Chile – Peace Corps Worldwide

Review | LOUIE by David Mather (Chile)

Feb 17 2023

Louie — 5th in the Crescent Beach Series by David J Mather (Chile 1968– 70) Peace Corps Writers August 2022 323 pages $14.95 (paperback), $7.99 (Kindle) Reviewed by Dean Jefferson (El Salvador 1974-76 and Costa Rica 1976-77) • 330 pages, 37 short chapters, Louie is another opportunity to enjoy David Mather’s unforgettable characters from Florida’s rural Big Bend region on the gulf coast, also known as the Redneck Riviera. This is another page-turner, leaving you wondering where the time went after spending a couple hours immersed in the story. And the chapters are short enough that you feel like you could read just one more! I strongly recommend that you read the whole five book series starting with Crescent Beach, followed by Raw Dawgin’, then The Biloxi Connection and Gator Bait, then finally this volume. However, this well-written novel also stands on its own very well. Most of the . . .

EarthCorps in Seattle founded by Dwight Wilson (Chile & Honduras)

Jan 13 2023

EarthCorps family kids volunteers Join EarthCorps on MLK, Jr. Day to plant trees and restore park space. naturalnewd.com By Cheryl Murfin Young adults and those who mentor them at the Seattle-based nonprofit EarthCorps have a big vision: an equitable world where all people and nature thrive together. The EarthCorps mission sets out the organization’s role in bringing about this world. How EarthCorps fulfills its mission The organization brings young adults from around the country and around the world who are passionate about preserving the environment to participate in a year-long leadership training program in Seattle. Their class? The diverse ecosystem of Puget Sound. Each year, 40 new program participants between the ages of 18 and 25 join EarthCorps as crew members. Thirty crew members come from across the United States and their positions are funded by the national Americorps, while 10 crew positions are filled by young people from around . . .

The Peace Corps, RPCV Tom Scanlon, and the President of Notre Dame

Jun 24 2022

© 2022 University of Notre Dame June 15, 2022 In a speech to college summer interns in 1962, President John F. Kennedy stumped for the Peace Corps international volunteer organization he created by telling a motivational story about Tom Scanlon (Chile 1961-63), a graduate of Notre Dame University. The president didn’t mention that Scanlon was a 1960 Notre Dame graduate or that the “friend” who told him the tale was Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C. President of Notre Dame. Nor does the history timeline on the Peace Corps website mention the 45 young people who trained at Notre Dame and landed in Chile about a month after another cohort (Ghana) is celebrated as the first group to serve. Ditto for a recent documentary celebrating the Peace Corps’ history, which didn’t mention the role Father Hesburgh played in helping Sargent Shriver make Kennedy’s vision possible. Even Father Hesburgh hints at some secrecy in his 1999 memoir. “Everybody . . .

Review: ¿ERES TU? by Frank Tainter (Chile)

Mar 26 2020

¿Eres tú?: A History of Lonquimay Frank Tainter (Chile 1964–66) Go to Publish December 2019 328 pages $17.80 (paperback), $2.99 (Kindle) Reviewed by David Mather (Chile 1968-70) There are several reasons why I was eager to read “?Eres Tu?.” The author and I were both forestry volunteers (different groups) in the mid to late ’60s in Chile. According to the jacket of the book, his time there, like mine, was “the most significant experience of his life.” We both ended up writing “novels” about ‘our’ Chile and both books have a young American fall in love with a campesina who was taller than most, had long black hair, and, of course, beautiful eyes. Even the consummations of the two love affairs are similar in that his takes place in a canelo(tree) grove whereas mine was in an alerce grove. Finally, both of us used the love stories as the vehicle to demonstrate our . . .

Novelist David C. Edmonds (Chile 1963-65) Wins Two Book Awards

Nov 24 2015

Lily of Peru published by Peace Corps Writers books and written by David C. Edmonds (Chile 1963-65) recently won two awards. It was selected in second place in the category of Latino Theme Movie by Non-Latino Author. These awards are sponsored by Latino Literacy Now and were presented in 16 key categories during the 2015 Los Angeles Latino Book & Family Festival. Copies of all winning books will be presented to key television networks and movie studios. The novel also won the silver in the Readers’ Favorite International Book Award-Silver in the category of Thriller/Terrorist. Readers’ Favorite has become the fastest growing book review and award contest site on the Internet. More than 300 authors and guests attended the awards ceremony in Miami this year.

Myrna J. Aavedal (Chile 1967–68)

Feb 13 2010

Monday, November 21 6:54 pm MR. PRESIDENT, I want to tell you about my experience in the Peace Corps. I was 24 when I went off to training at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque – still a bit unworldly as I left my home in Montana. At the time I, of course, wasn’t sure what was in store for me, but I wanted adventure, travel, and an opportunity to use my nursing skills to help people in need. I was very proud that I had been selected to serve. Yes, I did get the adventure and travel, and I did use my nursing skills among needy people. I also got a lot more. The first surprise came when some of the Trainees who looked so good and talked so wise washed out of training or gave up and went home early. For me the Peace Corps was a . . .