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Peace Corps: News, Photographs and Stories

May 16, 2008

Harris Directory Update Underway

Every few years the National Peace Corps Association contracts with Harris Connect to produce a directory of the Peace Corps community. The last one was published in 2005.

Starting this month you should expect to receive an e-mail from NPCA asking you to update your contact and Peace Corps service information. We appreciate your help in this effort.

A comprehensive update of our records allows us to communicate more effectively with you - and in turn for you to better connect with your fellow returned Peace Corps volunteers.

Thank you in advance for your co-operation!

May 15, 2008

Whither Peace Corps?

Amid growing concerns about America's standing in the world, policy makers and opinion leaders are starting to talk about Peace Corps-and NPCA is playing an important role.

Next month NPCA will convene a diverse gathering of thought leaders and original Peace Corps architects to discuss the future of Peace Corps. How might Peace Corps be enhanced in ways to improve its effectiveness for its next 50 years? How can it better respond to demand from countries who want Peace Corps programs and individuals who want to serve?  The resulting policy ideas and recommendations will be shared with the major party Presidential candidates and the broader Peace Corps and international community.

The fall issue of WorldView magazine will also focus on the future of Peace Corps and include a range of viewpoints.

Meanwhile Peace Corps critic Robert L. Strauss has once again stirred controversy, this time with a pointed opinion piece on the Foreign Policy Web site. Yale professor and development blogger Chris Blattman offered his thoughts, as did countless bloggers and commentors, pro and con.  And don't forget a recent story about Peace Corps in the Christian Science Monitor

Stay tuned!  There's sure to be lots more discussion!

HIV Positive and Volunteering?

A recent Washington Post column by Stephen Barr and a subsequent editorial about Ukraine Peace Corps volunteer Jeremiah Johnson’s removal from his post after testing positive for HIV has sparked discussion and Congressional interest regarding the Peace Corps’ policy related to volunteers who are HIV positive.

Ukrainian law (and that of many other host countries) requires proof that volunteers are not HIV positive to obtain visas, residency permits and other official documents required for volunteer service.  The Peace Corps has a long-standing policy of not automatically excluding applicants who are HIV positive but rather to treat each HIV positive applicant as an individual case and consider placement in a location where reasonable medical care is available. 

Peace Corps' medical information, recently revised, can be read here:  Peace Corps Medical Information (.pdf).  An NPCA affiliate,Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual RPCVs, has additional information about HIV status and Peace Corps service on its website

This past week NPCA received this message from Burkina Faso RPCV  Rebecca Coulborn:

Dear RPCVs,

Some of you may have read the recent story about Jeremiah Johnson who was medically separated from the Peace Corps for testing HIV positive.  Peace Corps has stated that Jeremiah Johnson is the first volunteer to test positive for HIV and want to return to his post.  Eight years ago I tested positive for HIV and was medically separated from the Peace Corps.  I wanted to return to Burkina Faso and finish my service but was told that this was not a possibility.  I believe this is the result of antiquated policies from the 80's based on fear and prejudice.  If you test positive for TB or contract malaria you receive treatment, but if you test positive for HIV you are sent home.  I love the Peace Corps, but to date, eight years later, receiving my diagnosis still pales in comparison to being sent home for testing positive.  Peace Corps can do better than this!  We, as Americans, can do better than this!

Recently, I had the opportunity to speak with Rebecca Shore from the ACLU and Senator Chris Dodd’s Foreign Policy Advisor and other staff members. (Chris Dodd, btw, is an RPCV and Chairman of the Subcommittee for Peace Corps.)

Senator Dodd and the ACLU are interested in HEARING FROM RPCV's who:

a) tested positive for HIV or hepatitis, and/or
b) tested positive for TB, and/or
c) contracted malaria.

If this applies to you, I would greatly appreciate it if you would contact Rebecca Shore at the ACLU. Her phone number is 212-549-2605 and her email address is lgbt_rs@aclu.org. 

With great appreciation,

Rebecca Coulborn, RPCV Burkina Faso 2000-2001

April 16, 2008

Korean President Honors Peace Corps Volunteers at Gala Event

President_lee_and_mr_odonnell_02 On the first day of his first official visit to the US, Korean President Lee Myung-Bak chose to speak about Peace Corps's contribution to his country at a gala event hosted by the Korea Society on April 15th.

Following welcoming remarks by UN Secretary Ban Ki-Moon and remarks by former Peace Corps volunteer and Assistant Secretary of State for Asia and the Pacific Christopher Hill, President Lee presented the 2008 James A. Van Fleet Award to the approximately 2500 Peace Corps volunteers who served in Korea between 1966 and 1981.

The award is given to prominent Korean and American individuals or organizations for outstanding contributions to the U.S.-Korea relationship. Today, many Koreans speak of the profound educational and personal impact the PCVs had on them.

Accepting on their behalf was the first Country Director, and later Peace Corps Director, Kevin O'Donnell.

Mr_odonnell_2 Drawing on his PC language training more than 40 years ago, Kevin charmed the audience of more than 600 by greeting them in Korean and spoke of the enduring connections between the PCVs and their host families.

Many of the speakers noted how appropriate it was the next US ambassador to Korea, Kathleen Stephens (75-77) is a former Peace Corps volunteer.

The award citation says:

Many Americans have dedicated themselves to the cause of U.S-Korea friendship over the years.  Few Americans have done more for this cause than the approximately 2,500 men and women who served as PCVS in Korea from 1966 to 1981….

The Peace Corps career volunteers shared with Koreans from all walks of life their skills and their spirit of sacrifice.  Traveling to a foreign land, they were determined to contribute to its development and did so in a way that is still remembers and appreciated on both sides of the Pacific.  The volunteers shared their talents and knowledge with newfound friends in Korea, and in doing so they developed a deep appreciation for Korea’s culture and language, as well as strong affection for the Korean people.

April 15, 2008

"The View" From McCain: Expand the Peace Corps

Johnmccain_highres1 During a recent appearance on the popular daytime television program The View, Republican Presidential candidate John McCain re-stated his desire to expand Peace Corps and other service opportunities if elected.

McCain took it a step further when asked by co-host Whoopi Goldberg what would be the first three things he would do if elected.  While listing national security and the economy as his top two priorities, McCain said his third priority would be to motivate others to serve their country in a cause greater than their self interest.  "I would expand the Peace Corps...I would expand all opportunities to serve."

You can watch the McCain interview on The View by clicking here. 

We're Number...uh... 119!

If you got your Sunday paper a few days ago, you might have noticed the cover story of Parade was the magazine's annual "What People Earn" annual report.  Featured along with Oprah Winfrey ($260 million), Steven Speilberg ($110 million), Miley Cyrus ($18.2 million) and (Eli Manning ($11.5 million) is 26 year old Peace Corps volunteer Edward Perry.  The Los Angeles PCV is listed as earning $2,900, ranking him 119th - dead last, among the featured wage earners.

By the way - Edward barely beat out his closest competitor for bottom honors.  Coming in next-to-last, earning $3,000 annually is "Titus the Titan", a professional lacrosse mascot from East Rockaway, New York.

April 14, 2008

Former Peace Corps Volunteer Jake Hooker Wins Pulitzer Prize

Topics_jakehooker_190subThe 2008 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting was awarded earlier this month to New York Times reporter Jake Hooker (pictured left) and Walt Bodganich for their Investigative Reporting series entitled "A Toxic Pipeline" which traced the deadly flow of toxic ingredients in Chinese-made products around the world.

Hooker's writing has also appeared in NPCA's WorldView magazine. His article "Over the Rainbow: China struggles with drugs and the virus" was published in our special issue on HIV/AIDS and can be read here.

From the New York Times website:

Jake Hooker was born on Oct. 27, 1973 in Newton, Mass. He attended Milton Academy and Dartmouth College, where he studied art history. For two years he lived in the backcountry of the White Mountain National Forest as a caretaker for several backcountry huts operated by the Appalachian Mountain Club.

He was a volunteer in the Peace Corps in China starting in 2000. For two years, he taught English at a middle school in Wanxian, a small town along the middle reach of the Yangtze River, near the Three Gorges. In his free time there, he learned Chinese. He published his first newspaper article, about his life in Wanxian, in The Boston Globe in 2001.

In 2003, Mr. Hooker returned to China to work for the Surmang Foundation, a non-governmental organization that runs a free health clinic for nomads in eastern Tibet. Western doctors work alongside Tibetans there; patients come on horseback. Mr. Hooker translated for Western doctors and Tibetan doctors, bought medicine, wrote reports and met with health officials, Tibetan monks and other people in the Surmang Valley.

Mr. Hooker has traveled to most places in China writing about rural life, AIDS, ethnic identity, and archaeology. Since 2006, he has contributed research and reporting to a wide range of China coverage for The New York Times.

Hitting the Road for the National Peace Corps Association

Where is our president, Kevin Quigley?  Well, in the coming weeks we'll be checking our calendars, because Kevin is doing a lot of traveling on behalf of the NPCA and the Peace Corps community.

Just a sample.  This weekend he was in New Jersey, giving a keynote speech--"More Peace Corps: How You Can Make a Difference"--at the New Jersey Returned Peace Corps Volunteers annual conference at Seton Hall University. 

Today, he's a panelist at Sargent Shriver's Point of the Lance Conference being held at West Chester University.

And tomorrow night he'll be joining RPCVs in New York City at the Korea Society's Annual Dinner.  The Korea Society will honor the former Peace Corps Korea volunteers with its 2008 James A. Van Fleet Award, given to prominent Korean and American individuals or organizations for outstanding contributions to the U.S.-Korea relationship.  Kevin O'Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps, will accept the award on behalf of the Volunteers.

March 26, 2008

Nominations Open for Sargent Shriver Award for Distinguished Humanitarian Service

Sarge2 Do you know of a returned Peace Corps volunteer who continues to make a sustained and distinguished contribution to humanitarian causes at home or abroad?  Someone who typifies the best qualities of the Peace Corps community?

If so, nominate him or her for the Sargent Shriver Award for Distinguished Humanitarian Service.  The award was named to recognize the tremendous contributions of the first Peace Corps Director, Sargent Shriver, in the founding and development of the Peace Corps.

We welcome your nomination materials by June 2, 2008 to qualify for consideration.

>> View the Full Listing of Past Recipients
>> Download the Nomination Form

March 21, 2008

Welcome High Atlas Foundation!

Mad_haftree_planting_feb_2008_2 NPCA is pleased to welcome our newest affiliate group, the High Atlas Foundation (HAF).

HAF is a non-profit organization founded in 2000 by returned Peace Corps volunteers as a way for them to leverage the professional relationships and knowledge gained during their years of service for the continued benefit of the Moroccan people.

>> Learn about HAF's Peace Corps Connection and their community-based projects.