January 2007 Newsletter
In this issue:
- Announcements
- RPCV-SA Activities
- National RPCV News
- Of Possible Interest
Announcements:
Meeting Information
We will be meeting at Phil and Pam Lopes' home Saturday, January 20 at 6:00 pm for our next meeting. Bring your family, friends, and a dish of food to share to 1421 N. Camino de Juan. To get there, drive west on Speedway, until you pass Greasewood. Then, just as the road merges into one lane, you will come to Camino de Juan. Take a right and the Lopes' house is the last on the left side. Meetings are potluck socials.
RPCV-SA Activities:
From the Prez, Catherine North:
Dear Fellow RPCVs,
Thank you all for a great month of community service. We pulled off another Street Fair – congratulations and thank you! We also had good turn outs for the Nature Conservancy and bike building activities.
Our Street Fair "assignment" turned out better than hoped. We got to take snacks to the artists instead of doing the perimeter security. From what I've heard, it seems that everyone enjoyed it at least as much as I did, and the artists were all so grateful. We'll be meeting with FAMA again in the coming weeks to talk about fair hosting at the March Street Fair.
I look forward to seeing you in January. For those of you who haven't been in a while, I would especially encourage you to come this time. I promise it will be fun, and there's an added bonus – at this meeting we'll be voting on the next projects to fund. Giving money away is always a special occasion.
As always, if you have friends who are RPCVs but aren't active in the group, I encourage you to bring them to a meeting. We'd love to increase our impact by growing our group.
Have a safe and happy celebration of the new year, and I'll see you in January.
Catherine
From the Vice Prez Malvenia Lewis:
The 4th Avenue Street Fair was a huge success! Thanks to all who participated--once again our commitment was satisfied with great verve! The next Fair will be held on March 23, 24 and 25, 2007. This allows us an inordinate amount of time for planning our next strategy. Thank you, again, for your continued support!!!!
From the community Services Coordinator, Jennifer Dederich:
Recent Activities
On Saturday, December 9, the SA RPCV group volunteered with Nature Conservancy at the Fort Lowell offices on the pilot project water-harvesting project. We created basins for passive water harvesting, and planted native species. It was a great day and we hope to work with the Nature Conservancy sometime early next year.
On Saturday December 16, our group volunteered with the Latin American Social Club in their annual "Bike Project" at the Casino Ballroom in South Tucson. The total group built over 600 new bikes in approximately three and a half hours.
Current Events
Peace Corps Week 2007 is February 26 to March 1. Many of you have expressed interest in participating in the "Open House" at the University of Arizona on Monday, February 26 or presenting at a local school. We will begin contacting RPCV's in January to field any questions and register individuals to participate. Specifically, we are looking for RPCV's who are willing to set up small display tables (photos, memorabilia, clothing) and share their experiences with students, other RPCV's and community members at this Open House event at the University on February 26. We are encouraging RPCV's to work collectively with other people who served in the same country or region to create a display. Do not let this task intimidate you . . . the event will be fun and the display does not have to be fancy!
From the Trea$urer, Courtney Martin:
Our current account balance is $3,369.92. This does not include the money we earned at the recent 4th Avenue Street Fair. We look forward to dispersing a large portion of this balance to PC Partnership projects at our next meeting.
Thanks to everyone who assisted in the sales of the 2007 Peace Corps calendars. Based on the demand, we are planning to purchase even more next year. By increasing the price this year by $1 and ordering an extra 50 calendars (for a total of 200) we raised an additional $400. I look forward to an even greater effort next year! I do have a handful remaining, please let me know if you would like to purchase one.
As a reminder, we currently provide an alternative to joining the National Peace Corps Association. For local members interested in paying dues directly to the RPCV of Southern Arizona group we offer the low annual rate of $15/person. If you do choose to join the NPCA, please identify RPCV of Southern Arizona as your local affiliation and we will receive a portion of your membership dues. ($22.50)
All proceeds from our fundraising events and membership dues go directly to Peace Corps Partnership projects.
Thank you to everyone who is a paid member. If you believe that you have paid and your name is not on the list, please contact me via email: cemartin79 at yahoo dot com.
|
|
From the Peace Corps Partnership Coordinator, Casey Boettcher:
Of the approximately $3400 in the treasury, $2000 is scheduled for donation to volunteer projects this January. I've selected some likely candidates from those that appear on the Peace Corps website. You are welcome--nay, encouraged--to suggest some other target for funding.
| Location | Purpose |
PCV Home State |
Amount Needed |
Orig. Request / Comm. Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benin | Latrine Construction | AZ | 333 | 3378 / 2916 (46%) |
| Burkina Faso | Latrines and Sanitation Training | TX | 1221 | 1221 / 464 (28%) |
| Guinea | Water Pump Installation | NY | 13,266 | 15,936 / 5312 (25%) |
| Panama | San Juanito Aqueduct | WA | 1883 | 1983 / 883 (31%) |
National RPCV News:
The following was posted on the NPCA Advocacy Listserv. For more information on NPCA Advocacy, visit the Advocacy Network webpage:
Dear Friends: It is been almost three years since I joined NPCA to re- establish its advocacy program, which had been without staff for a period of time due to budget constraints. I am pleased share this 2006 Advocacy Year-in-Review and encourage you to open it, skim through sections of interest and assess our collective achievements! If you like and value what you see, I have another important request: please consider becoming an NPCA member. It is the generous financial support from individuals like you which will allow NPCA's advocacy program to have staffing without interruption. That is critical to ensure continued, steady progress. Thanks for all you do and we wish you a happy, safe, and healthy holiday season! Jonathan Pearson (Micronesia 87 - 89) Advocacy Coordinator National Peace Corps Association 1900 L Street NW, Suite 205 Washington, DC 20036 202-293-7728, ext. 21 fax: 202-293-7554 advocacy@rpcv.org http://www.rpcv.org/advocacy
Peace Corps Online
Peace Corps Online is an online message board and news forum for Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. With over 40,000 web pages, Peace Corps Online is the most comprehensive source of information about the Peace Corps on the internet. Over 300,000 Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and Friends of the Peace Corps visit Peace Corps Online every month. Peace Corps Online has no connection or affiliation with the United States Peace Corps which is a government agency.
Of Possible Interest
Peace Corps Encore!
Peace Corps Encore! is seeking applications from volunteer experts with computer and IT experience for assignments in Central America in early 2007. More information is available.
RPCV Returns to Congo in AP Article
An article recently published by the Associated Press tells of one RPCV's return to her site on the tenth anniversary of her service in the Congo. The language of the story is evocative and the narrative poignant.