2007.06.10: June 10, 2007: Headlines: COS - Uruguay: Older Volunteers: Awards: Beatrice Daily Sun: As a Peace Corps volunteer in the early 1990s, Shirley Maly found herself in a small city in Uruguay, home to just 100 people and around 60 houses
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2007.06.10: June 10, 2007: Headlines: COS - Uruguay: Older Volunteers: Awards: Beatrice Daily Sun: As a Peace Corps volunteer in the early 1990s, Shirley Maly found herself in a small city in Uruguay, home to just 100 people and around 60 houses
As a Peace Corps volunteer in the early 1990s, Shirley Maly found herself in a small city in Uruguay, home to just 100 people and around 60 houses
The rural enclave was a far cry from the scene at the Carter Center in Atlanta where Maly was recently recognized for her service by nearly 400 people _ including former President Jimmy Carter, who greeted her with a bear hug. Maly, 74, was given the Lillian Carter Award, which was established in 1986 and goes to someone who volunteered with the Peace Corps after the age of 50. The award is named after Jimmy Carter's mother, who served in the Peace Corps as a senior in the 1960s. Maly was 60 years old when she taught small-business skills in La Tentacion, Uruguay, but she said her age was hardly a detriment. "I sort of sense that the beauty of older people is that they are more patient, they're not as afraid of trying things," she said. "The older you are, the easier it is to laugh at yourself. You have a little less ego at that point."
As a Peace Corps volunteer in the early 1990s, Shirley Maly found herself in a small city in Uruguay, home to just 100 people and around 60 houses
Former president honors Peace Corps volunteer
By DREW KERR
Saturday, June 9, 2007 7:47 PM CDT
LINCOLN, Neb. - As a Peace Corps volunteer in the early 1990s, Shirley Maly found herself in a small city in Uruguay, home to just 100 people and around 60 houses.
The rural enclave was a far cry from the scene at the Carter Center in Atlanta where Maly was recently recognized for her service by nearly 400 people _ including former President Jimmy Carter, who greeted her with a bear hug.
Maly, 74, was given the Lillian Carter Award, which was established in 1986 and goes to someone who volunteered with the Peace Corps after the age of 50. The award is named after Jimmy Carter's mother, who served in the Peace Corps as a senior in the 1960s.
Maly was 60 years old when she taught small-business skills in La Tentacion, Uruguay, but she said her age was hardly a detriment.
"I sort of sense that the beauty of older people is that they are more patient, they're not as afraid of trying things," she said. "The older you are, the easier it is to laugh at yourself. You have a little less ego at that point."
Maly's later-in-life experience is rare. Of the 7,749 volunteers serving today, just 5 percent are older than 50, according to the Peace Corps.
Ronald A. Tschetter, the director of the Peace Corps who presented Maly with the distinction, said in an interview that people like Maly are becoming more common. More applications have been received in the last three months than the previous six, he said. He credited the rise to an educated, healthy and financially solvent group of baby boomers who are beginning to reach retirement age.
The group, he said, brings an entirely different set of assets to the organization.
"It just brings a level of dignity that I think warms up the room," Tschetter said from Washington, D.C. "I hear that all across the globe."
Maly, who has written a book about her experiences and speaks at recruiting events, also said age begets boldness _ something with which fresh-out-of-college optimists can struggle.
"I'm not saying the younger kids are fearful, but they can feel kind of thrown," the former business executive said.
Maly received a hand-blown glass sculpture from Carter and Tschetter at the ceremony that depicts a person reaching for the stars. She also will now become a part of the Peace Corps' advertising campaign, as the group launches a seven-month initiative to attract seniors.
"There are a lot of people like Ms. Maly who decide there is more to life than running a PR firm as she was doing," Tschetter said. "I see situations like this literally around the globe. "There's a lot of them that want to do the mai tai-on-the-beach thing, but there are a whole host of others who want to find new ways to serve."
Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com
A service of the Associated Press(AP)
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Headlines: June, 2007; Peace Corps Uruguay; Directory of Uruguay RPCVs; Messages and Announcements for Uruguay RPCVs; Older Volunteers; Awards
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Story Source: Beatrice Daily Sun
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Uruguay; Older Volunteers; Awards
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