{"id":4057,"date":"2007-04-01T15:16:15","date_gmt":"2007-04-01T19:16:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/?p=4057"},"modified":"2014-11-14T16:03:27","modified_gmt":"2014-11-14T21:03:27","slug":"the-peace-corps-just-celebrated-its-45th-anniversary-an-occasion-that-brought-memories-to-and-reconnections-among-those-who-have-served-as-volunteers-since-its-inception","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/2007\/04\/the-peace-corps-just-celebrated-its-45th-anniversary-an-occasion-that-brought-memories-to-and-reconnections-among-those-who-have-served-as-volunteers-since-its-inception\/","title":{"rendered":"The Peace Corps just celebrated its 45th anniversary, an occasion that brought memories to and reconnections among those who have served as volunteers since its inception."},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
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\nEd Glab<\/strong> during his Peace Corps volunteer stint.<\/em><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

In 1963, Ed Glab<\/strong>, director, Knight Ridder Center for Excellence in Management in the College of Business Administration, was an idealistic young man one-month short of his 21st birthday and devastated by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He turned that desolation into a positive commitment: to join the Peace Corps. Today, he continues to marvel at the impact the experience has had on his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter Kennedy\u2019s death, I thought of his call that we ask what we could do for our country. When a former Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) turned recruiter came to my campus in the dead of a frigid Chicago winter sporting a golden suntan, I said to myself, \u2018Self, where do I sign up to serve my country and get a suntan like that?\u2019 The answer turned out to be Puerto Rico and Per\u00fa.\u201d<\/p>\n

After applying in 1963, he was sent to Puerto Rico in the summer of 1964 for training and a suntan and served as a PCV in Per\u00fa from 1965-67, placing him among the earliest volunteers and under the leadership of Sargent Shriver, the first Peace Corps director.<\/p>\n

Poverty yields riches.<\/em><\/p>\n

During his two years in Per\u00fa, he lived without running water or electricity but with a hammer by his bedside to fend off rats and a U.S. Army issue can of DDT-laced talcum powder for the ever-present fleas.<\/p>\n

\u201cI lived among the very poor in front of the local garbage dump,\u201d he said. \u201cMy Per\u00favian friends said the area was very dangerous, but it turned out to be both safe and friendly.\u201d<\/p>\n

He resided in a \u201cbarriada\u201d (squatter slum settlement) on the outskirts of Lima. Despite their daily struggle to survive, the inhabitants felt they had improved their lot compared to the rural poverty they had endured in the Andean mountains. They lived with dignity and optimism, according to Glab.<\/p>\n

\u201cI worked with the U.S. Ambassador\u2019s Small Projects program to build one-room libraries, clinics, schools, and \u00a0bridges,\u201d he said. \u201cThe local communities always provided the construction labor, while the PCVs furnished the expertise and materials. The construction was basic and low-cost, but had a high impact on the lives of the people in these communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also started a nutrition\/health program and a day-care summer camp for the children of his \u201cbarriada.\u201d<\/p>\n

During his stint, Glab learned to speak Spanish fluently and to love the culture and people of Per\u00fa. The Peace Corps in Per\u00fa recognized him as a model volunteer and the U.S. Ambassador to Per\u00fa gave him a special commendation for his work. His service also led to a scholarship for his graduate education.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never imagined or expected that by volunteering two years of my life, I would receive a lifetime of benefits,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Corporate careers and the Peace Corps are not mutually exclusive.<\/em><\/p>\n

Many volunteers\u2014Glab included\u2014subsequently followed the corporate path, gravitating, as he did, to international business. He is in the process of inviting a number of them from around the country to speak at Florida International University as part of the Wertheim Lecture series.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome former Peace Corps volunteers who are now in business include W. Frank Fountain Sr.<\/strong>, vice president, Daimler Chrysler; and Robert Haas<\/strong>, chairman of the board, Levi Strauss & Co., among others,\u201d he said. \u201cIt will be an opportunity for them to discuss how the Peace Corps affected their international business careers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ed Glab during his Peace Corps volunteer stint. In 1963, Ed Glab, director, Knight Ridder Center for Excellence in Management in the College of Business Administration, was an idealistic young man one-month short of his 21st birthday and devastated by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. He turned that desolation into a positive commitment: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":71,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[1516,2267,2655],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4057"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/71"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4057"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4057\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24282,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4057\/revisions\/24282"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4057"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4057"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4057"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}