The newest PCVs to finish there service, as of August 2009:
Christine Richard
SED 2007-2009
RPCV Lolodorf/Maroua
Sarah Goehler
SED 2007-2009
RPCV Njinikom
Kate Nolan
Education 2006-2009
RPCV Ndelele/Bertoua
PCV Chris Hill served in Buea from 1974-74, working with credit unions as an advisor. He is now the U.S. Ambassador to Iraq.
From Politico
By: Anne Schroeder Mullins
July 22, 2009 04:50 AM EST
Before launching their careers on Capitol Hill, some congressional lawmakers got their first taste of mudslinging in a productive way — as volunteers in the U.S. Peace Corps. The program has served as an unlikely farm system for future members of Congress. Sen. Chris Dodd and Reps. Sam Farr, Tom Petri, Mike Honda and Steve Driehaus have all been among its ranks.
And it’s not just elected officials who have served in the Peace Corps before making their way to Washington. Journalist Chris Matthews was in Swaziland from 1968 to 1970, writer Maureen Orth was in Colombia from 1964 to 1966 — the same time as Farr — and current Ambassador to Iraq Chris Hill served in Cameroon from 1974 to 1976. (And he thought Africa was tough.)
The Peace Corps, which is hosting an event at the Capitol Visitor Center for staff and interns on Wednesday, gave us a peek at several politicos in their earthy Peace Corps days.
Ambassador Chris Hill
Volunteered in Cameroon (1974-76)
“In one month, I went from being responsible for very little in college to being responsible for the life savings of 6,000 credit union members in Fako Division, Cameroon. The Peace Corps gave me that chance. In many ways, it was the most important job I have ever had.”
Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.)
Volunteered in the Dominican Republic (1966-68)
“Over 40 years ago, when I arrived in the Dominican Republic as an English major who spoke almost no Spanish, I was asked a question I’ve been asked a thousand times since: ‘Why did you join the Peace Corps?’ The answer was simple: because an American president asked me to. My experience in the Peace Corps was perhaps the most formidable and richest of my life, and it is why I have spent my life in public service and continue to urge others to serve our great nation.”
Rep. Sam Farr (D-Calif.)
Volunteered in Colombia (1964-66)
“For two years, I lived amid severe poverty in Medellin, Colombia, helping the poorest of the poor figure out what they wanted from their government and then working with them to get it. I learned firsthand what contributes to poverty, and I’ve worked four decades to defeat it. As my wife said, I’m still a Peace Corps volunteer at heart; I’ve just changed my barrio.”
Rep. Tom Petri (R-Wis.)
Volunteered in Somalia (1966-67)
Petri’s spokesman shares this story: “Having finished law school, Petri was assigned to bring some order to Somalia’s legal code. Because of the country’s colonial history, some of the laws were in Arabic, some in Italian and some in English. They were numbered, so if you had a copy of law 100, you knew that there were 99 before it.
“Petri went to the custodian of the laws to request a complete copy. He was told that that would be impossible. He returned over the course of several days, sometimes bringing the custodian tea, and gradually obtained a law or two at a time. Eventually, the custodian took him to a room where the laws were kept, bound in twine and totally ignored.”
Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.)
Volunteered in El Salvador (1965-67)
“My time in El Salvador taught me so much. I went into the Corps as a college student shy of graduation with little direction; I emerged with the confidence that my emotional, psychological and physical limits had been pushed, plied and ultimately surpassed. I went into the Corps driven by the shame of my youthful lack of direction; I emerged determined to do something about the pervasive poverty surrounding me. I went into the Corps speaking one language; I emerged speaking another: Spanish, a gift that introduced me to a new world, gave me a new way of understanding new cultures and helped me connect to constituents in California. The Peace Corps got me back to the basics, and I realized that every day is a gift to be used wisely. That gift is what guides me now in Congress.”
Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio)
Volunteered in Senegal (1988-90)
“I lived with a family in a village of 300 people, and she lived with us. When I look at this photo, I think I was much younger and I weigh less, and I have less gray in my beard. The Peace Corps was a fantastic experience. It was probably, with the exception of my marriage and my children, the most important experience in my life. Those 2½ years were very valuable. I had a prototypical Peace Corps experience — I lived in a rural area, and you have a far deeper appreciation for how so many millions of people live life around the world that is so different than ours.”
Driehaus adds: “I like to tease the others — they were all serving the year I was born.”
PCV Abba Greenleaf reports that she has a growing quilt-making project going in Cameroon. She is serving in Mayo Darle, Adamawa, as a Health Volunteer, and is originally from Iowa City, Iowa. Before joining the Peace Corps, she studied Public Health at George Washington University.
“I started quilting when I met a woman, Mairama, who is located in a village near the Nigerian border. She is an Umbororo woman who has been in Cameroon for about 9 years, since the Umbororo/Mambila conflict that forced her and her family to flee Nigeria. She was looking for a way to make money and so I taught her how to hand quilt. Now we have 9 women hand quilting and 3 piecing (using a machine to put the pieces together).
“Each month we have a meeting where I teach the women about a health topic and they get paid for their work and receive new work. They are learning, (petit a petit), how to be independent in their work, since I will be leaving Cameroon in December of this year. This means I am teaching them about budgeting, cotising money to buy supplies.
“It has been incredibly exciting to see these women learn the trade, turn it into a beautiful art while at the same time supporting their families. All the quilts are pieced on a machine, then hand quilted. Prices depend on size and the difficulty of the quilt. The smallest quilt usually costs about 15,000 cfa ($30) with the most expensive (large enough to cover a double bed) is usually around $100. All the quilts have pagne, and some are mixed with monotone color fabric to help ease the intensity (pagne is very bright and busy!). As you can see in the pictures, there is also the possibility of using the PC fabric. We chose to mix the fabric with green, yellow and red since those are the national colors. 
However, there are lots of different designs we can try out.
“If people are interested in ordering quilts; the address to use is agreenleafpccam@yahoo.com .
“My village actually just got electricity on the 20th of May, for 4 hours every night, but we are still a long way from Internet!
Hello Cameroon RPCVs!!!
Peace Corps Response is starting an exciting new education program in Guinea and your skills and experience may be just what we need for the position!
Since its inception as Crisis Corps in 1996, Peace Corps Response has placed over 1000 RPCVs in short-term assignments to address critical needs around the globe.
Please see below for more information about our new programs in Guinea.
If you are interested, please submit your resume at the link found below.
Questions?
pcresponse@peacecorps.gov
800-424-8580 ext. 2250
Guinea
Position: Teacher Trainer
Partner Julius Nyéréré University of Kankan, English Department
Projected Start Date October, 2009
Duration 8 months
Description
The Julius Nyéréré University of Kankan is requesting a Peace Corps Response volunteer to work with the University Rector and professors from the English department to formulate a master’s (and possibly doctoral) program for the English department. The PCRV will help to implement such a program by leading upper-level classes and training other English language professors. The PCRV will be expected to teach upper-level classes and/or train professors within the English Department; review and evaluate the current Bachelor’s portion of the English program; assist in formulating the specifics of the master’s/doctoral portions of the English program; and to lead training classes in basic online research methods to help professors improve class materials with information found on the web.
Qualifications
Mandatory: Bachelor’s degree in English or education (preferably education); 1-3 years of teaching experience; basic internet/IT research skills. Level of French required: Spoken – conversational & Written – technical.
Desired: Master’s or PhD (preferably in education); several years experience in education in francophone West Africa.
Position: Teacher Trainer
Partner University of Labé
Projected Start Date October, 2009
Duration 8 months
Description
The fairly new University of Labé is requesting a Peace Corps Response volunteer to help expand and improve their English department. The PCRV will be responsible for teaching English classes to students; training other English professors within the English department in Labé; studying and editing available English teaching materials; and training professors in basic internet research skills.
Qualifications
Mandatory: Bachelor’s degree in English or education (preferably in education); 1-3 years teaching experience; basic internet/IT research knowledge. Level of French required: Spoken- conversational & Written- technical.
Desired: Master’s or PhD (preferably in education); several years experience in education in francophone West Africa; mastery of French.
Five Education PCVs just finished their service in Cameroon.
Left to Right:
Ann-Marie Mark
RPCV Bertoua (East Region)
Education 2007-2009
Tara Smith
RPCV Baré (Littoral Region)
TEFL Education 2007-2009
(Tara received FOC funding for a latrine project in her village.)
Anne Raymond
RPCV Ewoh (Northwest Region)
Math Science Education 2007-2009
Barry Shapira
RPCV Dimarko (East Region)
IT Education 2007-2009
Reid Benson
RPCV Bdiang (East Region)
TEFL Education 2007-2009
A few more newly inducted Cameroon RPCV
(From Left to Right)
Joe and Debbie Schuld
RPCV Tiko (SW)
IT and TEFL Education 2007-2009
Alyssa Poucher
RPCV Gashiga (North Region)
TEFL Education 2007-2009
Dr. Matthew McGrath
RPCV Dschang (West Region)
Math Science Education 2007-2009
Rachel Witter
RPCV Ebolowa (South Region)
TEFL Education 2007-2009
Bradford Melius
RPCV Fontem (SW Region)
Math Science Education 2007-2009
New Education and Small Enterprise Development trainees arrived in Cameroon on June 5 and have already begun training in country. They will officially swear in on August 19th upon completion of training.