Peace Corps Worldwide – Page 58 – promoting Peace Corps writers since 1989

Former Peace Corps Director Slams Trump for Racist Remarks on Asian Americans

Jan 26 2023

Elaine Chao responds to Trump’s racist attacks on her Asian American heritage Azi Paybarah, The Washington Post Jan. 25, 2023 Elaine Chao (PC Director 1991-92) served as transportation secretary under President Donald Trump for four years before resigning a day after the 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.Washington. WASHINGTON – Former transportation secretary Elaine Chao issued a rare public comment about former president Donald Trump – whose Cabinet she served in – and criticized his string of racist attacks aimed at her and other Asian Americans. The most recent missive from the former president attempted to link Chao and her husband, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), to the classified documents found in President Biden’s office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington. “Does Coco Chow have anything to do with Joe Biden’s Classified Documents being sent and stored in Chinatown?” Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday. “Her husband, the . . .

Retired architectural photographer RPCV Tom Crane (Nigeria) dies

Jan 25 2023

Tom Crane, retired architectural photographer, Peace Corps volunteer, and ‘obsessive handyman,’ has died at 82 He collaborated with writer Roger W. Moss to publish three books about historic Philadelphia architecture, and reviewers called his photographs “excellent,” “fabulous,” and “beyond superlative.” by Gary Miles Philadelphia Inquirer Jan 23, 2023 • Ralph Thompson Crane III, 82, of Bryn Mawr, retired prolific architectural and interior photographer, Peace Corps volunteer, and self-described “obsessive handyman,” died Jan. 9, of multiple system atrophy at St. Francis Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare in Darby. Known professionally and by his family and friends as Tom, Mr. Crane’s photographs were published in many publications, including The Inquirer, for decades. His work is also found in books, online, and elsewhere, and he teamed with writer Roger W. Moss to publish Historic Houses of Philadelphia in 1998, Historic Sacred Places of Philadelphia in 2004, and Historic Landmarks of Philadelphia in . . .

Essays In Honor of Professor Stephen T. Zamora edited by James W. Skelton, Jr. (Ethiopia)

Jan 24 2023

Soon after James Skelton sent the final draft of the anthology Eradicating Smallpox in Ethiopia to the publisher, he began a new writing project. That’s when he joined Professor Alfonso Lopez de la Osa Escribano as a coauthor and the lead editor of this collection of scholarly essays that became a Festschrift (book designed to commemorate an excellent scholar who has retired or passed away). The book is written in honor and memory of Professor Stephen T. Zamora (1944-2016), who taught many courses at the University of Houston Law Center, served as the dean for six years, and created and served as the Director of the Center for U.S. and Mexican Law. Steve was a brilliant lawyer and law professor in the fields of international and comparative law, and was known as an upbeat, kind, thoughtful, pleasant and caring man. Steve’s kindness, good humor and generous compliments came to him . . .

Netflix founder RPCV Reed Hastings (Swaziland) is giving up his CEO role

Jan 23 2023

Netflix founder Reed Hastings (Swaziland 1983-85) is giving up his CEO role but will stay on as chairman, the company announced alongside its earnings report Thursday. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos will remain in his position. Greg Peters, most recently chief operating officer, will assume the post of co-CEO in Hastings’ place. Peters will also join the company’s board. “I want to thank Reed for his visionary leadership, mentorship and friendship over the last 20 years. We’ve all learned so much from his intellectual rigor, honesty and willingness to take big bets — and we look forward to working with him for many more years to come,” said Sarandos in a written statement. Hastings co-founded Netflix in 1997. Sarandos was promoted to co-CEO alongside Hastings in July 2020, the same time that Peters was appointed to his COO role. The company did not specify whether it would backfill the role of COO. Hastings tweeted . . .

Bob Poole — Recovery of Mozambique’s Gorongosa National Park

Jan 22 2023

January 26 at McClaren Hall, Flathead Valley Community College, Paul D. Wachholz College Center will bring Emmy-winning filmmaker Bob Poole to Kalispell, MT • BY MIKE KORDENBROCK January 21,2023 An elephant calf. Photo by Gina Poole An upcoming “National Geographic Live” event at Flathead Valley Community College’s new Wachholz College Center will bring to Kalispell an award-winning filmmaker, with Montana ties, to discuss the story of a national park in Mozambique that has continued to rebound after a prolonged civil war that left the local wildlife population decimated. It’s been a long time since Bob Poole has been to the Flathead Valley’s stretch of northwest Montana, but for the cinematographer and National Geographic speaker, any visit to the state is a reminder of the early years of his career. Poole had an unusual upbringing for an American citizen, in that he grew up abroad. His youth was spent in . . .

The enduring legacy of Sargent Shriver

Jan 21 2023

Thanks for the ‘heads up’ from Chris Hedrick (Senegal 1988-90) by Steve Schmidt at The Warning January 19, 2023 Martin Luther King lived a dangerous life. He was hunted and threatened because he believed in freedom, and like all true freedom fighters, he was a revolutionary. Like all revolutionaries, he was impatient for the completion of his work. He was the rarest type of revolutionary. King didn’t seek power, wealth, revenge, riches or land. He sought justice, and his weapon was love. Like all men, he was a sinner. Yet, within him was a singularity of wisdom that would topple mountains and carve valleys of hope like glaciers receding from their furthest reaches. Politicians like Abraham Lincoln and John Kennedy are cautious and incrementalist by nature. They understand that no victories can be won without first attaining power through an election. Both men feared weakening the country and . . .

SHOO DO GOOD Pants by Stacy Chong (Moldova)

Jan 21 2023

As a Peace Corps Volunteer Stacy worked with local NGO APIUS (Association for Moldova’s Fashion, Apparel, & Footwear Industries) as a Small Enterprise Development Consultant for Moldova’s fashion industry. Primary work centered around the development of Moldova’s first fashion center Zip House, a USAID CEED II project; accomplishments include: (1) the creation and launching of Moldova’s first Textile and Sourcing Center, won a $10K grant and developed the textile center with student volunteers, acquiring over 2000 fabric donations and books from international communities; (2) the implementation of three successful internship programs where over 54 youths, mostly girls, learned professional skills and received career guidance; (3) the development of numerous workshops/seminars for industry professionals and university teachers – recruited international specialists, working closely with them to develop seminars/trainings in pattern-making, branding, marketing & sales; (4) personally conducting workshops and seminars on marketing, forecasting, and small business development. Additionally, taught . . .

Here is the current count of Peace Corps Volunteers and Trainees in Service

Jan 20 2023

This information is from FOIA 23-0037, as of Friday, January 13, 2023 “A search conducted by the Office of the Chief Financial Officer provided the following information: There are 49 Peace Corps Volunteer Trainees, 783 Peace Corps Volunteers, 56 Peace Corps Response Volunteers 16 Volunteers serving in virtual programs. In total, there are 1,004 Volunteers in service as of January 13, 2023.”

Katie Savage New Appointment in Maryland (Malawi)

Jan 20 2023

Incoming Maryland Governor Names Katie Savage as New CIO Digital Defense Director Katie Savage ( Malawi 2008-10) was tapped to serve as the state’s secretary of information technology in a series of cabinet appointments made on Friday by Maryland Gov.-elect Wes Moore. January 17, 2023 The Maryland state Capitol building. Savage brings extensive technology experience, including leading the Defense Digital Service within the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD). Prior to that, she was director of operations and services at the City Tech Collaborative with the city of Chicago. While at DOD, she helped lead the COVID-19 response, including the development of an emergency communication software toolkit. She also developed a digital employment verification tool to support the visa application process for Afghan refugees and families applying for U.S. asylum on behalf of the State Department and DOD. With City Tech, she helped the city of Chicago improve digital government . . .

PCVs accused of spying in Jamaica

Jan 19 2023

ABENG The Abeng was a horn used by Maroons to communicate between communities. The Abeng, as I knew the term during the spring of 1969 while serving as a Peace Corps volunteer living in Santa Cruz, St. Elizabeth, was a Jamaican publication of about four pages published weekly that existed for only nine months of 1969 but was a major force in the development of Jamaican and Caribbean radical thought focused on Black Power. Articles in the Abeng for April 26, May 3, and May 10, relate directly to my personal experience and that of three other volunteers representing The United States, Canada, and England. This article headlined JAMAICAN BATTLE LINE affected my life and the lives of the CUSO couple very directly. Fortunately, none of us was physically harmed. I do not have any information about what happened to the other two named. Some Jamaicans tend to believe anything . . .

Timeless Photography by Rowland Scherman

Jan 18 2023

Timeless Photography of Rowland Scherman (PC Staff 1961-63) Peter E. Randall Publisher March 2014 104 pages $22.21 (Paperback) Rowland Scherman began taking pictures in New York in 1958. He served as the first photographer for the Peace Corps in 1961, and he has subsequently done covers and photojournalism for LIFE, Time, Newsweek, Paris Match, Playboy, and National Geographic. Timeless presents over seventy iconic images of celebrities and politicians from the 1960s and 70s, many of whom were featured in Life magazine. Extended commentary includes fascinating stories of Bob Dylan, the birth of the Peace Corps, LBJ, the March on Washington, Robert F. Kennedy, Barbara Walters, Arthur Ashe and many others.

SORRY, NO ENGLISH by Craig Storti (Morocco)

Jan 17 2023

Have you ever struggled to communicate with a limited-English speaker? Have you been frustrated by unsuccessful interactions with non-native English speakers? Did you know there is a simple solution to improve cross-cultural communication in English? What most of us native speakers overlook in these situations is that the problem here may not be the limited English of the other person; it could be our English. And while we certainly can’t do anything about the former, we can do a great deal about the latter. This short book gives 50 practical tools to help you become aware of and adapt your own language to completely transform exchanges with limited-English speakers and greatly increase the chances of a satisfying outcome for both you and the limited-English speaker you’re trying to help or serve. And the good news is: it is not that difficult and it is entirely in the hands of . . .

Review | GROWING MANGOS IN THE DESERT by Katherine Baird (Mauritania)

Jan 16 2023

Growing Mangos in the Desert: A Memoir of Life in a Mauritanian Village by Katherine Baird (Mauritania 1984–86) Apprentice House Press 2022 380 pages $19.99 (paperback), $32.99 (hard cover), $6.49 (Kindle) Reviewed by Lucinda Wingard (Nigeria 1966 – 68) • Among more than two dozen young volunteers trained for agricultural service in Mauritania in 1984, Katherine Baird was one of ten remaining by her second year. She had survived the rigors of wielding her short-handled hoe in blistering heat, had adapted to eating meals from a common bowl with her neighbors, and had successfully threaded through baffling local hierarchies. Mauritania needed Peace Corps to help staff a fledgling initiative funded with foreign money: growing rice along a desolate part of the Senegal River. Baird brought no experience to help her fulfill this work, but her diligent note-taking and detailed records show she pitched into her assignment with a will. “Keyti” . . .

Review | DEEP SOUTH by Paul Theroux (Malawi)

Jan 16 2023

Deep South: Four Seasons on Back Roads Paul Theroux (Malawi 1963–65) Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 485 pages $9.40 (Kindle), $34.74 (hard cover), $9.89 (paperback) Reviewed by Mark Walker (Guatemala 1971-73) • I’ve read and reviewed the last eight books by the “Dean of Travel Writing” — Paul Theroux. I wrote my latest book, My Saddest Pleasures: 50 Years on the Road, in honor and appreciation of Theroux, and another travel writer, “who personally knew and was inspired by Moritz Thomsen and passed their enthusiasm on to me.” Thomsen wrote the Peace Corps experience classic,Living Poor: A Peace Corps Chronicle. Theroux’s book, The Tao of Travel, celebrates 50 years of travel writing and inspired my series, “The Yin & Yang of Travel.” Theroux is probably the most prolific of the Returned Peace Corps writers, with 33 works in fiction and 53 books overall. He describes his passion for long “road trips” as follows, “My experience of . . .

Leslie Boby (Kenya) | Southern Regional Extension Forestry Coordinator

Jan 14 2023

Leslie Boby (Kenya 1999-01) is the Coordinator for the Southern Regional Extension Forestry Office (SREF), and has been leading the office since January 2019. Leslie’s work entails facilitating connections and regional programs among the 13 southern land-grant universities, the USDA Forest Service, state forestry agencies and other southern forestry community members. These efforts include education, technology transfer and extension programs that can serve the entire region. She has worked for the SREF office since 2011 and is based at the University of Georgia, in Athens, GA. Leslie has a Masters degree in Forest Ecology from the University of Florida, a Bachelor’s degree in biology from University of Illinois, and is currently pursuing a doctorate at the University of Georgia in Adult Education and Leadership. Prior to joining SREF, Leslie worked in various locations nationwide, and for multiple agencies. She worked for the Audubon Society in California, as a wild . . .