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FEBRUARY 2008
NEWS FROM YOUR RPCVw BOARD
This year the board of RPCV/W has been busy!Since our August retreat, we have beencoordinating social events, bringing interesting newopportunities to our members and expanding ourRPCV community.2007 Holiday Party:This year's holiday party was a big success, withover 220 returned volunteers, gathered together inthe beautiful Josephine Butler House. The roomswere decorated, the food was delicious and themusic was rockin'. Thank you to Chefs Kyle andJames from the Fix-NY Deli for outdoingthemselves, yet again, on the food, and another bigthank you to our volunteer DJ, Mark Alyea-Cheu.Thanks to everyone who donated or bid on an itemat the silent auction. We raised about $300, whichwill go towards third-goal initiatives.If you have any comments about the holiday partyor have suggestions for next year's festivities,please contact specialevents@rpcvw.org. We wantto keep improving it year to year!Board Retreat:We just met for our mid-year retreat on January12th, where we discussed the highlights of the yearso far, including happy hours, community serviceevents, new members events, interesting programsand a successful holiday party. Our membership isat its highest ever! We are so happy to have somany loyal members and so many new faces.Upcoming Events:Looking ahead to the rest of the year, we willcontinue to bring social events and educationalopportunities, and incorporate some great programsfor Peace Corps Week in March. We appreciateany and all feedback, as we are here to representour membership.
President’s Corner
Greetings to all — During your Peace Corps service, how many of youconsidered how you would stay connected to other volunteers when you returned home? Were you readyto jump back into the “real world” and return to therelationships that you had known before? How had they changed? How had you changed? RPCVw is aspecial organization because it brings together otherswho have shared parts of your formative Peace Corpsexperience — learning a brand new language; how toeat, speak, and work with a new community. Our  RPCVw Board exists for you, our members, to helpcreate opportunities for you to meet each other and orm life-giving relationships building from thoseunique experiences you had during your Peace Corpsservice.There are so many ways to make these connections —during the next five months you can look forward tomore social and community service activities. As a Board, we’ve been working hard to plan diverseactivities to satisfy the mosaic of preferences that weso appreciate about our members. Please come to theactivities, e-mail us, talk to us and to each other. Let us know how you would like to connect with other  RPCVs. In addition to communicating with youthrough our Listserve, there are bulletin boards onour Web site for members to pose comments and questions, and we now have a Facebook page you canoin to stay informed. In this newsletter and in futuree-mails you will read about past and upcoming events,and you’ll find opportunities to offer some of your self to others. We invite you to join us as you are able.We each have a story to tell. Won’t you share yours? Warm regards, Molly MattessichVice President, RPCVwPCV Mali, 2002-2004
 
 
Some exciting things to look forward to includethe annual wreath laying on John F. Kennedy'sgrave in May, and the annual picnic in July.Both have been member favorites in the past.This year our board had its annual holiday dinnerat Bucco de Beppo to celebrate a great 2007. If you are interested in joining the RPCV/W board,please contact Jim Gore atpresident@rpcvw.org. Here's to a great 2008!
 
RPCV Career EventWashington, D.C.February 26-29, 2008
The next Peace Corps RPCV Career Event inWashington, DC, is coming right up! We are nowregistering RPCVs for this FREE four-day event,which will take place
Tuesday, February 26through Friday, February 29
. Highlights of thisFREE event include hands-on interactiveworkshops and a career fair with over 30international, domestic, private and public sectororganizations.
 
Pre-registration is required for all sessions, andattendees are responsible for their own travel,food, and lodging costs. Detailed informationabout this event, including a schedule, is atwww.peacecorps.gov/rpcv/events. For moreinformation, contact Returned VolunteerServices, 202.692.1430,rvsevents@peacecorps.gov.
The registrationdeadline for RPCVs is Thursday, February 21at midnight.
 
Please note that this RPCV Career Event hasbeen planned to coincide with Peace CorpsWeek 2008, which will celebrate the 47
th
 anniversary of the agency and the outstandingwork of Volunteers and returned Volunteersthrough the years. The overlap of these twoevents will allow you to participate in the ThirdGoal of the Peace Corps and promote yourself toemployers.
 
 
Couches needed!!
Remember those long journeys you took asa PCV to an unknown village, city, ortown, and how much it meant to havesomeone open up their home to you, giveyou a seat on which to rest? Now is yourchance to return the favor. A few hundredRPCVs are coming to D.C. for a career fairand weekend of activities and many arelooking for an affordable place to stay.This is a great way to meet someone newfrom another part of the country. If youhave a spare couch, futon, air mattress, orbed to offer on any evening from Feb 26 -March 3, please email Molly atvicepresident@rpcvw.organd let her knowwhen and what you have available. Manythanks!!
SAVE THE DATE!
 
Tuesday, February 26, 2008 –Sharing Your Peace Corps StoryWednesday, February 27, 2008 –Sharing Your QualificationsThursday, February 28, 2008 –Federal Employment and RPCV CareerFairFriday, February 29, 2008 –Employer Information Sessions
 
 
The NPCA Scholarship was established in 2000to recognize the long-standing ties between SITand the Peace Corps. Members of NPCA whohave oneyear or more of significant interculturalexperience are eligible to apply. Several awaof $10,000 will be made each year. NPCAmembers can request information regardingexclusive scholarship opportunity at 800-336-1616 or 802-257-7751, or online atrdsthishttp://www.sit.edu.
AVINSG PEACE CORPS’ HISTORY
(before it’s too late)
 As we approach the 50th Anniversary of ThePeace Corps, the RPCV Archival Project hasbegun a renewed effort to seek out those whowere the pioneers of the Peace Corps, voluntefrom the 1960s. Year by year we areerslosing thatcohort and their unique stories of volunteerservice. The Project hopes to add 3000 1960sinterviews to the National Archives at the John F.Kennedy Library in the RPCV Collection beforethe anniversary year; that would be about 10% ofthose who served during that period.The RPCV Archival Project is an informalnetwork of RPCVs who work to preserve PeaCorps’ legacy by conducting oral historyinterviews of those who have served as PCVs. Inthe fiveceyears of its existeninterviewers have completed apprnterviews [SEE <jfklibrary.org> Sce, more than 40 RPCVoximately 300earch: ThePCV Collection]. The Project’s basic resource isand will continue to be the unpaid voluntaryefforts of those RPCVs who’ve participated,operating in cooperation with NPCA Affiliategroups.iRWe need people to volunteer to participate bybecoming interviewers; a commitment of threehours a month during 2007 could add 12 moreRPCV stories to the Collection. The Projectprovides training and orientation through anoperational guide; once started, participants
 
Community Service Opportunity:
Participate in Peace Corps Week!February 25-March 1
 
Peace Corps Week is an opportunity for our returned Volunteers and their extended PeaceCorps family — staff, friends and family of Volunteers, as well as friends of the PeaceCorps — to partake in promoting cross-cultural understanding, world peace, and riendship by shining a spotlight on theimportant work of our Volunteers around theworld and the continuing service that returned Volunteers bring to communities in the United States.
 Peace Corps has great resources and ideas ontheir Web site as to how RPCVs can prepare apresentation on their country of service. Theyeven will send you a packet of things to use inyour presentation and to pass out to your"audience." Check out this pagehttp://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.former.pcweek for more information.Click on the Speakers Match link on the righthand side of this page to be matched with aclassroom or group in your area. Have fun!Afterward, please tell us at RPCVw what youdid! Send an e-mail (and better yet withpictures attached!) of what you did for PeaceCorps Week to Amy Kunz, RPCV/W Directorof Community Servicecommunityservice@rpcvw.org 
 
Postscripts from the Field
Another letter from Africa PCVGood news: I don't have malaria.Bad news: I seemed to have developed amysterious illness that mimics all thesymptoms of malaria- but which totallyunidentifiable and completely untreatable.Bad news: My post-mate was reassigned toanother village because she accidentallyfalsely accused a prominant doctor in Xxxxxof aggravated assault.Good news: Peace Corps was nice enoughto allow me to stay behind to absorb all of the backlash and to fabricate elaborate storiesfor all of her friends and colleagues toexplain her sudden and permanentabsence.....in French.Bad news: My job consists of policing 27010 to 21-year old monsters whose solepurpose in life is to transform the classroomsetting into my own personal cage of eternaldamnation.Good news: The director of the school is sograteful for my efforts and expertise that heintroduced me to the entire staff by tellingeveryone how much money I saved him inpayroll expenses.Bad news: Since the end of the rainyseason, produce has grown limited andincreasingly harder to come by.Good news: I like oranges and onions, and Iam learning to like them together.Bad news: I found myself comparing thisexperience to the time I was hospitalizedwith kidney stones.Good news: Only 22 more months.Love to all,Broken in Xxxxx
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