Two awesome articles online read them
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kevin-quigley/peace-corps-a-program-for_b_829675.html?ref=fb&src=sp
http://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/2011/03/a-very-special-global-house-party
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Thursday, March 3, 2011
New Beginnings, Illness, and a Night of Magic
As usual I have been slacking in my blogging duties. I just love keeping all of you followers out there hanging in suspense. January seems sooo long ago! I will try to do my best to report everything important that has happened. Well where to begin
January: Like all new years I suppose, January was a month of beginnings. I began to form new friendships in my site. I finally after four months of being in site met the Japanese volunteer that was also living in my site. In a city of only 1,000 people it seems impossible to only have met her briefly once before, but that was the case. She worked over in the medical clinic and I worked in the mayor’s office, and other than being with her Honduran family, whom I didn’t know and working she never left the house, and we just never crossed paths. However, one day in January she came by the mayor’s office and we introduced ourselves. She told me the nurse that I had been running with for a while had told her that we were running. She was looking for a running partner, and I had been longing to go running again since I stopped running with the nurse for safety concerns. So we made plans and started running, unfortunately because we were both so busy we were only unable to go running a few times before she finished her two years of service and returned to Japan. Sadly after their many years of service in my town of Oropolí, JAIKA the Japanese development agency will not be sending anymore volunteers to the town. As with many nations around the world Japan is cutting budgets and JAIKA is greatly decreasing their number of volunteers in Honduras. Also unlike many municipalities in Honduras there are no NGOs in Oropolí. Now that the Japanese volunteer is gone I am the only source of foreign help my community has. I see this as a good thing. My community definitely has the resources and the possibilities for agricultural wealth; it is time they learn to stand on their own two feet without foreign sources supporting them. It is my hope that I will be able to guide them to learn to help themselves, to make their own wealth, tax properly, and use that money responsibly to sustain and improve their municipality and their living quality. This is my Peace Corps Dream. (Along with learning how to protect their natural resources and environment, and treating women as equals!)These are my own personal goals that I have decided to strive to achieve during my two years in service. I have already begun working on helping women’s equality by strengthening the women’s office. In which we are going to be giving speeches all around the municipality on equality, rights of women, domestic abuse prevention, and self esteem for women. Changing traditions is a very hard task, however, I feel it is a very little one and I hope that little by little we can start to change the way women are viewed.
Another new beginning that occurred in January is the start of two new projects!! I had already discussed with my counterpart about our interest in starting an improved stove project, and in January we began the process. We did the entire project design and began to write the grant proposal. Because my project manager knew I was beginning a project in renewable energy I was invited to an international renewable energy conference in Zamorano, a highly esteemed university in Honduras that is working on renewable energy. While at the conference we discussed the types of renewable energy that we were using in our municipalities and our future desires for renewable energy. While at the conference I showed interest in the use of solar panels to power some of our very isolated villages. We already have one solar panel that was donated that powers a school in one of our eight villages without electricity. I have always believed that solar panels were the best way to bring electricity because they use renewable energy and in the long run you save money. In addition, some of our villages are so far away from the electrical lines it would be fifty years before we would be able to bring electricity to these villages. Therefore these villages are perfect candidates for solar panels. Anyways, at this conference I expressed interest, and I met a man that worked for a company that had solar panels and improved stoves, and he told me he knew of a NGO for a funding source. Hence, my second project was born. I was so excited this was the big project I was waiting for. If I could bring electricity to just a couple villages I would be making a huge impact on these peoples lives. However, unfortunately like usual in Honduras our funding source fell through and now I am back at 0. If anyone knows of anyway to raise this money of some company willing to donate the solar panels themselves I would love to hear it!
Also is January I built up my bond with my puppy Dulce. She is now my baby girl. She is a terror! She is constantly puppy biting, and chewing on things. Also she loves to carry everything outside! If I can’t find shoes or clothing I just have to go look in my backyard and she has almost always carried them outside. Although she is a little rascal she makes me laugh constantly and the things she does. Also my boyfriend and I like to take walks in the riverbed looking for giant lizards and we like to take Dulce , and she loves it! At first she was a little terrified of constantly having to cross the river, but now she jumps right in an paddles her little heart out to cross not wanting to be left behind it is so cute!
February:
If January was a month of new beginning February would have to be the month of illness. At the beginning of the month I went back to the University of Zamorano this time for my weeklong reconnect training session with the municipal development project of Peace Corps. The first day was just my training group and our counterparts learning more about renewable energy and recycling. The day was a success although I do not think my counterpart or I learned anything new already having interest in the area of renewable energy. However, that evening my counterpart left for Tegucigalpa and the other counterparts invited us volunteers to a bar. Not having my counterpart present was nice then I didn’t feel I had to hide that I drink to not lose his respect. So I went with about 10 other volunteers and had a few drinks. It was fun, and coincidentally the mayor of the next municipality over, San Lucas just happened to stop at the bar as well on his way back home. He gave the volunteer in his site and me a few drinks. It was a good time, and the counterparts all got very drunk and wild. When we got back to the hotel the volunteers all went to bed while the counterparts stayed up being drunk and crazy. It was actually quite funny. The rest of the week the counterparts left and the prior municipal development group joined us for training. It was a sad training. On the second day the country director and director of security met with us to discuss the high number of rapes and violent incidents. In the last 3 months there have been 3 rapes and 2 violent attacks. We talked about how we can make sure we are being extra safe. Then after that depressing speech we received another blow. Do to budget cuts Peace Corps has to clean up all over the world. Unfortunately for Honduras that means we have to cut two projects and lower our number of trainees from100 to 80. They automatically decided to cut Municipal development because our project includes a bit of every other project because we work in all areas of the mayors office including youth, environmental protection, ect. Although it is still disappointing that they are cutting municipal development because many of us believe that development on a local governmental level is very important. With a weak and unfunctional local government development in other areas won’t improve the quality of live for the village, such as roads electricity parks, all important things the government must learn to manage.
Then after training I got sick from something I ate or drank at the University and got a bacterial infection and parasites. As you can imagine that was not to much fun.
A couple weeks after I was medevacd to Washington DC. I am still there currently and am recuperating well. It was nice that I got medecavd at the same time as another volunteer in Honduras and we traveled together and roomed together and have become friends and support each other during our medevac.
March 1 was the 50th anniversary of Peace Corps. All that week before my fellow medevac friends and I had been asking if there was anything going on with Peace Corps Washington for the anniversary because all over the world there was parties in Peace Corps countries. All week long everyone kept telling us that there was nothing going on. Then on the 1st we mosey on over to the National Peace Corps Association to try and find some free Peace Corps stickers (which they do not have). Although while we were there we asked the receptionist what was going on for the anniversary. She told us there were numerous house parties over 700 nationwide. Although the one she recommended was just a speech at nearby University. However, we then saw a flyer inviting people to go to capitol hill on Thursday the 3 to help support the Peace Corps and talk to their state representatives about the importance of Peace Corps so they don’t cut our budget. We were very interested in helping and while talking to the man in charge, the president of the National Peace Corps Association came into the office and asked us if we wanted to go to a party. He invited us to this very nice invite only party in Dupont circle. At the party other than the three of us medevacs there was two recently returned volunteers helping in the office, there were only people very high up in the Peace Corps totem pole. There were former country directors, ambassadors, congressmen, representatives, heads of international development organizations, and Harris Wofford one of the leaders who created the Peace Corps alongside Sargent Shriver and Kennedy. He is a huge role model. It was a great honor to be able to dine and talk with all of those great Peace Corps role models. The party was held by a married Peace Corps couple that was the first group to go back to Ghana in the 60s. Their house was a beautiful townhouse. I absolutely loved it. The party was catered with delicious hoardurvs, white wine and champagne. I was able to talk with many people that have done wonderful things for international development. Also Harris Wofford and Sam Farr gave speeches on the wonderful things Peace Corps has done but also its lost opportunities. Harris told us that when he originally was creating Peace Corps with Shriver and Kennedy they originally started out sending 16,000 volunteers that first year, and it was their goal to get to sending 100,000 volunteers each year. However, through lost opportunities the number of volunteers has actually decreased we now only send about 8,000 volunteers every year due to budget restrictions. This sadly is now a lost opportunity because of the economic struggle we definitely could not have more volunteers. Another lost opportunity that Harris proposed was based on that Afghanistan and Iran were among the first most important countries. Harries challenged us to contemplate whether or not we would be in those countries fighting right now, if we had reached that goal of 100,000 and had sent large amounts of volunteers into these countries 40 years ago teaching cultural understanding and providing a way for the people to obtain their basic human rights without resorting to terrorist organizations. In my opinion this is a lost opportunity for peace because we absolutely would not be there. That is the fundamental idea behind Peace Corps, and that is why in my opinion it is so much more important than defense spending. If we put even half of the money into Peace Corps that we put into defense spending, the world would be a much better place. When people have their basic human rights they are much less likely to be violent. It is when people are starving, cold, and uneducated that we see desperate people turning to violence. In addition, it is easy for people to hate cultures and people that they do not know or understand. Peace Corps bridges that gap. It teaches the people of the countries being served about the United States and its citizens and culture, while the volunteers learn about their host country culture. Peace Corps forges alliances, friendships, and a general respect and gratitude among the people helped, that they still talk about years later. These are not steps toward war like building big armies and guns, such as is done with 20 percent of our GDP for defense spending. They are steps towards long term alliances and peace. Are not the basic fundamental goals of Peace Corps the goals of everyone? Everyone wants a world without hunger and violence. Peace Corps take steps in the right direction. We should start taking steps in the right direction towards putting more funding towards peace rather than war. Back to the topic at hand, it really was a great night and made me feel a part of something very important and very large on a world scale. I would just like to personally thank the National Peace Corps Association for inviting me. They are a great organization, and when I finish serving I will definitely be joining them!
Well until next time followers!
January: Like all new years I suppose, January was a month of beginnings. I began to form new friendships in my site. I finally after four months of being in site met the Japanese volunteer that was also living in my site. In a city of only 1,000 people it seems impossible to only have met her briefly once before, but that was the case. She worked over in the medical clinic and I worked in the mayor’s office, and other than being with her Honduran family, whom I didn’t know and working she never left the house, and we just never crossed paths. However, one day in January she came by the mayor’s office and we introduced ourselves. She told me the nurse that I had been running with for a while had told her that we were running. She was looking for a running partner, and I had been longing to go running again since I stopped running with the nurse for safety concerns. So we made plans and started running, unfortunately because we were both so busy we were only unable to go running a few times before she finished her two years of service and returned to Japan. Sadly after their many years of service in my town of Oropolí, JAIKA the Japanese development agency will not be sending anymore volunteers to the town. As with many nations around the world Japan is cutting budgets and JAIKA is greatly decreasing their number of volunteers in Honduras. Also unlike many municipalities in Honduras there are no NGOs in Oropolí. Now that the Japanese volunteer is gone I am the only source of foreign help my community has. I see this as a good thing. My community definitely has the resources and the possibilities for agricultural wealth; it is time they learn to stand on their own two feet without foreign sources supporting them. It is my hope that I will be able to guide them to learn to help themselves, to make their own wealth, tax properly, and use that money responsibly to sustain and improve their municipality and their living quality. This is my Peace Corps Dream. (Along with learning how to protect their natural resources and environment, and treating women as equals!)These are my own personal goals that I have decided to strive to achieve during my two years in service. I have already begun working on helping women’s equality by strengthening the women’s office. In which we are going to be giving speeches all around the municipality on equality, rights of women, domestic abuse prevention, and self esteem for women. Changing traditions is a very hard task, however, I feel it is a very little one and I hope that little by little we can start to change the way women are viewed.
Another new beginning that occurred in January is the start of two new projects!! I had already discussed with my counterpart about our interest in starting an improved stove project, and in January we began the process. We did the entire project design and began to write the grant proposal. Because my project manager knew I was beginning a project in renewable energy I was invited to an international renewable energy conference in Zamorano, a highly esteemed university in Honduras that is working on renewable energy. While at the conference we discussed the types of renewable energy that we were using in our municipalities and our future desires for renewable energy. While at the conference I showed interest in the use of solar panels to power some of our very isolated villages. We already have one solar panel that was donated that powers a school in one of our eight villages without electricity. I have always believed that solar panels were the best way to bring electricity because they use renewable energy and in the long run you save money. In addition, some of our villages are so far away from the electrical lines it would be fifty years before we would be able to bring electricity to these villages. Therefore these villages are perfect candidates for solar panels. Anyways, at this conference I expressed interest, and I met a man that worked for a company that had solar panels and improved stoves, and he told me he knew of a NGO for a funding source. Hence, my second project was born. I was so excited this was the big project I was waiting for. If I could bring electricity to just a couple villages I would be making a huge impact on these peoples lives. However, unfortunately like usual in Honduras our funding source fell through and now I am back at 0. If anyone knows of anyway to raise this money of some company willing to donate the solar panels themselves I would love to hear it!
Also is January I built up my bond with my puppy Dulce. She is now my baby girl. She is a terror! She is constantly puppy biting, and chewing on things. Also she loves to carry everything outside! If I can’t find shoes or clothing I just have to go look in my backyard and she has almost always carried them outside. Although she is a little rascal she makes me laugh constantly and the things she does. Also my boyfriend and I like to take walks in the riverbed looking for giant lizards and we like to take Dulce , and she loves it! At first she was a little terrified of constantly having to cross the river, but now she jumps right in an paddles her little heart out to cross not wanting to be left behind it is so cute!
February:
If January was a month of new beginning February would have to be the month of illness. At the beginning of the month I went back to the University of Zamorano this time for my weeklong reconnect training session with the municipal development project of Peace Corps. The first day was just my training group and our counterparts learning more about renewable energy and recycling. The day was a success although I do not think my counterpart or I learned anything new already having interest in the area of renewable energy. However, that evening my counterpart left for Tegucigalpa and the other counterparts invited us volunteers to a bar. Not having my counterpart present was nice then I didn’t feel I had to hide that I drink to not lose his respect. So I went with about 10 other volunteers and had a few drinks. It was fun, and coincidentally the mayor of the next municipality over, San Lucas just happened to stop at the bar as well on his way back home. He gave the volunteer in his site and me a few drinks. It was a good time, and the counterparts all got very drunk and wild. When we got back to the hotel the volunteers all went to bed while the counterparts stayed up being drunk and crazy. It was actually quite funny. The rest of the week the counterparts left and the prior municipal development group joined us for training. It was a sad training. On the second day the country director and director of security met with us to discuss the high number of rapes and violent incidents. In the last 3 months there have been 3 rapes and 2 violent attacks. We talked about how we can make sure we are being extra safe. Then after that depressing speech we received another blow. Do to budget cuts Peace Corps has to clean up all over the world. Unfortunately for Honduras that means we have to cut two projects and lower our number of trainees from100 to 80. They automatically decided to cut Municipal development because our project includes a bit of every other project because we work in all areas of the mayors office including youth, environmental protection, ect. Although it is still disappointing that they are cutting municipal development because many of us believe that development on a local governmental level is very important. With a weak and unfunctional local government development in other areas won’t improve the quality of live for the village, such as roads electricity parks, all important things the government must learn to manage.
Then after training I got sick from something I ate or drank at the University and got a bacterial infection and parasites. As you can imagine that was not to much fun.
A couple weeks after I was medevacd to Washington DC. I am still there currently and am recuperating well. It was nice that I got medecavd at the same time as another volunteer in Honduras and we traveled together and roomed together and have become friends and support each other during our medevac.
March 1 was the 50th anniversary of Peace Corps. All that week before my fellow medevac friends and I had been asking if there was anything going on with Peace Corps Washington for the anniversary because all over the world there was parties in Peace Corps countries. All week long everyone kept telling us that there was nothing going on. Then on the 1st we mosey on over to the National Peace Corps Association to try and find some free Peace Corps stickers (which they do not have). Although while we were there we asked the receptionist what was going on for the anniversary. She told us there were numerous house parties over 700 nationwide. Although the one she recommended was just a speech at nearby University. However, we then saw a flyer inviting people to go to capitol hill on Thursday the 3 to help support the Peace Corps and talk to their state representatives about the importance of Peace Corps so they don’t cut our budget. We were very interested in helping and while talking to the man in charge, the president of the National Peace Corps Association came into the office and asked us if we wanted to go to a party. He invited us to this very nice invite only party in Dupont circle. At the party other than the three of us medevacs there was two recently returned volunteers helping in the office, there were only people very high up in the Peace Corps totem pole. There were former country directors, ambassadors, congressmen, representatives, heads of international development organizations, and Harris Wofford one of the leaders who created the Peace Corps alongside Sargent Shriver and Kennedy. He is a huge role model. It was a great honor to be able to dine and talk with all of those great Peace Corps role models. The party was held by a married Peace Corps couple that was the first group to go back to Ghana in the 60s. Their house was a beautiful townhouse. I absolutely loved it. The party was catered with delicious hoardurvs, white wine and champagne. I was able to talk with many people that have done wonderful things for international development. Also Harris Wofford and Sam Farr gave speeches on the wonderful things Peace Corps has done but also its lost opportunities. Harris told us that when he originally was creating Peace Corps with Shriver and Kennedy they originally started out sending 16,000 volunteers that first year, and it was their goal to get to sending 100,000 volunteers each year. However, through lost opportunities the number of volunteers has actually decreased we now only send about 8,000 volunteers every year due to budget restrictions. This sadly is now a lost opportunity because of the economic struggle we definitely could not have more volunteers. Another lost opportunity that Harris proposed was based on that Afghanistan and Iran were among the first most important countries. Harries challenged us to contemplate whether or not we would be in those countries fighting right now, if we had reached that goal of 100,000 and had sent large amounts of volunteers into these countries 40 years ago teaching cultural understanding and providing a way for the people to obtain their basic human rights without resorting to terrorist organizations. In my opinion this is a lost opportunity for peace because we absolutely would not be there. That is the fundamental idea behind Peace Corps, and that is why in my opinion it is so much more important than defense spending. If we put even half of the money into Peace Corps that we put into defense spending, the world would be a much better place. When people have their basic human rights they are much less likely to be violent. It is when people are starving, cold, and uneducated that we see desperate people turning to violence. In addition, it is easy for people to hate cultures and people that they do not know or understand. Peace Corps bridges that gap. It teaches the people of the countries being served about the United States and its citizens and culture, while the volunteers learn about their host country culture. Peace Corps forges alliances, friendships, and a general respect and gratitude among the people helped, that they still talk about years later. These are not steps toward war like building big armies and guns, such as is done with 20 percent of our GDP for defense spending. They are steps towards long term alliances and peace. Are not the basic fundamental goals of Peace Corps the goals of everyone? Everyone wants a world without hunger and violence. Peace Corps take steps in the right direction. We should start taking steps in the right direction towards putting more funding towards peace rather than war. Back to the topic at hand, it really was a great night and made me feel a part of something very important and very large on a world scale. I would just like to personally thank the National Peace Corps Association for inviting me. They are a great organization, and when I finish serving I will definitely be joining them!
Well until next time followers!
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