Friends of Malaysia 1962 Luxury Bus Spring 2015 Newsletter
SQUEAKS FROM THE CHAIR by Barry Morris President, Friends of Malaysia Several weeks ago, thousands of people came to Appomattox in central Virginia to serve as reenactors for the battle that ended the Civil War in this country. It was 150 years ago that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered his army to that of General Ulysses S. Grant effectively ending the Civil War. This period of time, 150 years, may seem like a long period of time, but to many of the participants, it wasn’t so long ago at all. After all, although they didn’t personally know these ancestors, they knew of them and the very difficult period of time in which they lived and fought and died. Some of the people to whom I spoke told me they were in Appomattox to honor in some way the lives of their great-grandfathers and great-grandmothers or their great-great grandparents. To these people, then, 150 years ago wasn’t such a long period of time. They may have had even some letters or bits of clothing or other personal effects from all this time ago.
2015 Monorail
Apa Kabar Edited by Thaine H. Allison, Jr.
CONDOLENCES TO FAMILY OF AMBASSADOR JARJIS by Lynn Juhl RPCV Malaysia, and FoM Board Member Friends of Malaysia sends its heartfelt condolences to the family of Tan Sri Jamaluddin Jarjis who was tragically killed in a helicopter crash near Subang Airport, Kuala Lumpur on.April 4, 2015) “JJ”, as he was affectionately called, was the Malaysian Ambassador to the United States from 2009 to 2012. He had a special feeling for the Peace Corps, as one of his teachers was a volunteer. So, he gave a generous amount of time to the members of the various Malaysia connected organizations in the United States. Many Malaysia RPCVs, and especially FOM members, will recall how he delighted in hosting a reception at the Embassy of Malaysia for the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Peace Corps. Also, he vigorously supported the MalaysiaAmerica Society and helped initiate the Fulbright English Teaching Assistants (ETA) program drawing his inspiration from Peace Corps programs in Malaysia in the past. On a more personal note, I knew JJ as a friend who showed exceptional generosity. He was quick to offer support and advice for any program which MAS or FoM wished to launch. Just a couple of months ago, we were able to have a brief chat at a CSIS program featuring the Attorney General of Malaysia. As always, he was interested in what was happening in the various American organizations and groups that are interested in and support Malaysia.
Nowadays, we face something of a similar situation as returned PCVs. For me, personally, it was 45 years ago this summer that my parents drove me up to Washington, D.C. for my flight to Malaysia. I had never used a passport before, and had to ask my father to pull off of the road, at one point, so I could check to be sure I had packed the passport. Fortunately, I had packed it or we would probably have had to turn back. I knew it was a very The tragic death of JJ is a shock and a great loss for important thing to have. When my training group us all. Our friend, jaunty Ambassador JJ will be arrived in Kuala Lumpur, we spent one day there before heading up to Pangkor Island for the intensive missed. part of the training. In that one day,(CONTINUED P.3) 1
breast cancer. FoM welcomes donations so that FORMER PEACE CORP VOLUNTEERS’ more projects in Malaysia can be supported. DONATION HELPS FLOOD-AFFECTED VILLAGES IN MALAYSIA by Mike Anderson The Friends of Malaysia (FoM) donation of $840 to the Malaysian Red Crescent Society’s east coast flood relief efforts is being put to good use helping affected villagers recover from the late 2014 disaster. According to the Society’s executive secretary based in Kuala Lumpur, Puan Nor Aziah Budin, the generous donation from the group of former U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers has been used to assist Red Crescent rehabilitation after December floods recovery in four villages in the badly-hit state of Kelantan. The four kampongs “adopted” by the Society are Kg Pasir Tumbuh, Gua Musang, with 85 households; Kg Dusun Nyiur, Kuala Krai, with 23 households; Kg Keluat, Kuala Krai, with 27 households; and Kg Aur Duri, Kuala Krai, with 23 households. As of the end of April, 15 temporary shelters have been built in two of the four villages, Puan Nor Aziah said, and plans call for the Society to support 100 shelters. The design of the shelters has been based on input from the villagers and the International Red Crescent rehabilitation after December floods Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC/ICRC). The funds have also been used to help temporary housing construct temporary latrines and a water unit for villagers. Some of the Society’s donations will also go to support long-term disaster risk mitigation training and activities for the affected villages. The FoM donation, which was wired to the Society in early February, was provided to help victims of the terrible December, 2014 northeast monsoon flooding. More than 230,000 people in Kelantan, Terengganu, and Pahang were dislocated by the heavy rains, which reportedly resulted in the area’s worst flooding in more than three decades. Red Crescent rehabilitation after December floods, The Society -- “Tulan Sabit Merah Malaysia” in interior of temporary house Bahasa -- is a voluntary humanitarian organization that provides service and public education in disaster management and health and care throughout the Malaysian community. It is one of the IFRC/ICRC 186 national societies worldwide. For more information about the Society East Coast Flood Fund, visit www.redcrescent.org.my Since the onset of the flooding and the humanitarian assistance and recovery efforts, the U.S. Government and a number of U.S. companies and their employees in Malaysia have joined FoM and others in providing cash or inkind donations to help the flood victims recover. A major, regular activity of the FoM is the making of Red Crescent rehabilitation after December floods donations to organizations which provide grassroots Photos from Red Crescent web site assistance to Malaysian groups and community development activities, including efforts to fight 2
CONTINUED From P. 1) I was so amazed at the sights and sounds and smells of Kuala Lumpur. After nightfall, I didn’t want to go back to the hotel room. Everything was just so different from anything I had ever seen before. As we were serving in Malaysia, some of us had friends or family members visit Malaysia. I have to wonder if someday we will be seen as something like pioneers hoping to make the world a better place to live. Just like what was witnessed here in Appomattox, Virginia, will your ancestors be one day retracing your footsteps in Malaysia? Will they wonder what sort of life you had while you lived in Malaysia? Will they do it to reconnect in some way to a mother or father or uncle or aunt that long ago trekked to a far away place that they didn’t know very much about?
because someRPCV’s would not be available on other days and the meetings had taken weeks to set up, it was decided by NPCA to go forward with our Advocacy Day. Unfortunately it turned out that most of the Congressional offices were closed. The hallways normally are very crowded so their emptiness felt strange - only about 10% of the offices were open. Our teams did give a Peace Corps information packet that NPCA prepared to all 535 Congressional offices. In true Peace Corps fashion, we made lemonade out of lemons.
I did talk to staffers of Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger (MD), Steven King (IA), Matt Salmon (AZ), Billy Long (MO). I also spoke to the staffer for my representative, Congresswoman Donna Edwards (MD), over the phone the next day. They were impressed that RPCVs cared so much about the Peace Corps that they would come to Capitol Hill in such horrible conditions. The snow was getting We would love to hear from your friends and family deep by the time we left the Capitol. It was very members who have made the long trip to Malaysia since you served there as we continue to further our tense driving home to Annapolis but I made it safely understanding of the country and people of Malaysia. and I was glad to be able to do something for the Peace Corps after all the Peace Corps had done for me. HOW TO CONTINUE TO HELP
THE PEACE CORPS by Paul Murphy RPCV-Johor Bahru 1971-73 FoM Treasurer/Membership Director On March 5 many offices in the District of Columbia shut down because of a big (for DC) snowstorm but FoM Board Member Rod Zwirner and I and 65 other RPCVs were participating in the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) National Day of Action on Capitol Hill. The Peace Corps, like all other Federal Agencies, is not allowed to directly do advocacy with Congress. Fortunately, the NPCA is not a Federal unit so it can and does contact Congress on important issues related to the Peace Corps community. Each year it asks RPCVs to come to Washington for a special day when they have arranged several hundred short meetings with Congressional members or their staff. Teams of 2 to 5 RPCVs explain the importance of the Peace Corps through personal anecdotes, they request that the Congressman vote for strong funding for the Peace Corps budget and they ask the Congressman to join the Peace Corps Congressional Caucus which conducts in-depth information sessions so they can learn even more about the Peace Corps.
Some people might think that advocacy is unnecessary since the Peace Corps has a great reputation. However if we don’t periodically remind Congress of the importance of the program, it is easy for them to reduce funding for the Peace Corps since there are so many other programs contacting them and there is such limited revenue available. Doing advocacy with NPCA was a great way to learn about how Congress functions and a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with other Peace Corps folks and swap stories. Even if you can’t travel to DC in March, you can go to your local Congressional District Office. We had hundreds of RPCVs across the country meeting at their local office on the National Day of Action. To learn more about what was accomplished and to see photos, go to www.peacecorpsconnect.org/dayofaction
Got one of these? Tell us the story! Can you send a picture, then and now? Editor:thaineallison@gmail.com
It was uncertain how many Congressional offices would be open given the bad weather. However, 3
The comparison with the current era could not be more dramatic. Now an African-American president with roots in neighboring Indonesia and a command by Tom Linnell, RPCV of Bahasa steps comfortably into Malaysia, and Malaysia, having matured into a rightful independent I was a member of Malaysia XII, trained in Hilo in the status on the world stage greets him confidently. fall of 1965, by some of the first returning volunteers Subang has faded over four decades into a regional from Sabah-Sarawak. I taught English at the brand small airport beside the road into KL, while Obama new Abdullah Munshi Secondary School (now has arrived at KL International which outranks almost Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Abdullah Munshi) in any US airport in size and amenities. During the visit, Georgetown, Penang for the school years 1966 and both sides affirm the friendship between us, 1967. I extended for six months as a volunteer celebrate a positive recollection of the Peace Corps, support liaison, based in Kuantan, Pahang. I came and yet also speak openly about the differences in home, spent an interesting year at Harvard Divinity our national and international perspectives. School, married Sheri Moore who had just come I like the current scene a lot better. home from 2 years with the first Peace Corps group in Korea, and together we signed up as training and THE INTERNET OFFERS UP administrative staff for the first in-country training AMAZING IMAGES program in Malaysia. We were there from 1969 until by the summer of 1972. We have since returned to Brian McCarthy Malaysia three times to visit friends and explore Brian McCarthy found this great website that has a places we never got to. guy walking around a lot of places including Kota Kinabalu, Tenom, Semporna, etc. Here is the link to Thanks for the invitation to write something up about the one in Semporna, but if you look to the right LBJ's visit to Malaysia in '66. I probably will not really when you open the link, there are links to lots of dive into this because it's going to require taking other places. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpX2BKVhrB8 some deep breaths and coming to terms with more you might find your town or one you once knew in emotions than I anticipated. Malaysia where a man has done a recent walk.. Thinking about it has evoked pretty strong images of Semporna just blows my mind. It’s difficult to recognize it! It looked some what like that when the context of those times, with immediate Luang Por, Ajahn Panyasaro, Bob Schmidt and I comparisons to the current era. For example, LBJ were there about 10 years ago, but the traffic now is was a very large white man trying to meet and greet amazing! When we were there in the beginning, the our Malaysian hosts in the most friendly manner road to Tawau was still being built (thanks to Wally?) possible--but he could not pull it off because of his so there wasn’t that far to drive. There were some size and Texas demeanor. His looming presence Land Rovers, but not all that many cars. It’s just amazing. The watched the whole thing yet (55min), and the several hundred American volunteers, staff so don’t know if it shows our old house or the school and Embassy people lining the arrival area was simply too suggestive of the colonial era. The scene or anything. I did see the new mosque. Enjoy! Thanks, Brian! overwhelmed the presence of the Malaysian delegation and the gleaming symbol of Subang –###-Airport which was so new, modern and full of hope. My subjective reaction at the time was to get away Then and now! from that scene, back to my school and Gee Dad, you neighborhood where I had been busy trying to said “I should assimilate, not dominate. LBJ's impact was too vivid join the Peace a reminder of the colonial past we had set be out to Corps and learn about other change. cultures!” 4
COMPARISON OF US PRESIDENTIAL VISITS TO MALAYSIA
THE “BITTER-SWEET” STORY BEHIND PEACE CORPS LEAVING MALAYSIA by Mike Anderson When former Malaysian Volunteers gather among themselves or interact with Malaysians who remember the “good, old days” when there was still Peace Corps in the country, the question of exactly how and when the program ended often comes up. I have done a little research and am happy to report my findings of when and why the program concluded. Also, I can speak with a little personal knowledge because I recall at the time meeting with then-PC Director Loret Ruppe, who was involved in making and announcing the decision to end the Malaysian program, which had started in 1962.
countries,” including some of its Asian neighbors, Malaysia had truly progressed to such an extent that the services of Volunteers were not really needed as much as they were in many other places which lacked Malaysia’s development plans, infrastructure, resources and relatively well-trained personnel. When the program ended, former Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, who had been an advocate of the Peace Corps going back to March of 1961 when the first Peace Corps Director, Sargent Shriver, visited Kuala Lumpur to offer volunteers, was quoted as saying: “We have been grateful to (the Peace Corps Volunteers) for the help they have given us and we feel proud to have known them. May this feeling continue for all time.”
The phase-out of the Malaysian program was announced in Kuala Lumpur on February 7, 1983 by It was in early February of 1983, when I was a young Dr. Goh Cheng Teik, Deputy Minister in the Prime diplomat serving in the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Minister’s Department, at a dinner attended by Philippines, that Mrs. Ruppe visited the Philippines, Director Ruppe. At a press conference the next day, which still had a large PCV program at the time, and Ruppe described her visit to Malaysia as a “bitterthen continued on to Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok. I sweet” kind of meeting . . . when one is sad to wind was assigned to help support her official Manila visit, up a successful program and yet knows that the and my duties included providing press support and parting is positive sign of progress and growth.” She accompanying her on a courtesy call on the thensaid the knowledge and experience gained because Philippine President, Ferdinand Marcos. Malaysians have freely shared their culture with the Americans has been invaluable to both the And it was while interacting informally on the volunteers and to the United States, where the sidelines with Director Ruppe that I learned that the volunteers often impart their experience to other decision had been made by the Malaysian and Americans. American governments to start phasing out the As for the personal impact of the PCVs on Malaysia, sending of volunteers to Malaysia and that while in Minister Goh said that the Volunteers, by living in KL she and Malaysian officials would announce the phase out of the program. The stated – and actual – Malaysian homes, speaking the national language, reason was because the country had progressed to a wearing local clothes and eating local food, did more to promote an understanding of the American people higher degree of self-sufficiency. than all the speeches made in the last 21 years. As a former PCV in Malaysia, that announcement saddened me, of course, but upon reflection I Years later, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary realized that it actually was positive news. Although it of the Peace Corps in Malaysia, the then-U.S. marked the end of a mutually beneficial era in USAmbassador, Paul W. Jones, summarized things Malaysia relations, the decision proved that Peace nicely when he said: “These Volunteers gave their Corps Volunteers could work themselves out of a time, energy and even their lives (six Volunteers died job. From an amazingly high of about 600 volunteers during their service in Malaysia)helping the people of in Malaysia in the 1960’s, the number had declined Malaysia to develop their nation.” to 37 by 1983, and the last Volunteers departed in Although the Peace Corps program is officially over November of that year. in Malaysia, its spirit and good feelings certainly After a truly remarkable 21-year-run, which saw continue. Any RPCVs who have had a chance to 4,067 volunteers serve mainly in education, health return to the country and revisit “their kampong” and and agriculture projects throughout West and East look up old friends and colleagues knows this is the Malaysia, the program would successfully end. The case. They have found it still is quite easy to find country had simply “developed” to such an extent many Malaysians with long memories and positive that it could meet its own human resource needs. feelings about the Peace Corps. (CONTINUED p. 6) Compared to many other so-called “developing 5
(CONTINUED From P. 5) And some good, recent news is that since January, 2012 – precisely 50 years after the arrival of the first PCVs – a new type of young American has been energetically serving in Malaysia. Called English Teaching Assistants (ETA) and administered under the Fulbright exchange program, the participants spend a year assisting in schools in under-served areas of states like Terengganu, Pahang and Johor. Over just three short years, the ETA program has gained recognition and has expanded in both the number of American participants and the number of participating schools and states. And even more importantly, the Malaysian government generously shares costs with the U.S. to help ensure that the ETA program expands, is mutually beneficial and dynamic and provides new groups of young Malaysians with critically-needed English skills. The other “good news” is that the Peace Corps is still alive and well and doing important work in many parts of the world. In Asia, for example, it still has vibrant programs in countries like the Philippines, Thailand, Nepal and some of the Pacific islands. But it also is active in “new countries” – Mongolia, Cambodia, Indonesia, China and Timor-Leste (East Timor) -- and it will soon be starting up for the first time in Myanmar (Burma). To those of us who served years ago in Malaysia, the idea that someday American Volunteers would be posted to a communist country like China, or an isolated, socialist state like Burma, or a tiny, once-Portuguese colony like Timor was pretty unthinkable. The world has, indeed, changed, but fortunately some things do not change -- good Peace Corps memories live on and effective Peace Corps
programs continue to promote friendship and cooperation. Mike Anderson, a Group XX English teacher in Sungai Petani, Kedah, and a journalism instructor in Kuala Lumpur and Penang, is a retired U.S. diplomat. He is a member of the FoM Board.
IMPRESSIONS Board member Rod Zwirner asked a member of Malaysia VIII William Hughes, http://www.hugheshrs.com/ (retired in Serian,Sarawak) about his impression of the “new Volunteers”. He sent along the following in response to my question about the ETA's near him. We had the first two Americans in the English program in Serian over to our house a few months back. One was ending his tour and about to go back to school. The other one, a Chinese fellow who had relatives in Kuching, had a while to go on his tour. I don't know how effective the program, and even these guys had their doubts. They are assigned as teaching aids to the local teachers. The program should be aimed at the teachers, not just the students. The students are bad in English because of the poor English of the teachers. I could see that at the university, where many of the locals would come back with their advanced degrees and, yet, could not write coherent sentence in English in an email message. I have a new web site, which I am still perfecting. My main aim is to sell some of my books, but also, and related to that, to have my blogs read and commented on by a large audience. Check it out on hugheshrs.com. One question FoM might pose is: How much follow-up and evaluation is in the ETA program?
Malaysia-America Society President Lynn Juhl with board members Paul Murphy and Mike Anderson with Malaysian Ambassador Awang, second from right Juhl, Murphy and Anderson are FoM board members 6
William Hughes, RPCV Malaysia VIII
MORE MAIL FROM OUR MEMBERS Tom Linnell mentioned recently that he and his wife, Sheri, had enjoyed reading the book, "Where Hornbills Fly", by Erik Jensen, just published. Erik was a volunteer from the UK, attached to the Anglican Church in the Second Division, in the 60's. He left before the end of the decade, and went on to a successful career as a diplomat. “The book evokes so many memories of adapting to life in Sarawak, particularly among the Iban, and displays some of the best cultural sensitivity in print.” Have a look at it yourself. Be well. Tom Linnell, Malaysia XII in Penang 1965-1968, and former staff in Kuching 1969-72.
MEMORIES OF WAIKEA-UKA AND THE WAIPIO VALLEY by Dan Peed Our Peace Corps adventure started on the morning of July 5, 1968. That’s nearly 43 years ago. I have not forgotten. My memories are still with me, of that morning, the training in Hawaii that followed, and then our sojourn in Malaysia. Most important, of course, are my memories of the people I encountered, in training and in the beautiful, jungle country to which we journeyed. We trained on the Big Island, which has no separate name like the others in the chain - it is simply known as Hawaii. First we had to get there. For me, that meant flying all the way from the East Coast of the mainland. My flight to LA was the first airplane flight I’d ever been on. We first gathered in LA Airport, after flying there from our several homes. While I waited for the flight to Honolulu, I met a tall, strong, sandy-haired young fellow with a strong Texas accent. He told me he was also going to Hawaii to train as a Peace Corps Volunteer for Malaysia. This was Dave Starker, my first and still one of my closest PCV friends. We had a long over-the-ocean flight to Honolulu, 7
then a connecting flight to Hilo. After that, a jitneybus ride of some 9 miles to Waikea-Uka, an old, rundown former boarding house on the Hamakua (east) coast. Dead tired, we arrived about 1:30 A.M. on the 6th, sagged down onto rickety cots, and fell off to sleep. The next day, we took the jitney into the main Peace Corps training center in Hilo. I believe it was on Wainuenue Avenue. Outside it was a granite slab, engraved with the words of John F. Kennedy, “Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.” Inside the main building, we were given a breakfast of fried eggs and toast no bacon - we would be going to a largely Moslem country. Then forms to fill out, and new friends to meet. That afternoon or the next, we had a picnic (volley-ball and hamburgers). Soon, we got down to business - getting trained up, from early July to late September. This involved language classes, taught by Malaysian teachers (chegus). Also, cultural classes and information about farmers associations and fisheries in Malaysia. I did not keep a diary in those days, so from now on I’ll have to go on random but vivid memories: 1. Our physical surroundings. The Waikea-Uka Center was a wooden, L-shaped one-story structure. The PCVs stayed in two rooms with rows of cots. Each cot had a sheet, a pillow and one or two olivegreen Army blankets. There was a kitchen and dining hall; meals were trucked in from Hilo. There were three classrooms, and one medical room. Outside the building was a grass courtyard, and behind it were several flowering Hawaiian trees. I can’t forget how exotic those bright green trees with the red flowers seemed to us. In the distance, on a clear morning, you could always see the huge 13,000 foot mound of Mauna Kea. 2. Activities at Waikea-Uka. Each day, we had language and cultural classes. My memories of those have faded. But I still smile inwardly when I remember Kelly Speas reciting practice Malay sentences in a deadpan, North Carolina accent: “Saya fikir saya musti belajar behasa Melayu malam ini.” [I think I must study Malay language tonight]. Classes were over by 3:00 P.M. Afterward, we’d play pick-up basketball games in the nearby middle school gym, or soccer on the schoolyard. Often, we’d wander down to a little shop owned by a Japanese man named Paul for snacks or cigarettes. Dinner would be brought out to (CONTINUED P.8)
slab, I thought it was the most delicious thing I ever ate. I still think so.
(CONTINUED From P. 7) us around 6:00 P.M. Afterward, we would read, shoot the breeze, tell silly jokes, etc. One book I remember reading was The Long Day Wanes, a novel about the last days of the British Raj in Malaya. Just before lights out, John Cika would get out his guitar and accompany himself on some pop stuff of the day - usually Simon and Garfunkel. I can hear it now:
5. Return to Waikea-Uka. At the end of our sojourn in Waipio, we had a big luau. The local women cooked a bunch of stuff for us. While a victrola played a record of Hawaiian music, Ray’s wife and daughter did a Hawaiian dance, while wearing grass skirts.
Hello darkness my old friend, I’ve come to talk with you again . . .
Oh, we gonna go fishing The old Hawaiian way We’re gonna do the huki-lau We’re gonna do the huki-lau, We’re gonna do the huki, huki, huki, Huki, huki, huki Huki-lau.
After John stopped and the lights were out, we could hear the rain drumming on the metal roof. Being in the tropics, we had bright mornings and T-showers nearly every afternoon or evening. 3. Weekends. We had no classes on Saturday or Sunday, although we were expected to keep up with our studies. That did not keep us from going into Hilo on Friday or Saturday night. Usually, we’d wind up at the Havana Bar. We’d guzzle 2 or 3 (or more) glasses of Primo beer, compete on a pin-ball machine (this was before the days of computer games), and plug quarters into a juke-box for the pop hits of the day. I think our big number was always “Light My Fire” by the Doors. Other hits of the day were “Sky Pilot” and “House of the Rising Sun” by Eric Burden and the Animals. Sometimes we’d take in a movie. I remember seeing The Thomas Crown Affair with Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway.
Who could forget watching their shapely bodies swaying in the moonlight? Ray told us, “Keep your eyes on the hands!” but I don’t think I’m the only guy who had his eyes directed otherwise. The next day, our jitney took us back to Waikea-Uka. Back to the grind. Ralph Lueck and I used a primitive, clunky “computer” (it was electric, not electronic) to compile the data from our agricultural survey of Waipio. We continued our regular studies. By now, we’d made our rooms more home-like (or college dorm-like). On one wall of the room in which I stayed, were two movie posters - one of Sophia Loren in a revealing dress, the other of Humphrey Bogart firing a tommy-gun.
4. The Waipio Valley. After four weeks of training, all of us, including those training in Hilo, were bused up to this fabulous jungle-covered gash in the east coast. For I think 2 weeks (no less than 10 days) we lived in primitive wooden huts on the valley floor, fished, and took an agricultural survey of the farmers still growing taro in the valley. I remember walking a long way one day in the hot sun with Bob Leonard to interview a Japanese farmer and his wife as they harvested taro (a root vegetable like sweet potatoes) in a water-filled Oriental-like padi. Our survey did glean a lot of information about the economy of the island circa 1968. Each night, we had to cook our own food. One or two days, I went fishing in the Waipio River with the camp leader, Ray Arraujo, a Hawaiian of mostly Portuguese extraction. Great fun - I remember watching a white horse plod over a nearby field as we sat by the river, using bamboo poles with worms on the hooks. I caught a bunch of silvery fish which I fried in a big pan in the evening. We ate the fish with rice, of course. One night for desert, Ron Tilson and Dave Starker joined forces to produce an apple-pineapple pie. Chomping down a
We lived and studied at close quarters. But I remember absolutely no quarrels or major disagreements. We genuinely liked each other. One weekend, Dave Starker, John Hays and I hitch-hiked around the entire Big Island. One evening, arms draped over each others shoulders, Joe Gosa and Dave joined voices in that old Gospel standard: Gonna rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham Rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham Rock my soul in the bosom of Abraham O, rockin’ my soul. So high, can’t get over it. So low, can’t get under it. So wide, can’t get ‘round it O, rockin’ my soul. In mid-August, trouble struck. 8
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(CONTINUED From P. 8)John Cika had been feeling poorly, was sent to Hilo for an exam, and was found to have meningitis. That meant the rest of us had to be quarantined for two weeks. Also, we had to be given gamma globulin shots. These were administered by a rather starchy, middle-aged Public Health Nurse named Miss Lindsey. She must have been around 40, but we thought she was ancient (well, we were 22-23). The upshot (pun intended) was that the shots had to be put in your keister. That’s because Miss Lindsey had to use an especially long hypodermic needle to inject a large amount of cold fluid. The amount you were given depended on your weight. I remember being very glad I’m on the slim side. When Jururawat (that’s Malay for “nurse”) Lindsey called my name, I reported to the medical room. She confronted me, holding upright, one of those long needles. “How are you feeling, Dan?” she asked, closing the door. I said I felt fine. “How much do you weigh?” I told her (truthfully), “About 140 pounds.” She did a calculation, filled her hypodermic with what still looked like an awful lot of fluid, and ordered me to over to the examining table. After the shots, we horsed around a lot. Truth be told, we acted like a bunch of 8th graders.
You too can write us at: thaineallison@gmail.com Tell us a story, fact or fiction and we’ll find a place for it amongst our other stories. from space travel. In our hotel ballroom, we were formally sworn in, and then boarded a flight to Taiwan for 2 weeks of extra training. That was a thrilling adventure in its own right, but not the subject of this piece. We’re in our mid-60s now. Of the 91 volunteers who reported for M-19 on July 5, 1968, ten we will never see again in this life, including the aforementioned John Cika and Bob Leonard. Ray Arraujo is gone too. You could make a million on the stock market, and lose it in a crash. You could buy a $100,000 Mercedes-Benz, and crash that too. But we have something that is priceless and cannot be lost our memories of friends, adventures and service we can be proud of. Time has taken its toll, and will continue to do so. We are not 23 anymore, and don’t look it either. Time, you thief, wrote Leigh Hunt, a 19th century poet. Our renewed connections, however, are living proof that love can outlast time and death.
6. On to Honolulu and Beyond. At the end of training, we were flown up to Honolulu and given More on Peace Corps Training. some time (2-3 days) to relax. I remember seeing the stunning new SF movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. Less than a year later, Armstrong and Aldrin landed Take a look for the good old days around summer 1962 in Hilo Hawaii Peace Corps training World on the Moon. We‘ve never established a Moon Premier Sending Aloha Abroad This document-ary base, though. The year 2001, now seen in film is the untold story of thousands of American retrospect rather than as In our hotel ballroom, we volunteers who lived and trained in Hawaii prior to were formally sworn in, and then boarded a flight to overseas Peace Corps service, and often settling there after their experience. The landscape of Hawaii Taiwan for 2 weeks of extra training. That was a thrilling adventure in its own right, but not the subject is strewn with former Peace Corps members—from politicians to academics to businessmen. The film of this piece. Others can tell of our service in tells the story of a 10-year period from 1962-1972 Malaysia better than I can. I was there only 6 when more than 7500 trainees came to Hawaii for months. Words can never express how much I months of pre-departure training. (Editor’s note FoM respect and honor those who completed their tour of donated $305.00 to help fund this film.) duty, doing all that was expected of them. On a Hawaiian vacation in August 1979, I visited Hilo and toured the Big Island. The Waikea-Uka Training Center was long gone - no building there at all, although some locals remembered it. Also, I took a Jeep down into the Waipio Valley. The wooden huts were gone too, although I retrieved some old Peace Corps training papers from the floor of the valley. The future is remembered for something far different 9
PEACE CORPS DOCUMENTARY by
Manuel A. Colón
SIX REASONS YOU WON’T WANT TO MISS PEACE CORPS CONNECT – BERKELEY!
by We are looking for several types of support for a new Michael Buckler (Malawi 2006-08) Peace Corps documentary "A Towering Task." This will be a PBS worthy film looking at the history and Last year was my first Peace Corps Connect, and future of the agency, its volunteers, and its impact. now I’m a fan! Life pulls us in many directions, and Here is the link: it’s easy to attend great conferences without leaving http://www.peacecorpsdocumentary.com/ your home city. But we were born to travel, and, when I stepped into a car last year, embarking on a There are several ways you can help: 22-hour road trip with strangers for Peace Corps Inform your RPCV network that the Producer and Director, Alana DeJoseph (RPCV Mali), is looking for Connect in Nashville, it just felt right. I would go video/film footage and still photos from all eras of the anywhere to find Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs). This year’s• Peace Corps Connect is June Peace Corps. 5-6 in Berkeley, California• one of the most Donate through the NPCA. RPCV donations help to accessible and Peace Corps-friendly cities in show corporate and other large donors that there is America. Did I mention great weather? Here are six support for this endeavor. Donations are tax other reasons why you should register now! deductible. Spread the word amongst your friends and family, 1. Connect• – there’s nothing like forging new other RPCVs and community through media, friendships with RPCVs from all over the world, of all conversations and/or events. Consider taking on the role of a Chapter Champion to generations, who have served in some 140 countries. We are kindred spirits. We have the best spearhead efforts among other donors and RPCV poop stories. There will be alcohol. groups. Please contact: Kathy Kacen, at mkkacen@yahoo.com. Contact Alana directly at Reminisce• – no one understands me like Alana@peacecorpsdocumentary.com with questions 2. fellow Malawi RPCVs. We speak a secret language and information. that also happens to be the primary dialect of millions of Malawians and Zambians. At Peace Corps Connect, I’ve swapped stories with Malawi RPCVs from every era — with each passing year, the crocs grow bigger, the drums beat louder, and the malarial convulsions get stronger. (Learn• more about our Storytelling workshops). 3. Network• – from• Silicon Valley• to Capitol Hill, and from Madison to Austin, the RPCV professional network is amazing and growing. The connections I make with RPCVs working around the world help inform my career decisions, identify professional opportunities, and grow my business. (Learn• more about our• From Peace Corps Village to Silicon Valley panel discussion).
In 1960, over 50 years ago, Senator John F. Kennedy challenged students at the University of Michigan to serve their country in the cause of peace. Since that day, over 215,000 Peace Corps Volunteers have served in 139 countries. From World View the magazine of National Peace Corps Association
4. Learn• – Peace Corps Connect is like a nerdy best practices workshop. A technical summit on steroids. As a community, we are famously creative, entrepreneurial, independently minded, and passionate. I’ve discovered great ideas for charitable work and career development. At Peace Corps Connect, you will find inspiration and opportunities to continue making a difference. (Learn more about our RPCV Entrepreneur panel). From World View the magazine of National Peace Corps Association 10 (CONTINUED P. 11)
(CONTINUED From P. 10) 5. Advocate• – Until Equity Act language was passed late last year, the federal government wouldn’t pay for certain medical care for PCVs that is extended to other branches of national service. There are more inequities like it. At Peace Corps Connect, I saw firsthand how the NPCA is fighting hard for basic rights enjoyed by others who serve abroad. 6. Economize•RPCVs are notoriously frugal. Yet, Peace Corps Connect can be an extraordinary value. Book a bargain flight, stay with a local RPCV or find a cheap Airbnb listing, use public transportation, and eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches whatever works for you. YOU ARE WANTED, and your attendance supports a cause we all love our Peace Corps community. If you’re from Northern California, roll out of bed and enjoy the largest annual gathering of RPCVs. If you’re not from Northern California, make it your destination event. Life is short. You know you think about Peace Corps all the time.• Scratch the itch. Register here.
Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Donates Kidney to Fellow Volunteer
the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA), he decided to reach out to his fellow RPCVs. He contacted Glenn Blumhorst, president of the NPCA, asking for help in connecting. The NPCA agreed, using our blog, Facebook page, Twitter account and e-newsletter to inform members of Norman’s situation and ask for support. Over bagels in his home in Brooklyn a few days before his surgery, Norman declared “I just knew it was going to work.” And work it did. Within three days, three people willing to be considered for kidney matching contacted Norm. Unfortunately, none of Norman’s original matches were able to progress, leaving him, though poised and ready for the transplant, to reach out to the Peace Corps community again. This time, Anne McAvoy, responded. Anne heard about Norman’s request via the NPCA’s enewsletter. Months later, after rigorous testing to ensure a compatible match, and multiple doctor visits, the time of the transplant arrived. The surgery was performed on May 19th and was a success! Anne and Norman have recovered and are functioning well.
by Heather Odell Whether it’s teaching students in Kulai, Malaysia or Brooklyn, New York, or donating your kidney to a complete stranger, being a Peace Corps Volunteer inspires a lifetime of service. Anne McAvoy of Portland, and Norman Sapoznik of Brooklyn, both served in Malaysia from 19671969. However, their paths didn’t cross until recently. Last November, Norman, who was on dialysis, was “desperate” for a kidney donation. According to data provided by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network, there are currently over 10,000 people in New York State alone waiting for organ transplants. Like Norman, over 8,000 of those people are awaiting kidneys. With just 639 kidneys transplanted from deceased donors in New York in 2013, the need far outweighs supply. Norman knew he couldn’t survive the years that many in need of organ transplants wait, often without donations arriving in time. As a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV), and member of
Kidney donor Anne McAvoy and recipient Norman Sapoznik prior to surgery. The NPCA is thrilled to be a part of this story. Our vision of a united and vibrant Peace Corps community, with a mission of championing lifelong commitment to Peace Corps ideals, truly materialized in this exchange. “It’s about community helping community,” says Glenn. Norman gives all thanks to Glenn, the NPCA staff and NPCA board for catalyzing this(Continued P.12) 11
(CONTINUED From P. 11)exchange, and recognizes Anne as the true hero.“I am in perpetual awe of her,” he says of Anne, “She represents the true Peace Corps spirit. It proves the feelings we had in the 1960s were carried forward and that Peace Corps is capable not only of helping the world, but each other…even after 45 years.” About the Peace Corps community, Anne observes “As a group, it’s as altruistic as you can find. These are people who are not only interested in social issues, but who raise their hands to do something.” She encourages others to consider kidney donation, saying, “This gives somebody back their life. They can continue to do good things.” That is exactly what Norman, who taught over 18,000 students during his 24 years in education, hopes to do as he makes plans to return to teaching. “The kids need me,” he says. With an aunt who lived to 103, Norman anticipates serving his students and family for many years to come.
Friends of Malaysia Board Members President: Barry Morris VP of Programs: Thaine H. Allison, Jr. VP of Membership: Paul Murphy Treasurer: Paul Murphy Secretary: Ruth Zwirner Newsletter: vacant Board Members: Rod Zwirner Lynn Juhl Michael H. Anderson Karen McClay Flolid Marjorie Harrison Bob Cricenti
Join Friends of Malaysia
Membership gives you access to our latest newsletter and your membership fee is used to help us make contributions to charities in Malaysia. Name/Maiden Name (if applicable)_______________________________ You too can make a difference in the life of someone Address___________________________________ in need of an organ transplant. Registration to be a City____________________ State______________ donor is available online through the US Department Zip_____________ of Health, Phone______________________ (http://www.organdonor.gov/becomingdonor/statereg Email_______________________ istries.html), or at your local DMV when applying for Peace Corps Service ________________________ or updating your driver’s license. If you have Make checks payable to: questions about the procedure for Norman or Anne, Friends of Malaysia Dues please email news@peacecorpconnect.org and (FoM & NPCA) $50 include the word “kidney” in the subject line. We’ll FOM only $15 see that the message is forwarded. Mail to: Paul Murphy, 510 Little John Hill, Sherwood Forest, Update: See a video report on Norman’s kidney MD 21405 donation. Start at 15:02. https://youtu.be/OA3dNZUo28 Learn more about the Friends of Malaysia at our web site:: http://friendsofMalaysia.net Contribute to Apa Kabar: webmaster@FriendsofMalaysia.org National Peace Corps Association http://PeaceCorpsConnect.org Group 28 Blog - PCVs who served in Malaysia from 1970-1973 http://peacecorpsmalaysia.wordpress.com Peace Corps Malaysia on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/201309356552 602/ Malaysia American Foundation Web address Anne McAvoy’s son Collin Quade(left), Anne McAvoy https://www.facebook.com/malaysiaamericafound and Norman Sapoznik together in New York City a Ation few days before the transplant was performed. From World View the magazine of National Peace Corps Association 12