The Peace Corps

  By Ben East (Malawi 1996-98)   John Coyne’s reflection ‘Saying “Goodbye” to the Peace Corps’ generated a buzz here that proves the vitality of both our community and the agency that brings us together. Data supports this outlook: the organization’s most recent congressional budget justifications reveal an upward trajectory in volunteer levels and funding for all years since the end of the pandemic. The fiscal year 2022 budget, for example, supported 700 trainees and volunteers. That figure more than tripled for FY23 with 2,290; grew in 2024 to 3,620; and is poised to increase again with plans for 4,590 volunteers and trainees in FY25. The record on funding for this growth is harder to interpret, but it appears that the levels from FY21-23 increased as follows: $367 million, $410 million, and $463 million. The agency appears to be funded at least to $467 million for FY24, with plans to . . .

  Falling Seven Times by Mark G Wentling (Honduras 1967-69 & Togo 1970-73) Archway Publishing August 2024 318 pages $24.99 (Paperback);$47.99 (Hardback)  . . .  Falling Seven Times is about a young Ethiopian woman, Alya, struggling to be a migrant worker to support her family. Her story is one of tens of thousands of people going abroad in search of jobs: that pay a livable wage so they can send money home. Her sacrifices and the many ups and downs she experiences communicate what migrant laborers suffer. Alya’s particular travels to the Gulf States and Middle Eastern countries illuminate the many desperate pitfalls of migratory labor. This book also highlights the foreign environments, including the different languages and cultures, Alya encounters and how they contrast with her customs. Alya's case is of such interest that it keeps the reader engrossed in learning what happens next. The reader keeps asking if Alya will . . .

Dr. Autumn Beavers is a surgical resident at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and heading to Tanzania as a Fulbright Scholar. Sometimes the road to success comes with detours. That’s what Dr. Autumn Beavers discovered after taking a long break between college and medical school. The demands of medical school are well known, and Beavers said she is so busy she’d nearly forgotten about her application for the prestigious scholarship program. “I had just arrived home from a long day at work. And I opened my email and it said you’ve been awarded the Fulbright,” she said. “And I was like, oh yes, I remember I applied for this. It was very exciting.” Fulbright scholars get the opportunity to study, teach, and do research in other countries. While in Tanzania, she will be working at a local hospital, continuing research started by a fellow University of Alabama at Birmingham . . .