Multi-Stage Peace Corps/Morocco Reunion JUNE 13-15, 2003
Multi-Stage Peace Corps/Morocco Reunion JUNE 13-15, 2003
The plans for the big weekend continue to fall into place, and we're very pleased to announce that the Moroccan ambassador to the United States, M. Aziz Mekouar, will be attending! The High Atlas Foundation has arranged for the Ambassador to speak at a reception at the Nelson-Atkins Museum, where he'll recognize the efforts and achievements of RPCVs.
We have had many people asking us to extend the due date for registration due date. Therefore we have extended the deadline for registration and payment to April 23! Thank you to those who have already sent in your payment. We look forward to seeing you at the reunion! It's very important that we have a head count by March 14th so that we can finalize the logistics with the hotel, the museum and our Moroccan chef.
So make sure you register now! If you have already registered, but haven't sent in your registration fee, click on the "Fees, Flights and Rooms" link, and get ready for a wonderful reunion weekend!
Best regards,
Dan Dillon and Ed Hermann
P.S. Don't forget to visit the Reunion Web Store and browse through reunion related apparel and other items!
12/15/2002
Multi-Stage Peace Corps/Morocco Reunion Planned for Summer 2003
We are very excited to announce that the RPCV Morocco Reunion has been scheduled for the weekend of June 13, 2003 in Kansas City, MO! This is going to be a wonderful opportunity for all RPCVs from Morocco to reconnect with each other. Some of the special events scheduled for the weekend include an evening cocktail reception, a Moroccan feast, an evening outing in Kansas City’s historic Westport district, and a year-of-service luncheon. Scroll down for a complete list of the weekend’s events to date. Your suggestions for additional events are always welcome!
To register for the reunion, pay the registration fee, book a room and/or flight, go no further than this Website! If you have any questions, wish to make a suggestion or just need more info, the reunion organizers, Dan Dillon and Ed Hermann, will be happy to assist you. You can find their e-mail addresses on the Contact Us page of the reunion website.
Rooms have been reserved at the Embassy Suites Hotel Kansas City – Plaza at an exclusive group rate of $109 (4 people max. per room). Mention “Peace Corps/Morocco” to get the reduced rate when you call (816) 756-1720 or, effective June 17, 2002, you can also reserve online through the reunion website; use “PCM” as the Group Code to get the special group rate.
With the able assistance of RPCVs Laurel Groh, Molly (James) Blocker, and Angela Scarfino we have started to draw up the weekend's planned events:
Friday, June 13, 2003
5:30 pm - 7:30 pm -- Cocktail reception (open bar) at the Embassy Suites with hors d'oeuvres*
7:30 pm 'til dawn -- Catch up with friends, old and new!
Saturday, June 14, 2003
7:00 am - 10:00 am -- Complimentary cooked-to-order breakfast
10:00 am - 11:30 am -- Visit the Country Club Plaza and historic Westport.
11:30 am - 1:00 pm -- Stage-specific luncheon -- Break bread with your stage mates!
1:30 pm - 5:00pm -- Group trip to the Nelson-Atkins Art Museum*
The museum will be hosting a screening of "Bab Al-Sama Maftuh (A Door the Sky)," a critically acclaimed film about a Moroccan woman's quest to preserve her cultural and religious identity. Directed by Farida Ben Lyziad. The film will be preceeded by welcoming remarks from Moroccan Ambassador Aziz Mekouar and will be followed by a reception in the museum's charming Rozelle Court sponsored by the High Atlas Foundation.
6:00 pm -7:00 pm -- Cocktails at the Embassy Suites (open bar)
7:00 pm - 9:00 pm -- Moroccan Feast*
Jason Ben-Meir, President of the High Atlas Foundation, will be speaking during dinner on behalf of the HAF. The foundation was created by Peace Corps Volunteers and staff who served in Morocco. Its founders utilize their professional relationships, friendships and knowledge gained during their years of Peace Corps service for the continued benefit of the Moroccan people. Addtionally, Tim Resch of Friends of Morocco will provide reunion attendees with an update on recent FOM activity.
9:00 pm 'til dawn -- Night out on the town!
Sunday, June 15, 2003
7:00 am - 10:30 am -- Complimentary cooked-to-order breakfast
10:30 am -- Say your good-byes (for now!) and off you go!
*There will be a $75 per person registration fee charged to cover all food, banquet hall, reception room, service fees, taxes and gratuities. This one-time fee will cover all events over the course of the entire weekend.
Too much to do? No problem! The weather will be beautiful (cross your fingers), so take a walk in the park, lounge by the pool, soak in the hot tub....Kansas City is a very warm and welcoming place, and there will be ample opportunity to take advantage of all that the city has to offer. You may want to begin exploring the city today!
This reunion is going to be the highlight of 2003. You won’t want to miss getting together with so many friendly and familiar faces. So start making plans to attend the 2003 Peace Corps/Morocco reunion! See you in Kansas City!
Best regards,
Dan Dillon (Safi '93-'95)and Ed Hermann (Marrakech '93-'95)
10/11/2001
By now, most of you have already heard from us. Without reiterating it in its entirety, our e-mail of Sept. 18th asked you to join in the thoughts and prayers of the country for those who lost their lives and for the thousands of friends and families who have lost loved ones. We also asked that you do your best to support your Arab friends, families and colleagues who might be subject to abuse by individuals who think that all Arabs and Muslims are the enemy. We continue to encourage you to help all victims of the September 11th tragedy in any way you can.
There are many funds and relief efforts that have risen to the occasion of aiding victims of the attack. We encourage you to investigate the legitimacy of and then appropriately donate to any one of these fine organizations.
In an effort to regain some semblance of normalcy, we continue to organize the Reunion and expect to announce an official date and location sometime around the New Year. In the meantime, we have added a Bulletin Board to the site, which we hope you will use to leave comments, ask questions, say hello, find old friends or make new ones! Please feel free to use the Bulletin Board to discuss any subject; it is not meant to be used solely for the Reunion. All we ask is that you show each other kindness and respect.
Best regards,
Ed Hermann (Marrakech '93-'95) and Dan Dillon (Safi '93-'95)
8/31/2001
Our effort to organize a reunion for Morocco RPCVs continues to roll along. We are happy to announce that the idea has been met with great enthusiasm thus far. About 80 of you have responded already, and we're hoping to hear from the rest of you, too. Just a reminder -- we are not connected with the 40th anniversary celebration taking place in D.C. this September. Current feedback from interested RPCVs indicates that this multi-stage reunion will be held in late spring/early summer of 2003.
To express interest and offer feedback, click on the "Sign Up Now!" link below. Also, please feel free to send pictures of yourself -- preferably one of you in Morocco and another as you are now -- and a brief blurb on who you are, what you do, etc. We plan on expanding the "Who's Attending?" page to allow for individual links to attendee photos and the personal info that you provide. Photos and blurbs should be sent to edhermann@bigfoot.com.
Please note that we are using a new web address for the site. The original URL turned bad... knocked over a few liquor stores... we'd rather not talk about it. Check in often at the new web site. It will serve as the official source for information and updates on the big event.
Hope this update finds you well. We look forward to hearing from you.
Best regards,
Ed Hermann (Marrakech '93-'95) and Dan Dillon (Safi '93-'95)
7/31/2001
2003 sure seems like a long way away from now. Why start planning already? We need a decent amount of time to organize the logistics of the big event. When you consider that PC/Morocco has been chugging away for about forty years (give or take a few evacuations) there are quite a few RPCVs out there.
This project is only in the exploratory stages right now. If we find that there is enough interest, we'll begin to plan the logistics and seek your input as to event content. So far, the responses seem promising:
Responses as of 7/31/01:
# of YES responses: 32
# of MAYBE responses: 20
# of NO responses: 0
Total # of responses: 52
Responses continue to roll in and, with gentle periodic reminders, we expect the numbers will continue to increase over time.
Preferred Months (w/ # of votes):
April (12)
June (11)
July (10)
May (5)
We're a bit surprised that April is in the lead; we suspect that people did not scroll to their preferred month and April came in as the default. Just in case, we've added a "No Preference" to the selection list in order to make sure the data we're receiving is accurate.
Most Preferred Location:
Kansas City (35)
Runners-up have been N.Y.C., Las Vegas, San Francisco, Seattle, Dallas—all places that are great for some, not so good for most and downright out-of-the-way-next-to-impossible for others. We're glad to see a growing trend of preferences tempered with flexibility.
Try to check in at least once a month to look for more updates. We'll be posting an attendance list shortly, and we hope to grow the attendance list into an interactive "Getting to Know You" page. Stay tuned.
As always, we appreciate your feedback, comments and/or suggestions. If you have volunteered to assist with the logistics of the event, we'll be in touch at some point down the line. For those of you who haven't expressed an interest in helping but would like to do so, e-mail is the fastest and most efficient way to contact us.
Dan Dillon (Safi) and Ed Hermann (Marrakech), 1993-1995
