2007.08.23: August 23, 2007: Headlines: COS - Lesotho: COS - Thailand: COS - Sri Lanka: Older Volunteers: Daily Californian: Margaret Pratley is the oldest serving Peace corps Volunteer in the world
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2007.08.23: August 23, 2007: Headlines: COS - Lesotho: COS - Thailand: COS - Sri Lanka: Older Volunteers: Daily Californian: Margaret Pratley is the oldest serving Peace corps Volunteer in the world
Margaret Pratley is the oldest serving Peace corps Volunteer in the world
When the Peace Corps was first founded in 1961, she said she wanted to volunteer but was busy with a marriage and children. It was not until she was in her sixties, divorced and with her children grown that she made her first Peace Corps tour to Lesotho, she said. “I want to build bridges of understanding between cultures,” she said. “When people of different cultures meet each other, (there is) an understanding that our basic needs are universal.”
Margaret Pratley is the oldest serving Peace corps Volunteer in the world
81-Year-Old Peace Corps Volunteer Recognized
BY Jacqueline Johnston
Contributing Writer
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Caption: Margaret Pratley, at 81, is the oldest on-the-ground Peace Corps volunteer in in the world. photo/mike seeman
Margaret Pratley, one of two Berkeley residents recently honored for their dedication to volunteerism, also has received recognition for another characteristic—her age.
At the end of her most recent tour in March, in which she spent two years training instructors to teach English in Thailand, Pratley was 81, the oldest on-the-ground Peace Corps volunteer in the world.
“Margaret is amazing,” said Nathan Hale Sargent, the public affairs specialist at the Peace Corps San Francisco Regional Office. “I really love her philosophy of volunteerism. She sees it as a collaboration between people.”
Pratley and Raleigh Ellisen were presented with the President’s Volunteer Service Award earlier this month for their years of work on behalf of their own and other communities across the globe.
Both winners received the President’s Call to Service, the highest level of the award, which is given to volunteers with over 4,000 hours of service.
The two awards are only the 5th and 6th service awards that the current Peace Corps director, Ron Tschetter, has given out during his 11-month tenure as director, said Josie Duckett, a spokesperson for the Peace Corp.
Together, the two volunteers have nearly 20 years of service, Sargent said.
“This is a prestigious award for exceptional volunteers,” Sargent said.
Pratley said she has participated in three volunteer tours overseas with the Peace Corps and many years of work with local groups such as the Sierra Club.
“She represents the spirit of the Peace Corps in her attitude and willingness to sacrifice in order to serve others,” Duckett said.
Nominations for the award are made only when a candidate of exemplary character and service is recognized, he said.
Pratley, who graduated from UC Berkeley in 1949, said she is grateful to the Peace Corps for giving her the opportunity and the skills to volunteer.
When the Peace Corps was first founded in 1961, she said she wanted to volunteer but was busy with a marriage and children. It was not until she was in her sixties, divorced and with her children grown that she made her first Peace Corps tour to Lesotho, she said.
“I want to build bridges of understanding between cultures,” she said. “When people of different cultures meet each other, (there is) an understanding that our basic needs are universal.”
Contact Jacquline Johnston at jjohnston@dailycal.org.
Links to Related Topics (Tags):
Headlines: August, 2007; Peace Corps Lesotho; Directory of Lesotho RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Lesotho RPCVs; Peace Corps Thailand; Directory of Thailand RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Thailand RPCVs; Peace Corps Sri Lanka; Directory of Sri Lanka RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Sri Lanka RPCVs; Older Volunteers
When this story was posted in August 2007, this was on the front page of PCOL:
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Story Source: Daily Californian
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Lesotho; COS - Thailand; COS - Sri Lanka; Older Volunteers
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