February 20, 2006	Volume 5, Number 5

Peace Corps week begins February 27

On a rainy early October morning in 1960, then-Senator John F. Kennedy challenged students at the University of Michigan to serve their country by living and working abroad. Since then, countless lives have been touched and changed by the tens of thousands of volunteers who have answered that call and served in the Peace Corps.

In celebration of the 45th anniversary of the official establishment of the Peace Corps on March 1, 1961, current and former volunteers and their friends and families will share their overseas experiences, participating in commemorative events that begin during Peace Corps Week, February 27-March 5. Peace Corps Week provides an ideal opportunity for past and present volunteers to share how they have helped their host countries. Whether the venue is a classroom, library, or a village in a remote part of the world, volunteers bring the world closer by sharing cultures abroad and at home.

Two Wisconsin organizations are available to provide speakers to classrooms. The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Wisconsin-Madison at www.rpcvmadison.org, and the Milwaukee Peace Corps Association at www.milwaukeepeacecorps.org. Teachers in other cities can contact the regional recruiting office for Wisconsin at 800-424-8580 to inquire about speakers in their area. More information and resources for Peace Corps Week can be found at http://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.former.pcweek.

Last updated on 2/20/2006