2006.10.08: October 8, 2006: Headlines: COS - Georgia: Older Volunteers: Daytona Beach News-Journal: Norman Hickey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Georgia at the age of 76
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2006.10.08: October 8, 2006: Headlines: COS - Georgia: Older Volunteers: Daytona Beach News-Journal: Norman Hickey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Georgia at the age of 76
Norman Hickey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Georgia at the age of 76
Hickey is no stranger to adventure. He has gone on assignments on behalf of various U.S. agencies going back more than 30 years to faraway lands such as Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Russia and Colombia. He was city manager of Daytona Beach from 1963 to 1966, as well as a manager for local governments in Titusville, San Diego, Hillsborough County and St. Petersburg. However, Georgia will always hold a special place in his heart. He served as the country director coordinating other Peace Corps volunteers who were there to teach English. The mom naming her baby after him was one of his co-workers.
Norman Hickey served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Georgia at the age of 76
Volunteers will always have a piece of the Peace Corps
By NICOLE SERVICE
Staff Writer
[Excerpt]
Volunteer gets a namesake
Born this July in Georgia -- the country, not the state -- was a baby girl with a very special name -- Tekla Norma.
The little bundle of joy was named after South Daytona resident Norman Hickey, a tribute to the hearts and souls he won while serving in Georgia as a Peace Corp volunteer.
He did it all at the grand age of 76.
"That's the good thing about the Peace Corps," Hickey said. "You are never too old."
Now 78, Hickey described his time from 2003 to 2005, as "one of the best experiences of my life.
"I advise anyone to do it," Hickey said. "It will change you and for the better."
Hickey is no stranger to adventure. He has gone on assignments on behalf of various U.S. agencies going back more than 30 years to faraway lands such as Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Russia and Colombia. He was city manager of Daytona Beach from 1963 to 1966, as well as a manager for local governments in Titusville, San Diego, Hillsborough County and St. Petersburg.
However, Georgia will always hold a special place in his heart. He served as the country director coordinating other Peace Corps volunteers who were there to teach English. The mom naming her baby after him was one of his co-workers.
"I've met some wonderful people," Hickey said, "and I have many memorable moments."
He talks about one night hearing gunshots outside his home and discovering it was a neighbor chasing away bandits. And there was the time he fell into a 16-foot construction pit while walking at night near his home in Tbilisi, the capital city of Georgia.
Several hours passed before he was found and several more hours before he could be removed from the pit, which had rocks at the bottom. He broke his right arm and hip, and suffered injuries to his right shoulder and leg.
While recovering, he got a letter from Gaddi Vasquez, the then-director of the Peace Corps, complimenting him on his efforts in Georgia.
Hickey talked about the warmth of the people and how they seem to value things Americans sometimes take for granted, such as education.
Above all, he said, he made friends while serving in Georgia.
"You can't help but become very close to the people," Hickey said. "You become a part of their lives."
When this story was posted in October 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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Story Source: Daytona Beach News-Journal
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Georgia; Older Volunteers
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