New England District honors RPCV Nancy Coutu with memorial
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New England District honors former ranger
By Ann Marie Reyes
New England Division
Nancy Coutu, a former park ranger with New England District (NED) and slain Peace Corps volunteer has been honored with a memorial in NED's Elm Brook Park in West Hopkinton, N.H. The ceremony unveiling the memorial was held June 15.
Coutu worked at Elm Brook Park during the summers of 1992 and 1993. She was killed by tribesmen in Madagascar on April 9, 1996, after serving nearly two years as a Peace Corps volunteer. Coutu joined the Peace Corps in August 1994 and would have finished her tour in the fall of 1996.
At the time of her death, Coutu was teaching 300 villagers how to grow vegetables and helping build a school, hospital, and roads on the island. She was posthumously named a Knight of the Malagasy National Order, Madagascar's highest civilian order. The honor has never before been given to a foreigner or a woman.
"The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is honored that Elm Brook Park has been chosen by Nancy's family as the site of this memorial," said ranger Dave Shepardson, manager of the Hopkinton-Everett Lakes project. "During her two summers with us as a park ranger, she contributed much to the park and especially to those who visited the area. She was a young woman who loved life and helping others, and brought joy to the lives of everyone she touched."
Coutu's father, Roger Coutu, talked about the things her family is doing in her name. Her mother, Connie Coutu recently sent a truckload of clothing to Madagascar. Mr. Coutu and his coworkers have set up the Nancy Coutu Memorial Fund for scholarships. Fund-raisers such as a sky-dive and golf tournaments are scheduled to take place in the future. Last year, the scholarship fund raised $15,000.
Mr. Coutu thanked NED for their help in putting together the memorial. "This was a special site for Nancy," he said. "It's quite a fitting memorial to her and I am proud and happy to do this."
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This story has been posted in the following forums: : RPCVs - Obituaries; COS - Madagascar
