SEAPAX Monthly Newsletter
|
|
|
December Newsletter
Contact Tracer Jobs
The NPCA is currently fielding a team of returned volunteers as COVID-19 contact tracers with Public Health - Seattle & King County. There is another position available on the team and they are looking to recruit one more member.
Positions are paid with benefits, full-time, and home-based. A minimum of 23-40 hours per week and a 6-month commitment are required. All candidates must be residents of Washington State, but King County residency is not required. Successful applicants must attend an in-person skills assessment and technical orientation in Seattle. Training and equipment will be provided. Employment will be contingent upon completing a final interview and post-training assessment.
Send applications to reentry@peacecorpsconnect.org. See here for a full job description.
Advocacy
URGENT ACTION ALERT! Earlier this year the House of Representatives approved a funding package, sustaining Peace Corps funding at level funding ($410.5 million) for Fiscal Year 2021. Now the package is with the Senate, which has proposed cutting Peace Corps funding by $51 million. Over the past five years, Peace Corps has struggled with level funding as costs increased, and this further cut would burden the agency as posts start to re-open and volunteers are sent back overseas (some as early as January). Email Senators Murray and Cantwell to support Peace Corps funding. Please act before December 11!
A Thought-Provoking Read: The National Peace Corps Association released The Peace Corps Connect to the Future Report. We highly recommend you read the ideas presented as to how Peace Corps can transform itself during this unprecedented period.
Update on Gatherings and Annual Contribution Campaign
Our first priority remains the health and safety of our members, their families, and the community at large, so SEAPAX continues its temporary suspension of in- person gatherings, in compliance with local, state, and federal pandemic guidance. In the meantime, we are pleased to report that our committees have quickly adapted to the 'new normal,' finding creative ways to stay connected and move forward with our very successful mentorship program, important advocacy efforts, virtual book club, featured presentations, and the launch of the critical COVID-19 contact tracer cohort.
To maintain our momentum and introduce new programs in 2021, we need your help. Please use the donate link below to make a contribution, and drop a line to tell us what you’d most like to see SEAPAX take on in the coming year. Remember, we are now a registered 501(c)(3), so depending on your filing status, your entire donation may be tax deductible. And to those who have already contributed, we say a heartfelt, “Thank you!”
You can donate here.
Open Board Positions
Would you like to get more involved with SEAPAX and our local RPCV community? There is no better way to do this than to serve on our Board. We are looking to fill the following Board position:
- Grants Chair - Oversees and runs the Grants Committee, which awards up to $500 grants to community-based projects in Washington State and countries around the world. The Grants Committee reviews grant applications, nominates grant awardees to the Board, and updates grant policies and forms as needed.
If you are interested and/or would like to learn more, please email us.
Calendar Sales
It's time to order your 2021 RPCV International Calendars!
These calendars keep us connected to the countries and people with whom we served, support our SEAPAX small grants program, and work towards the 3rd goal: bringing the world back home. When you follow the directions below, you get $1 off the regular price of $15, and 40% of the proceeds support our SEAPAX small grants program!
This year, we are partnering with the RPCVs of Wisconsin-Madison, who created this beautiful calendar, to provide contactless delivery.
To order:
1. Go to rpcvcalendar.org
2. Fill out the form to order your calendar(s).
3. Use our code: PC4SEAPAX
4. Calendars will ship to the address of your choice!
Questions? Email us.
Support SEAPAX with Your Holiday Gifts
Are you already stressed about your holiday shopping this year? Don't worry - we have the perfect gift ideas! Head over to the SEAPAX Store to purchase t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, and more for your loved ones. Find one-of-a-kind gifts while supporting SEAPAX this holiday season!
And, if you do any shopping on Amazon: remember to set your Amazon Smile charity to SEAPAX and make sure to use smile.amazon.com each time you make a purchase. Thank you for helping us out!
|
|
|
Books and Podcasts
Book Club
Please fill out this 30- second survey to decide the five books we read in 2021!
Global Storytime Podcast
Every two weeks, Global Storytime Podcast journeys into a different part of the world. SEAPAX member Diane Strand tells a classic folktale from that region and shares a few facts about the country so we can all get to know it better.
Give it a listen and share it with families that enjoy folktales and armchair travels!
Available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher.
Follow Global Storytime Podcast on Facebook and Instagram for more country-specific content and new episode posts.
New Book on the Peace Corps
Randy Hobler, RPCV from Libya 1968-1969, has released a highly-praised book, 101 Arabian Tales: How We All Persevered in Peace Corps Libya. It is remarkable in that he interviewed 101 of his fellow RPCVs in depth for the book. Former Ambassador to the Comoros and Cameroon Niels Marquardt (who was a volunteer in Zaire and Rwanda) wrote: “Randy Hobler has written the best memoir of a Peace Corps experience that I have ever read. His amazingly detailed book instantly grips the reader by putting Libya in its properly rich and unique historical perspective.”
|
|
|
Welcome and Microloans
New Members
Welcome to our newest SEAPAX members who joined in November!
- Sonya Mullings
- Carol Brown, Liberia 1967-1969
- Emily Mather
- Lesley Stuifbergen
- Karen Donahue Robinson, Federated States of Micronesia 1991-1992
- Price Daniell
- Mary Segall
- Emily Bah
- Mike McCarthy
TCP Global
If you served in Colombia, Ghana, Guatemala, Kenya, Liberia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, Peru, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda, or Zambia, TCP Global invites you to learn about our virtual community and economic development work in your country. If you served anywhere else, you can connect them to potential new partners.
TCP Global has more than twenty years of experience building zero-overhead, sustainable micro-loan programs and recently passed the $1 million milestone in loans issued. The long-term vision is to join forces with other RPCV-led projects to provide not just micro-loans but also improve health care, environmental protection, water and sanitation, electric and internet connectivity and education to improve the quality of life in small and remote communities so that migration will one day be a choice rather than a necessity. The NPCA provides grants and support for RPCV initiatives that may one day join these efforts.
The team recently expanded to include six evacuees who added new energy to our loan program, one of whom is SEAPAX Advocacy Co-Chair Kenney Tran!
To learn more about TCP Global, to bring a loan program to your PC site, or to learn other ways to get involved, email TCP Global.
|
|
|
|
|
|