January 31, 2005: Peace Corps Director Assesses Need in Southeast Asia
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January 31, 2005: Peace Corps Director Assesses Need in Southeast Asia
Peace Corps Director Assesses Need in Southeast Asia
Peace Corps Director Assesses Need in Southeast Asia
Peace Corps Director Assesses Need in Southeast Asia
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 31, 2005 – Peace Corps Director Gaddi H. Vasquez visited Southeast Asia last week to evaluate damages from the recent tsunami as Peace Corps Crisis Corps volunteers prepare to depart for Thailand in the coming weeks.
Director Vasquez visited Bangkok, Nai Yang Beach where the damage is still evident, the Andaman Coast of southern Thailand north to Phang Nga, and the Ranong Provinces. He also evaluated Haad Sai Khao, a fishing village hit hard by the tsunami and a potential location for the Crisis Corps volunteer efforts.
“In a situation like this where we have people with the skills to make a real impact, we can do nothing less than to call on those talented volunteers – who have served this country before – to once again use their skills during this recovery process,” said Director Vasquez. “Crisis Corps is ready to meet the challenge of working to restore these areas hardest hit by the tsunami and helping the people of Thailand recover from their devastating loss.”
Following the Thailand assessment, Director Vasquez traveled to Sri Lanka and met with officials to discuss whether Crisis Corps volunteers could help with rebuilding efforts there.
One of the primary needs for this assessment is to establish a framework for Crisis Corps volunteers to work with local authorities in rebuilding efforts. Thirty returned Peace Corps volunteers are scheduled to leave soon for Thailand as part of the relief efforts. All of these volunteers formerly served in Thailand, speak the language and are familiar with the local customs. Their efforts will be in support of other relief organizations working to rebuild the tsunami devastated areas.
During the assessment tour, Director Vasquez met with the regional U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Director Tim Beans, a returned Peace Corps volunteer who served in South America, as well as Peace Corps Thailand Country Director John Williams.
The Crisis Corps efforts will be assisted by the Peace Corps’ recently established Southeast Asia Tsunami Fund, http://www.peacecorps.gov/tsunami. Contributions to this fund will help address the social and economic reconstruction in the wake of the tsunami devastation. As with all donations to the Peace Corps Partnership Program, 100 percent of every donation is used in the affected communities.
Crisis Corps is made up of returned Peace Corps volunteers. Since its inception in 1996, more than 550 volunteers have served in Crisis Corps, assisting communities through short term projects, utilizing their invaluable skills and experiences. Crisis Corps has responded to more than 300 natural disasters and aided more than 39 communities with their efforts. To learn more about the Peace Corps’ Crisis Corps program, visit the Peace Corps Web site at www.peacecorps.gov/rpcv/crisiscorps.
When this story was posted in January 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:
| Ask Not As our country prepares for the inauguration of a President, we remember one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century and how his words inspired us. "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man." |
| Latest: RPCVs and Peace Corps provide aid Peace Corps made an appeal last week to all Thailand RPCV's to consider serving again through the Crisis Corps and more than 30 RPCVs have responded so far. RPCVs: Read what an RPCV-led NGO is doing about the crisis an how one RPCV is headed for Sri Lanka to help a nation he grew to love. Question: Is Crisis Corps going to send RPCVs to India, Indonesia and nine other countries that need help? |
| The World's Broken Promise to our Children Former Director Carol Bellamy, now head of Unicef, says that the appalling conditions endured today by half the world's children speak to a broken promise. Too many governments are doing worse than neglecting children -- they are making deliberate, informed choices that hurt children. Read her op-ed and Unicef's report on the State of the World's Children 2005. |
| Our debt to Bill Moyers Former Peace Corps Deputy Director Bill Moyers leaves PBS next week to begin writing his memoir of Lyndon Baines Johnson. Read what Moyers says about journalism under fire, the value of a free press, and the yearning for democracy. "We have got to nurture the spirit of independent journalism in this country," he warns, "or we'll not save capitalism from its own excesses, and we'll not save democracy from its own inertia." |
| Is Gaddi Leaving? Rumors are swirling that Peace Corps Director Vasquez may be leaving the administration. We think Director Vasquez has been doing a good job and if he decides to stay to the end of the administration, he could possibly have the same sort of impact as a Loret Ruppe Miller. If Vasquez has decided to leave, then Bob Taft, Peter McPherson, Chris Shays, or Jody Olsen would be good candidates to run the agency. Latest: For the record, Peace Corps has no comment on the rumors. |
| The Birth of the Peace Corps UMBC's Shriver Center and the Maryland Returned Volunteers hosted Scott Stossel, biographer of Sargent Shriver, who spoke on the Birth of the Peace Corps. This is the second annual Peace Corps History series - last year's speaker was Peace Corps Director Jack Vaughn. |
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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Thailand; COS - Sri Lanka; Directors -Vasquez
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