December 8, 2005: Headlines: Hurricane Relief: Crisis Corps: Peace Corps: Crisis Corps Volunteers Help Open Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans
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December 8, 2005: Headlines: Hurricane Relief: Crisis Corps: Peace Corps: Crisis Corps Volunteers Help Open Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans
Crisis Corps Volunteers Help Open Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans
"During the past three months, returned Peace Corps volunteers have answered the call to participate in Crisis Corps, and to contribute their time and energy to the critical relief efforts in the Gulf Coast region following this life altering hurricane," said Peace Corps Director Gaddi H. Vasquez. "The opening of the new disaster recovery center in the Lower 9th Ward is a true testament to the dedication and perseverance of our volunteers on the ground."
Crisis Corps Volunteers Help Open Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans
Crisis Corps Volunteers Help Open Disaster Recovery Center in New Orleans
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 8, 2005 – New Orleans' Lower 9th Ward, one of the areas hardest-hit by Hurricane Katrina, reopened last week, and five returned Peace Corps volunteers — members of the agency's Crisis Corps program — were instrumental in ensuring that the Disaster Recovery Center was operational and open to serve the needs of the returning residents.
Volunteers Hilary Stevens of Sacramento, Calif., Andrew Lucas of Castle Rock, Colo., Bonnie Zogby of Los Angeles, Sam Fontela of Miami Beach, and Matt Gehrke of Lawrence, Kan., were aiding hurricane survivors from the New Orleans area when they were called to assist the Lower 9th Ward Disaster Recovery Center in its first few days of service. These five volunteers helped establish the new center and ensure that displaced Hurricane Katrina victims, eager to return home, were able to do so. Through their efforts, the center is providing information and resources, registering community members in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's system, and tracking claims.
"During the past three months, returned Peace Corps volunteers have answered the call to participate in Crisis Corps, and to contribute their time and energy to the critical relief efforts in the Gulf Coast region following this life altering hurricane," said Peace Corps Director Gaddi H. Vasquez. "The opening of the new disaster recovery center in the Lower 9th Ward is a true testament to the dedication and perseverance of our volunteers on the ground."
Stevens, Lucas, Zogby, Fontela, and Gehrke are among 272 Crisis Corps volunteers who have been deployed to the Gulf Coast region to assist with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts through an agreement with FEMA. Although the Crisis Corps has had a strong presence overseas, Hurricane Katrina was Peace Corps' first ever call to duty domestically.
"Although the Peace Corps is an international volunteer organization, our volunteers' spirit of giving clearly has no borders. It was extremely satisfying to see so many returned volunteers selflessly provide their support to the relief efforts. Like their Peace Corps experiences, their time in the Gulf Coast region will come to an end, but their contributions have made a lasting impact," Vasquez said.
Since Crisis Corps' inception in 1996, hundreds of returned Peace Corps volunteers have taken the opportunity to use their invaluable skills and experience to address ongoing community needs in over 40 different countries. Crisis Corps volunteers work on short term projects, utilizing the skills they learned as Peace Corps volunteers and in post service careers. To find out more about the Crisis Corps’ Katrina efforts, please visit the Crisis Corps section.
When this story was posted in December 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:
Peace Corps Online The Independent News Forum serving Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
| Why blurring the lines puts PCVs in danger When the National Call to Service legislation was amended to include Peace Corps in December of 2002, this country had not yet invaded Iraq and was not in prolonged military engagement in the Middle East, as it is now. Read the story of how one volunteer spent three years in captivity from 1976 to 1980 as the hostage of a insurrection group in Colombia in Joanne Marie Roll's op-ed on why this legislation may put soldier/PCVs in the same kind of danger. Latest: Read the ongoing dialog on the subject. |
| PC establishes awards for top Volunteers Gaddi H. Vasquez has established the Kennedy Service Awards to honor the hard work and service of two current Peace Corps Volunteers, two returned Peace Corps Volunteers, and two Peace Corps staff members. The award to currently serving volunteers will be based on a demonstration of impact, sustainability, creativity, and catalytic effect. Submit your nominations by December 9. |
| Peace Corps at highest Census in 30 years Congratulations to the Peace Corps for the highest number of volunteers in 30 years with 7,810 volunteers serving in 71 posts across the globe. Of course, the President's proposal to double the Peace Corps to 15,000 volunteers made in his State of the Union Address in 2002 is now a long forgotten dream. With deficits in federal spending stretching far off into the future, any substantive increase in the number of volunteers will have to wait for new approaches to funding and for a new administration. Choose your candidate and start working for him or her now. |
| 'Celebration of Service' a major success The Peace Corps Fund's 'Celebration of Service' on September 29 in New York City was a major success raising approximately $100,000 for third goal activities. In the photo are Maureen Orth (Colombia); John Coyne (Ethiopia) Co-founder of the Peace Corps Fund; Caroline Kennedy; Barbara Anne Ferris (Morocco) Co-founder; Former Senator Harris Wofford, member of the Advisory Board. Read the story here. |
| PC apologizes for the "Kasama incident" The District Commissioner for the Kasama District in Zambia issued a statement banning Peace Corps activities for ‘grave’ social misconduct and unruly behavior for an incident that occurred on September 24 involving 13 PCVs. Peace Corps said that some of the information put out about the incident was "inflammatory and false." On October 12, Country Director Davy Morris met with community leaders and apologized for the incident. All PCVs involved have been reprimanded, three are returning home, and a ban in the district has since been lifted. |
| The Peace Corps Library Peace Corps Online is proud to announce that the Peace Corps Library is now available online. With over 30,000 index entries in 500 categories, this is the largest collection of Peace Corps related stories in the world. From Acting to Zucchini, you can find hundreds of stories about what RPCVs with your same interests or from your Country of Service are doing today. If you have a web site, support the "Peace Corps Library" and link to it today. |
| Friends of the Peace Corps 170,000 strong 170,000 is a very special number for the RPCV community - it's the number of Volunteers who have served in the Peace Corps since 1961. It's also a number that is very special to us because March is the first month since our founding in January, 2001 that our readership has exceeded 170,000. And while we know that not everyone who comes to this site is an RPCV, they are all "Friends of the Peace Corps." Thanks everybody for making PCOL your source of news for the Returned Volunteer community. |
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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Hurricane Relief; Crisis Corps
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