Degree in Foreign Service in 1993. After graduating, he served for two years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Seoul, South Korea. He then went on to earn an M. A. in national security studies from the Naval Post Graduate school in 1993. He would spend most of his professional career as a Foreign Service Officer (FSO) dealing with East Asia. His early assignments with the U. S. Department of State included stops in Taiwan, China, South Korea and Qatar. In 1997, he was named Chief of the political/military unit in the Embassy in Tokyo. His next posting was in Taipei, Taiwan as the political section chief in the American Institute in Taiwan., which represents U. S. interests in that nation. . . .