Peace Corps News

Doug Roberts travels to Vanuatu to where his son, Peace Corps Volunteer John Roberts died in an accident last year

Doug returned to where his son spent the last two years of his life. "I wanted to go back and ensure them that they really needed to have another volunteer there and sort of carry on John's work. John was there for two years and I didn't want his two years to be wasted there by not bringing in another volunteer." Doug was given a hero's welcome. “I was so happy that I did because as I was saying, a village of 75 people, there was 300 people there to see me."

One of the nation’s most presitgious events, a 100-Day ceremony, a tribute to the life of his son. "On one sense it was just completely sad because the tears were there, on the next sense it was just such a happy occasion for me because I was able to share that with them."

Then Doug himself made history, given the Medal of Gallantry from the president of Vanuatu, an honor never before bestowed on a foreigner. "It's shocking, it's stunning, John was killed and he was out of there in such a short period of time, the people never got a chance to say goodbye to him so when I went back for this 100-Day ceremony, it was a healing for me as well as for the people of Erramango.”  Read more.

Peace Corps Mourns the Loss of Volunteer John Roberts

Peace Corps Mourns the Loss of Volunteer John Roberts
The Peace Corps is mourning the loss of John D. Roberts, a Peace Corps Volunteer in Vanuatu. Roberts died as the result of an accident while working at his site on October 11. A student was cutting branches from a tree at the school where Roberts and other students were cleaning the garden, and when one of the branches fell, it struck Roberts and another member of the community. Tragically, both were killed. "John was an exemplary Volunteer who had a true heart for service," said Peace Corps Director Ron Tschetter. "John's death is a tremendous loss for his family, the Peace Corps, and the People of Vanuatu—in particular those in the community where he served. Read more.

Family Remembers Peace Corps Volunteer
Doug Roberts told KETV NewsWatch 7 on Friday that his son graduated from Westside High School in 2001 and from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2005. He said his son's life was about helping people, and he said he and his wife are struggling to come to terms with their son's death.  "You never anticipate a phone call like this. I knew it could happen -- you always know it can happen," Doug Roberts said. "John was our only child, which makes it doubly difficult. I always knew this day could occur. I tried not to think about it."  Doug Roberts said his son was scheduled to come home next month.  "The anticipation of getting him home was what was keeping me going. We were going to have a Thanksgiving celebration here -- have it as big as we could, and with as many family members as we could get here," he said.  The funeral is scheduled for Wednesday and the director of the Peace Corps will speak.  Doug Roberts said his son's death was an accident, and at this point they are not blaming anyone. He said the family just wants to celebrate his life and memory. Read more.

Read more about Peace Corps Vanuatu.

Read more about the Peace Corps Fallen.

In the shadow of Virginia Tech, RPCV Sandra Lee Anderson remembers those killed by a gunman at the University of Texas

In the shadow of Virginia Tech, RPCV Sandra Lee Anderson remembers those killed by a gunman at the University of Texas
August 1, 1966–Our Peace Corps training class of 35 was ending its first Turkish class of the day. It was noon, and we anticipated the long walk across the 95-degree University of Texas campus to lunch.

We were a standard set of recent liberal arts graduates, a profile of what the Peace Corps wanted for a Muslim nation. We had a few sets of married couples, and some of us seemed square. I might have fit that description, but I had taken the role of smart aleck, out of character if you know me today. We had a group comedian, Bob Zahn, a tall, blonde, happy-go-lucky math major who didn’t seem to know where he was going. If anyone seemed to hear a different drummer, one with an upbeat cadence, it was Bob. A few of our guys joined to avoid the draft and being shot at in the Vietnam War. Strange irony.

We were Turkey-13, the 13th group. We studied Turkish language morning and afternoon. Grateful for lunch break, we gathered up our books and disregarded the pop, pop in the distance. It had started a little before class ended.

I didn’t glance at the tower of the University of Texas as I walked down the wide set of cement stairs of the old classroom building. I edged over to the right to hold the cement banister. Slowly, one at a time is how I had to take those stairs, always leading with my left leg.

Playing soccer, the national sport in Turkey, earlier that month, I had torn the cartilage of my left knee. I remember waking up lying on the grass. I stood, with help, then locked my left leg and walked, peg-leg fashion, back to the motel, explaining to everyone that I was fine and knew how to handle this. Halfway back, I gritted at the pain and wondered why I was so foolish to not accept help. But I knew: Nothing was going to keep me from going to Turkey with the Peace Corps.

Peg-legging down those stairs, I wondered what was going on.

The lawn was green, the trees full. Hot is usual for Austin, but not unpleasant. The tower, a 307-foot looming building, commanded the university landscape. Below the surmounting clock was the 28th Floor Observation Deck extending around all sides so visitors could see the far reaches of the University and the city of Austin. Encasing the platform was a thick wall with six-inch slits above the drain spouts. Perfect for a sniper.

I was headed for the tower. Intervening was Garrison Hall, and my view of the observation deck slowly slipped behind that building. About a block north over to my right, something was going on.

“A .30 caliber,” noted Gary Medlin, a trainee from Kentucky, his head cocked. “A magnum projectile carries farther.”

That’s the first I realized we were listening to gunshots from high-caliber rifles and handguns. I decided to stick with Gary: He knew what he was doing.  Read more.

RPCVs remember Thomas Ashton
Died: 08/01/66

Age: 22

Training to serve in: Iran

Died in: USA

Cause of Death: hemorrhage, cardia ar: gunshot to heart

Cause of death category: homicide

Notes: Trainee was killed instantly by sniper fire while crossing U/Tex campus traing site. # dead unk. At least 33 wounded. Sniper killed by police.  Read more.

Read more about Peace Corps Turkey.

Read more about Peace Corps Iran.

Read more about the Peace Corps Fallen.

Suspect in the killing of a Peace Corps Volunteer Julia Campbell surrenders to Philippine authorities

Suspect in the killing of a Peace Corps Volunteer Julia Campbell surrenders to Philippine authorities
"I admit it, yes. I killed her, but I did not do whatever other people are thinking I did," Juan Duntugan told ABS-CBN television, apparently referring to speculation that Julia Campbell may have been killed during an attempted rape or robbery. "I did not plan to kill Ms. Campbell, harm her," Duntugan said, appearing remorseful and shaking his head. National police chief Oscar Calderon said police were "documenting his statement in the presence of a lawyer."

Campbell, 40, of Fairfax, Virginia, went missing April 8 during a hike to Ifugao province's famed mountainside rice terraces. Duntungan's wife sold Campbell a soft drink before her solo hike, and a boy has told police that he saw him near the grave that day. Duntugan, a local woodcarver, went into hiding the next day. A police autopsy showed that Campbell, who had worked as a freelance journalist for The New York Times and other media organizations, was killed by multiple blows to the head, and that her arms were injured, indicating she tried to defend herself.

"The case is in the hands of the Philippine National Police," U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Stacy MacTaggert said. "We are pleased with any progress in the case. However, I think it would be premature to comment further until the Philippine authorities have completed their work. "The U.S. Embassy and the Peace Corps are working closely with our colleagues in Washington to make sure the family is apprised of all updates in the case. Obviously they are grieving and upset and we have to remember to respect them."

Friends and sympathizers of Campbell plan a big memorial service next Thursday in Bicol, where she last worked as an English teacher.The Bicol region, southeast of Manila, includes Albay's provincial capital Legazpi and Donsol township in nearby Sorsogon province, which is famous for whale sharks and is where Campbell helped launch an ecology awareness campaign.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's spokesman, Ignacio Bunye, said Thursday that Campbell "has become a beloved personality here in the Philippines because of the work that she has done in Bicol region."

Jose de Venecia, speaker of the House of Representatives, said Campbell will be awarded the Philippine Congressional Medal of Achievement, the highest decoration by the legislature. He described her as a "martyred volunteer." He said the award will be presented in June to a representative of Campbell's family and the U.S. Peace Corps through its director, Ronald Tschetter, in Washington. Campbell "touched thousands of Filipino lives during her posting in Luzon as a high-school teacher of English and Western literature," de Venecia said. The citation honors Campbell for bringing "light and joy into the lives" of many Filipinos. "She epitomized the ideals of the Peace Corps and of the American people," the citation says.  Read more.

Read our chronological listing of all the stories on the search for Julia Campbell since her disappearance on April 8.

Caption: Peace Corps Director Ronald A. Tschetter, who was in the Philippines to assist the search for Peace Corps volunteer Julia Campbell, speaks with Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo at the presidential palace in Manila April 18, 2007. Campbell was found murdered in the Philippines after her body was found in a shallow grave in a remote, mountainous area, the police said. Photo: Reuters/Cheryl Ravel

The Family of Peace Corps Volunteer Tessa Horan says the Peace Corps' handling of her death in a shark attack in Tonga in February left them with a bitter feeling

The Family of Peace Corps Volunteer Tessa Horan says the Peace Corps' handling of her death in a shark attack in Tonga in February left them with a bitter feeling
Horan's mother, Kristena Prater, said the Peace Corps refused to pay for the memorial service and misled the family about retrieving the body. Though Horan's family achieved a great deal of healing on a trip to Tonga to build a library in her name, the difficulties they encountered have pushed Prater to try to change Peace Corps guidelines. "My daughter was serving her country," Prater said. "I wrote to the Peace Corps, and they weren't receptive, so I've involved my congressman and my governor." Read more and leave your comments.

Family finishes project after Peace Corps Volunteer Tessa Horan dies in shark attack in Tonga
On Oct. 17, Tessa's parents, sister Jasmine, McDowell and boyfriend, Scott Jones, got on a plane to Tonga. "She left a year ago, and we basically retraced her steps," Prater said. "We stayed with the host families, met the Peace Corps people, flew into the airport. We went through what she did. Her fellow Peace Corps workers took time off their islands and spent all the time we were there getting the library together." The family was treated like dignitaries while in Tonga. People talked to them on the street, and they were accepted everywhere with grace. Even the crown prince met with the family, breaking a tradition wherein the royal family does not receive guests within 100 days of the death of a king. What may have struck Horan's family the strongest, however, was a healing similar to their own. After the shark attacked Horan, she called out for help. Tatafu, a 25-year-old villager, put fear aside and swam out to help her. "I don't think we realized," McDowell said, "if he hadn't been swimming with her that day ... we would not have known what happened to her."  Read more.

Tess Horan's family traveled to Tonga to carry out her dream of establishing a library on the island
They visited the school where she had taught, met the other volunteers in her Peace Corps group and visited the tiny house where she had lived. They took a boat to the spot in the ocean where she had been attacked by the shark and scattered her ashes and flowers over the water. Prater said she was touched by the reverence with which the villagers treated the family and the respect they seemed to have for Horan. "She had made notice of her integrity, intention, and sincerity so immediately in this small village,'' Prater wrote in a journal she kept of the trip. "In a way, she had lived there a lifetime, as far as they were concerned. The first day she arrived at her site, she went to every house and introduced herself to 60 different households.''  Read more.

Caption: Dan Equinoss, a Peace Corps volunteer from Group 70, trained with Tessa Marie Horan during her time in the South Pacific. The new library was constructed using money from a memorial fund established in Tessa’s name and is now stocked with about 1,500 donated books.

Spotlight on Peace Corps Guinea

RPCV Micah Schaffer has produced a feature length documentary called Death of Two Sons about Amadou Diallo's slaying and the car-crash death of Peace Corps volunteer Jesse Thyne, an American who lived with Diallo's family in Guinea
Micah Schaffer's moving, stunningly shot documentary juxtaposes the deaths of a Guinean in America and an American in Guinea. The Guinean in "Death of Two Sons" was Amadou Diallo, senselessly gunned down by four New York City policemen with 41 bullets. The American was Peace Corps volunteer Jesse Thyne, who lived with Amadou's family in Guinea and died in a car crash there. The two men never met, but their destinies are intertwined in this unique film. Jesse's California family is mainly represented by his father, Rick, whose generosity spiritually allies him to the indomitable Kadiatou Diallo, Amadou's mother. Though the film contains TV coverage of the spontaneous protests that arose after Amadou's death, and many of his kinsmen weigh in on the injustice of the absence of punishment meted out to his killers (in contrast, the Guinean taxi driver whose speeding contributed to the accident killing Jesse was sentenced to three years in jail), it is Jesse's father who delivers the most telling political indictment: He states his son's death was a tragedy, but Amadou's was also a travesty caused by the "worst of our armed, racist, hostile culture." Read more.

Guinea Peace Corps Volunteer Jennifer writes: What do you do when you are bed ridden for 4 days due to a painful sinus infection leading to a horrible earache?
Go see a doctor. My doctor is a 10 hour taxi ride from Labe if I can get out of my non-car containing village. Call him. We have no telephones. Radio him. The radio is 5 km away. I didn't even attempt to. It was the weekend, a very difficult time to find access to the radio, very difficult to get an answer on the other end. It is under such conditions that self-made decisions, self-reliance, self-understanding, self peace and calm become extremely important. Panic is not the answer. Being able to meditate through pain and suffering to come to a good decision is. Read more.

Peace Corps Volunteer Melinda writes: The Guinean Life
"Trip to the Market: Walk past street venders seeing numerous items in search for what you need. All the while you are fighting mobs of people wanting you to buy their items. 1. Find what you need; 2. Bargain price which takes loads of patience; 3. Price still too high; 4. Move on to another vender; 5. Repeat steps 1-4 several times until you realize the first guy gave you the best price; 6. Humbly return."  Read more.

Guinea Peace Corps Volunteer Andrea writes:   Riding on Taxis
"The taxi pulls over, a few words are exchanged, I hoist my bike on top with the 2 other guys and I climb up the back of the car. The car takes off as I am finding a place to settle. I strike the pose of a cowboy trying to ride a bull. I grab the metal bar mounted on the top which happened to be in between my legs. As I am getting settled, I realize it is not a bull that I am sitting on but rather a live goat. The goat seems to agree with the situation so I settle in and enjoy the beautiful valley views for miles until I am forced out of my admiration to deal with the present." Read more.

Guinea Peace Corps Volunteer Devon writes:  Middle America vs the African Bush
Village life is laid back, relaxing and more slow paced than I have ever seen. Every day I see Guineans laughing and enjoying the simple pleasures of life; sitting in the shade of a front porch on a particularly hot day, chatting in the local tea bar or singing as they work in the rice fields. Yet the Guineans in my village live without electricity, refrigeration or plumbing. They have limited knowledge of French, no concept of sanitation or preventative health-care and yet they still function and live happy lives. I don’t mean to paint guinea as some kind of 3rd world utopia, or spout some back to nature Emersonian propaganda. There is certainly more than an ample amount of discontent and unhappiness here, as is dictated by human nature and socio-economic conditions. However, my goal is merely to illustrate the contrast between unhappiness that is justified and one borne out of a culture consumed by materialism. Read more.