Sharon Mosher Tangney first visited Liberia in 1969 as a Peace Corps volunteer. Her passion for helping that country's children has rubbed off on several local school groups.



Sharon Mosher Tangney first visited Liberia in 1969 as a Peace Corps volunteer. Her passion for helping that country's children has rubbed off on several local school groups.

Group helps Liberian students

"HANDS ACROSS THE WATER, hands across the sky" -- Paul McCartney's lyrics from the Wings ballad "Uncle Albert" have taken on new meaning, thanks to a Pleasanton school counselor.

Sharon Mosher Tangney has adopted the phrase for a Pleasanton-based volunteer organization called -- you guessed it -- Hands Across the Water. The group's mission is to help rebuild the education system in Liberia as the country recovers from 15 years of civil unrest.

Tangney first visited Liberia in 1969 as a Peace Corps volunteer. Her passion for helping that country's children has rubbed off on several local school groups. To date, students at Walnut Grove and Mohr elementary schools, Harvest Park Middle and Foothill High schools have raised $2,500 in contributions and school supplies.

She has also secured grants from Pleasanton Partnership in Education, Pleasanton Cultural Arts Council, and the Pleasanton PTA council. An additional $1,500 has come from community groups and donations by private citizens.

Last spring, Marsha Jones' class at Harvest Park donated their end-of-the-year party money, and the school's student leadership group donated proceeds from several functions.

Individual students at both Mohr and Walnut Grove contributed to the "Dollars for Liberian Scholars" drive and created spectacular African quilts, with the support of quilter Shoshanna Reed.

The quilts incorporate Liberian student artwork sent to Pleasanton pen pals. They will be on display at the Pleasanton Library for the Make-A-Difference meeting from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday in the Community Room.

On Saturday, Foothill's Kidz-R-Us club will sponsor a classical Indian dance benefit featuring member Priya Shankar. The event takes place 2 to 4 p.m. at the Amador High School auditorium. Tickets are $5.

Contributions of any size are welcome, from gently-used elementary level books to proceeds from cookie sales or other functions. For more information, or tickets, call Tangney at 925-595-6053 or visit www.fol.org.

When this story was posted in November 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:

Your vote makes a difference Make a difference on November 2 - Vote. Then take our RPCV exit poll. See how RPCV's are voting and take a look at the RPCV voter demographic. Finally leave a message on why you voted for John Kerry or for George Bush. Previous poll results here.

Kerry reaches out to Returned Volunteers The Kerry campaign wants the RPCV vote. Read our interview with Dave Magnani, Massachusetts State Senator and Founder of "RPCVs for Kerry," and his answers to our questions about Kerry's plan to triple the size of the Peace Corps, should the next PC Director be an RPCV, and Safety and Security issues. Then read the "RPCVs for Kerry" statement of support and statements by Dr. Robert Pastor, Ambassador Parker Borg, and Paul Oostburg Sanz made at the "RPCVs for Kerry" Press Conference. RPCV Carl Pope says the key to winning this election is not swaying undecided voters, but persuading those already willing to vote for your candidate to actually go to the polls. Take our poll and tell us what you are doing to support your candidate. Finally read our wrap-up of the eight RPCVs in Senate and House races around the country and where the candidates are in their races.

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Director Gaddi Vasquez: The PCOL Interview PCOL sits down for an extended interview with Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez. Read the entire interview from start to finish and we promise you will learn something about the Peace Corps you didn't know before. Plus the debate continues over Safety and Security.

Schwarzenegger praises PC at Convention Governor Schwarzenegger praised the Peace Corps at the Republican National Convention: "We're the America that sends out Peace Corps volunteers to teach village children." Schwarzenegger has previously acknowledged his debt to his father-in-law, Peace Corps Founding Director Sargent Shriver, for teaching him "the joy of public service" and Arnold is encouraging volunteerism by creating California Service Corps and tapping his wife, Maria Shriver, to lead it. Leave your comments and who can come up with the best Current Events Funny?

Peace Corps: One of the Best Faces of America Teresa Heinz Kerry celebrates the Peace Corps Volunteer as one of the best faces America has ever projected in a speech to the Democratic Convention. The National Review disagreed and said that Heinz's celebration of the PCV was "truly offensive." What's your opinion and can you come up with a Political Funny?

Read the stories and leave your comments.