RPCV, RPCVSF

Our annual Spirit of Service Learning Award event, held on Saturday, October 6th, at the Miami Springs Lions Club, was well-attended by RPCVs, awardees and friends.  After some mingling and a scrumptious, potluck meal, awards were given to the following people:

Finalists - Aileen Ochoa, Fundamentals of Speech Communication, Miami Dade College - Kendall Campus; Carlos Gonzalez, English Composition, Miami Dade College - Kendall Campus; and Susannah Brown, Art Education in Elementary & Secondary Schools, Florida Atlantic University.

Winners - Dr. Ann Graziotti, Community Health Nursing Practicum & Advanced Concepts Practicum, Miami Dade College - Medical Campus; Dr. Joshua Schriftman, ENG/SOC Publishing, Justice & the Freedom of Speech, University of Miami; and Dr. Pamela Hall, Senior Seminar - Psychology Capstone Course, Barry University.

One additional finalist, Liza Greenberg, College Prep Reading and Writing & English Composition, Miami Dade College - InterAmerican Campus, and one other winner, Dr. Jan Sokol-Katz, Juvenile Delinquency, University of Miami, were unable to attend.

All recipients expressed gratitude to RPCVSF for the award and recognition they received.

Front row - Finalists and Winners - Dr. Ann Graziotti, Susannah Brown, Dr. Joshua Schriftman, Carlos Gonzalez, Aileen Ochoa

Back row - RPCVSF SSL Committee Members - Mary Lamberts (Thailand, 70-72), Dave Garcia (Kenya, 88-90), Linda Whitmyre (Malaysia, 67-69),  Josh Young (Malawi, 84-86 & Paraguay, 88-90), Ana Ciereszko (St. Vincent & the Grenadines, 69-71)

Dr. Pamela Hall

RPCV Josh Young welcomes attendees

We had 6 attend the Yellow-Green Farmers Market on Sunday, September 30th, where we found RPCV Linda Alvarez selling honey from Florida Keys' bees.

From left: Michelle Kelsey, Barb Junge, Linda Alvarez, Ann Gleeson, Seamus Gleeson, Lenore Sek. Not pictured: Sharon Alvarado.

Friday - Dinner at the Tower of Pizza, Key Largo

Saturday - September Meeting of the RPCVSF Board of Directors

On behalf of myself and the community of Fîrlădeni, Moldova - we would like to thank you for contributing to our “Resources for Girls’ Empowerment and Equality” grant project!

Because of your contribution we were able to fund the grant quicker than expected, and will begin project activities tomorrow, September 12th. The community is beyond excited to start improving the quality of education received by its students, and is ecstatic to begin the project almost 3 weeks ahead of schedule!

We thank you again for your contributions and can assure you they will be used to create positive and lasting change.

 Brendan Williams

English Educator, U.S. Peace Corps Moldova

Hello RPCVs of South Florida,

I am an RPCV (Costa Rica 93-95) who lives in Fort Myers.  I teach at Florida SouthWestern State Collegeand our college would like Peace Corps to be part of FSW’s International Education Week (Nov 13-15).  Our focus is global issues, and I know RPCV’s have plenty to share about this topic from our service as Peace Corps volunteers.

We are in the rough planning stages right now, but our idea is to have either a panel discussion/Q & A session about an hour long in which 4-5 RPCVs could share their Peace Corps experiences/insights regarding global issues with an audience of about 100 college students.  Another idea is to have a table/booth where students could informally walk up and talk to RPCV’s.

 

We are looking at one of the approximate time slots: Tuesday, Nov 13 sometime between 10am-1pm, Wednesday, Nov 14 sometime between 2-5pm, or Thursday, Nov 15 sometime between 2-6pm (but this day would probably be only a table/booth).

We would appreciate any feedback or responses by Thursday, Oct 4 because on Friday, Oct 5 I will be meeting with others at FSW to solidify our plans.  Please email me at Mary.Schultz@fsw.eduif you think you would like to participate.

 

We would love to have as much participation from local RPCV’s as possible, the college students want to know about Peace Corps and global issues, and how they can serve their country.  As an RPCV myself, I will be participating, but having more RPCVs will help show the diversity of experiences that Peace Corps offers.

  

Thank you for considering this opportunity to fulfill the 3^rdmission of Peace Corps!

Mary Ellen Schultz    

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For MANY years, Ana Ciereszko has been our South Florida advocate via NPCA to promote Peace Corps.  This has kept her on the forefront of Peace Corps issues and provided a structure (via NPCA guidance) for advocacy work.

Other things are claiming her attention now and she is relinquishing this volunteer position ... although she is very willing to mentor our next advocate. For more information, please contact Linda Whitmyre at ftm@rpcvsf.org, after clicking here: Advocacy Coordinator.pdf 

Our annual shipment of Calendars, Perpetual Calendars and Notecards just arrived. To purchase, please contact our market at ftm@rpcvsf.org.

Including Sales Tax and Postage, International Calendars are $14 each, Perpetual Calendars are $11 each and Notecards are $10 for a package of eight.

The RPCV Perpetual Calendar is a reusable calendar that will help you keep track of important events in your life. It is ideal for recording birthdays, anniversaries, and other significant events that are celebrated on the same day, year in and year out. There is space to record important moments and milestones, and each month of this spiral-bound calendar features a photograph first seen in one of our past International Calendars.

Dear Members of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of South Florida,

You are invited to become a member of Global Ties Miami at a special discount rate based on your existing membership in RPCVSF. For more information, please click: Global Ties

Dear Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of South Florida,

My name is John DeLeo Jr, and I am a PCV from Fort Lauderdale, FL, currently serving in the TEFL program in Kyrgyz Republic. I have attached a picture of me wearing my 2017 Everglades Outing t-shirt while volunteering at a kindergarten in Osh city, Kyrgyzstan, during my school break. Thank you..

August 11, 2018 - Partnership Dinner in Miami at a famous Argentinian restaurant and grill.  For details and to register, just click on Partnership  Dinner in the Calendar at the top of this page.

August 5th, 2018 - Partnership Dinner in Hollywood raised $210 which is 100% matched by RPCVSF for a $420 contribution to the Peace Corps Partnership Program. See the photos of this event in Our Photo Album in the Menu to the left.

These two dinners supported a Girls Greenhouse Initiative in Armenia (led by a PCV from Florida); and a Resources for Girls' Empowerment and Equality in Moldova.

FYI - The Peace Corps Partnership Program (PCPP) connects Volunteers and their communities with the private sector in the U.S. and around the world in order to fund community initiated and led projects.

PCPP is a proven mechanism for supporting small community-based grants.  Over the past ten years, PCPP has funded over 7,200 Volunteer projects in nearly every sector, totaling more than 19.8 million dollars in grant funds. Last year alone, PCPP funded 930 projects in 57 countries, touching the lives of 1.5 million people across the globe.

Over the same 10 year period, RPCVSF sent to PCPP over $16,800 that was contributed by diners and matched by RPCVSF. We have been doing Partnership Dinners  for almost 35 years! Our thanks to all the diners for their contributions and all the wonderful restaurants who have made our contributions possible.

30 Folks Attended Partnership Dinner at an Argentinian Restaurant in Miami - 11AUG18

For more photos of the Event, please see Our Photo Album to the Left

RPCVSF's Donation through the Peace Corps Partnership Program helped build this school!

For More Photos of the Construction, Please see Our Photo Album to the left.

Click Below to Learn about A Towering Task, a Documentary about Peace Corps

Towering Task

July 28, 2018 - Marlins vs Washington Nationals

 

We had a turnout of 19. Great game (2-1 Marlins in 10) plus post-game fireworks.

For more photos, please see "Our Photo Album" on the left side of this page

July 20, 2018 Emergency happy hour at The Grove Spot, Coconut Grove, Miami

Click to the right for the:  Farewell to Steve Video

(Note: much of this video is without sound)

Steve touched many lives during his years as a Recruiter for the Preace Corps.

We wish him the best in his future endeavors,

the Members of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of South Florida

Above Photo includes Adam Housh in the green T, the new Regional PC Recruiter.

   

The OATtravel last minute trip prices cannot be beat IF you are traveling as a couple and the quality of their packages is fantastic. Exception: the current OAT package for South Africa is NOT the best because they have dropped Lesotho which is well worth a day trip.

Orbitz has been showing a bargain package to Amsterdam in October with an excellent selection of day trips. Share your finds with travel@rpcvsf.org

Follow up our Indonesia Partnership dinner with a trip to Indonesia with the only package that can include Komodo Island, home of the dragons. Check out OATtravel.com AND look into their last minute travel bargains if you are a traveling pair. Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world with a Hindu pocket in Bali, recently became a Peace Corps country. Our restaurant is named for the island that exploded in 1883. For a film interpretation, see: Krakatoa: East of Java. If you check your map, you will find it is west of Java. That’s Hollywood.

Would you be interested in a safari to Tanzania including  Zanzibar in March, 2019? In addition to all those animals in the national parks, there is a walk through the historic Stone Town area of Zanzibar town where all the major explorations of Africa began or ended. The last 3 days of the safari are at an Indian Ocean resort similar to a Club Med: your admission bracelet gets you food and drinks all day and night except call brands. If interested without obligation, contact travel@rpcvsf.org.

By Greg Zell (Nigeria 62-64)

For the Story, Please Click Here: >>> Marge and Greg do Bangkok and Indochina.docx

For the Story, Please Click the following: Travel goes to Central Africa.pdf 

Cinco de Mayo - 2018

( Please See "Our Photo Album" to the left for more Photos )

The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of the Gulf Coast of Florida hosted World Heritage Festival Saturday, April 28, 2018, at Bayfront Park, Sarasota, from 11 am to 3 pm, in partnership with “Embracing Our Differences.” RPCVs showed displays representing the seven regions Peace Corps Volunteers serve in and shared their stories. We had artifacts, sights and music from all over the world. Hundreds of people attended and  what a wonderful surprise when students from Manatee School of the Performing Arts and Sarasota School for the Arts and Sciences did cultural dances for us! That spontaneity was so uplifting! All the students that were there contributed so much and worked steadfastly to make sure our event was a success! (A note from Leita Kaldi)

More at: http://peacecorpsworldwide.org/rpcvs-of-gulf-coast-of-florida-hosted-world-heritage-festival/

On April 8th, 2018, a group of RPCVs and their friends and families visited the Everglades National Park to tour the Nike Hercules Missile site that was activated during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. For more information about tours, just Google "everglades missile base tour."

This year 29 RPCVSF members, 11 Kiwanis Club of Biscayne Bay members and six park rangers from the Everglades National Park hosted 78 wonderful kids and 37 accompanying adults from five homeless shelters for a day in the Florida Everglades. The total attendance including guests was 169.

For more photos of the day, please click on "Our Photo Album" on the left side menu.

Everglades National Park is a 1.5-million-acre wetlands preserve on the southern tip of the U.S. state of Florida. Often compared to a grassy, slow-moving river, the Everglades is made up of coastal mangroves, sawgrass marshes and pine flatwoods that are home to hundreds of animal species.

 Among the Everglades' abundant wildlife are the endangered leatherback turtle, Florida panther and West Indian manatee. The Everglades is the only place in the world where the American alligator and the American Crocodile coexist.

A Happy New Year from HELP   And...   We met our match... and more!   HELP would not be able to send 1 student to school let alone 165 if it wasn't for you. We are grateful for all our supporters.    Thank you!

RPCVSF's 2017 donations to HELP generated by our Fair Trade Market sales typically cover Room and Board for 2 students.  With the matching effect of this year’s donation, it’s 4 !!!!  Keep shopping.

     

   

On Friday, December 8^th, Mary Lamberts and Doris Vincent of RPCVSF traveled to the offices of the Redlands Christian Migrant Association in Immokalee, to deliver a check (donations collected at our AGM and matched by RPCVSF) and lots of toys for RCMA kids (collected at our holiday party).

RCMA helps infants as young as 6 weeks old, and school-aged children in their charter school and after-school programs, where children receive the professional loving care and education that is so important for their future success.  It brings peace of mind to parents who leave their treasures in RCMA’s safe hands while they work to get ahead. 

The RPCVSF Board of Directors selected RCMA to receive the money and toys we collected, since many of the migrants temporarily lost their livelihoods when Mother Nature flooded out crops in the Immokalee area, making it difficult for the workers to buy Christmas gifts for their children.   Our sincere thanks (and those of RCMA) go to all RPCVs who made donations.