crpca march 2014 newsletter · the songkran festival (thai new year) in thailand; photo from george...

CRPCA March 2014 - Volume 34, Issue 3

March 2014 Newsletter - Volume 34, Issue 3

The Songkran Festival (Thai New Year) in Thailand; photo from George & Chrys Smith.

Inside this newsletter

Letter from the editor

An interview with George & Chrys Smith, Thailand 1967-1969

Fei Lai Temple by Jason Thalacker, China 2010-2012

Invitation to participate in NAMI walks

CRPCA March to May events

Cacscade Festival of African Films

March 2014 Newsletter - Volume 34, Issue 3

The Songkran Festival (Thai New Year) in Thailand; photo from George & Chrys Smith.

Inside this newsletter

Letter from the editor

An interview with George & Chrys Smith, Thailand 1967-1969

Fei Lai Temple by Jason Thalacker, China 2010-2012

Invitation to participate in NAMI walks


Cascade Festival of African Films

Happy Peace Corps week! We hope you spent it well. To help us celebrate, local business Ruby Jewel ice cream is giving away

free ice cream! They say: "On Saturday, March 1st any returned volunteer is invited to stop by either of our scoop shops, let us

know they served, and pick up a pint of their choosing on the house." You can stop by their shop in North Portland (3713 N

Mississippi, Portland, OR 97227) or Downtown (428 SW 12th Ave, Portland, OR 97205) to claim your frozen treat.

This month we're focussing on Asia for our volunteer reminiscences. We've got an adapted blog post from Jason Thalacker's

service in China (2010-2012), as well as interview with George & Chrys Smith, who served in Thailand 1967-1969. Jason currently

lives in Portland, and George & Chrys are from Salem, but currently living in Portland.

Also, a memorial service for Malaysia RPCV Carl Homan (profiled in our January newsletter) was to have taken place during last

month's snow. It has been rescheduled for Sunday, March 9 at 6:00 pm at First Unitarian Church, 1226 SW Salmon St in Portland.

Next month we'll be continuing our series of PCV service experiences/reminiscences, so if you served in Pacific Islands, North

Africa, or the Middle East, we want to hear from you. We hope you resolve to send stories, pictures, recipes, songs, or anything at

all you'd like to share about your service, anything that really brings home why serving in the Peace Corps was a valuable and

life-changing experience: we want to hear about it (before March 25, 2014. If we don't hear from you, you might be hearing from us!

I'll be sending out reminders in the weekly update. If you have any other announcements or information that you'd like shared in the

newsletter, be sure to get that to me before the 25th as well. Questions and comments are greatly appreciated. Winter's almost

over!

— Meaghan Corwin, Armenia 2008-2011 & Mongolia 2011-2013

George and Chrys Smith’s experience as Peace Corps volunteers in Thailand is a classic example of how the interaction of people

from different cultures can have unexpected consequences that play out on the scale of a lifetime.

When the Smiths received their invitation to serve, there was in the US scarcely any awareness of Thailand, as a place, a culture,

or a cuisine. Southeast Asia was becoming to be better known, of course, thanks to the Vietnam war, but the area wasn’t a

common vacation destination, as it is today, and there weren’t Vietnamese and Thai restaurants on every corner, as it seems

today.

A temple with the sharply sloping roof typical of northern Thailand

Buddhas in a cave

So it was as to a completely unknown country that they arrived in 1967, and in a remote corner of that country, nearer to Laos than

to Bangkok. The Smiths taught in separate schools, though they lived on Chrys’s school’s campus. The town was small, with a

population of around 15,000, but it was the provincial capital.

Although their two years were successful and fulfilling, the experience has resonated throughout their lives. After graduate study on

Southeast Asia’s history and culture, they moved to Alaska in part because, “It was the closest thing we could get to being back

abroad while still having the security and advantages of the United States.”

In Alaska in the seventies, there still were municipal officials in some areas that didn’t speak English, and out of the major cities,

the living conditions were still primitive (as they continue to be today in some places). When possible, the Smiths have returned to

Southeast Asia for work and pleasure. They enjoy exploring ruins of earlier periods, folk art, such as primitive home-carved

Buddhas which are left as offerings in holy caves, and public markets.

Their love of travel has infected their children. The oldest daughter joined the Peace Corps and served in Nepal, in part because

the vividness of her parents’ experience had communicated itself to her with such force that she would tell stories about “when we

were in Thailand” although she had not yet been born during her parents’ service. The youngest daughter was the first American

exchange student in Vladivostok, Russia, after the fall of the Soviet Union.

But some of the most striking consequences of their service have played themselves out in their former students. Chrys and

George were able to attend former students’ fortieth anniversary in 2009, where they learned how their example had caused some

students to chose teaching as a profession, and in some cases English teaching; and they heard a speech on the positive influence

Peace Corps has had on the country. Another student served in parliament, and another became involved in radical student

movements.

I was most struck, however, with the story of the student with whom they had kept in closest contact since their service, named

Wanchai. He was a member of a group of four boys who the couple nicknamed Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, although he

always stood out from the rest of them, starting with the Smiths’ first day in town, when he came to their house, and, painfully

slowly, with the aid of a dictionary, managed to say, “I want to learn to speak English”. From that day they never spoke a word of

Thai with him.

After a varied and brilliant academic career that included high school and post-graduate study in the United States, Wanchai

became an educator, specializing in child psychology, and concentrating on helping young people with intellectual and emotional

difficulties. His particular area of expertise, which he is able to practice in at the international school where he currently works

outside of Bangkok, is with the children of mixed-nationality marriages, who fall between two cultures and have trouble assimilating

to any one environment.

How fascinating it is, that this talented young man, whose first steps on the long road that led to his career were made with Peace

Corps volunteers, who spend their service in exactly that uncomfortable place suspended between two cultures, should find his

flourishing supporting young people suffering from those same discomforts!

Interview by Patrick Findler

k. so here’s what happened.

we were in northwestern yunnan province, just above deqin, in a village called fei lai si. it’s a charming and TINY little place that

acts as basically THE very last settlement before crossing over into tibet. it is seriously remote, and strikingly beautiful.

now, I’ve been a big fan of lonely planet every since natalie and I did a (brilliant) ad campaign for them in our advanced copywriting

class, I think it was. at any rate, still a big fan of these guys, and they nailed it with northwestern yunnan…

“deqin sucks. head straight to fei lai si.”

…ok, that’s a bit of a paraphrase, but no less accurate. deqin is very very rough around the edges, lacking even a single real

hostel, and often off limits to foreigners with, really, very little to see. you don’t even get the vibe that “deqin-ers” like it there.

so as soon as we arrived (the arrival is a story in and of itself) we hired a car to get us the heck out of dodge, and up to fei lai si.

fei lai si boasts “sublime views” and a “small but interesting temple” according to the lp, so we checked into our hostel (of which

there is one), ruffled the fur of the GIANT white dog that lives there, and took off to find the temple. dig the view

this village sits at about 11,600 feet at the foot of meilixue mountain, with an absolutely amazing view of the range (tallest in

yunnan). the temple itself is nestled about 2 or 3 miles down the road out of town

when we got there, we learned that the resident lama (high ranking buddhist teacher) was in lhasa on a retreat of sorts. instead,

we found the place to be nearly empty; a temple, a monks dormitory, and a house of 4 really old caretakers.

and they were so incredibly cool. a little stand-offish at first, as we approached and charged up the doors of this nearly thousand

year-old temple, but the caretakers left a card game on the front porch of their two-story wooden structure to let us in.

there are, of course, no cameras allowed in the main hall of the temple, but we got a few photos of the prayer wheels outside.

after we toured the temple, we began to visit with the caretakers. they seemed to be the ones responsible for basic maintenance of

the place. I spent some time playing cards with them and learning to make wicks for the candles inside the temple.

so the big card game that everybody plays here is called “beat the landlord.” in dealing, one person is dubbed the landlord, they get

a few extra cards, and the others team up to go out first by playing rounds of poker-like hands

I had a funny conversation with a woman here that, translated, went something like this

me: what are you guys doing?

woman: having fun!

me: beating the landlord?

woman: yup

*then she considered for a moment and smiled real big*

woman: but really, we have no landlord!

me: *laughs* you’re your own landlord, right!

woman: *fit of laughter* yes!!

so the whole chinese revolution kicked off to battle the tyrannical landlords and give china back to the people, right? so, see, when

I asked if they were beating the landlord, the woman got clever and pointed out that, oh no, we have no landlords anymore, and…

well just trust me… it was really funny.

so we’re hanging out with these folks, rolling candle wicks, playing cards, chatting away, and we notice this dude with his thumb in

his fist and a tiny pile of dirt on top. looked alot like this (though I actually took this photo about a week later when I saw it again on

a tibetan guy)

we had noticed this on yet another guy a few days before and wondered what it was about so, this time, I decided to ask

“bi yan,” he says. literally, nose smoke.

I make a face, look at him, and inhale sharply through my nose

“dui dui dui” he says. you’ve got it.

I ask if I could take a whiff of the stuff, and he says sure. I bend down so my face is a couple inches over his hand, breathe in

gingerly through my nose, and hey! it smells like patchouli!!!

it smelled like incense dust. someone had ground up an incense stick and piled it onto this dude’s thumb. and he was… wait,

snorting it? no way. who snorts incense??

“changshi!” he smiles. try it!

erm. when you say try… he grabs my hand and puts a pinch of the stuff in my palm

“hao xiang!” he says. smells good.

I giggle a little bit. you can’t be serious. I don’t think I’ve ever SAID the word ‘snort’ out loud before and now you want me to… aw

heck

so I ask. ”erm, how do you…?”

“like this” he says, and I imitate

even before we were inhaling, the dude had his little pile of nose smoke WAY up his nose. like touching the bottom of his eyeball.

but what happened next can only be fully appreciated by those present. fortunately, charlie got it on video.

it starts with me asking him “let’s do it together, ok?”

we count to 3 and – well, see for yourself

it was as if someone had taken a few ounces of patchouli powder and ground into my brain with a cold, round stone.

a few minutes later, after my fit calmed down, it wasn’t so bad. honest! every breath through my nose smelled like daisies (well,

like hippies anyway) and it was kind of nice.

Christian and Charlie also tried the stuff, and had similar fits.

we all got a real kick out of this experience, pcvs and temple caretakers alike, and watched the video together on charlie’s camera

a few times.

it was so fun. we ended up visiting for a little while more – playing more cards, making candle wicks, and watching a dude mess

with his erhu (that he MADE FROM SCRATCH), and generally taking in the view and atmosphere of the place. we were young

americans, and they were old tibetans, and we were I think pretty honestly enjoying each other’s company. it was cool.

when we finally picked up to leave, the folks smiled, waved, and wished us back after we finished our trek

a peace corps volunteer’s official title in china is a “us-china friendship volunteer” and, on this day, we killed it. it was so fun.

Jason Thalacker was a Peace Corps Volunteer in China from 2010 to 2012. He stayed another year in China before returning

home to Portland last summer. Read more of his writing at jthalacker.wordpress.com.

Dear CRPCA Friends,

Some of you have received a letter from me each spring the past 3 years asking you to join in walking to support the Oregon

Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. NAMI Walks is the signature event of NAMI Oregon and it will be held in

Portland once again at Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade, SE Main at SE Water on Sunday, May 18, 2014 beginning at

As most of you already know, our precious daughter Susanna took her life four years ago on May 6th after a long, courageous fight

with clinical depression. Her death has been the most difficult thing I have ever faced, yet it also caused me to reflect on how

1:00 p.m.

incredibly lucky I was to have had Susanna in my life. Since May 2010, Susanna’s mother and I have striven to try to bring

something good out of such a personal tragedy. Increasing awareness of NAMI, so that other families may access the information

and support they need (and we lacked) to prevent losing a child is one of those efforts. Please join us by visiting this page to sign

up: http://namiwalks.nami.org/Susanna2014.

The goals of the NAMI Walk are to fight the stigma that surrounds mental illness, to build awareness of the fact that the mental

health system in this country needs to be improved, and to raise funds for NAMI so that it can continue helping families combat

mental illness. NAMI is a 501(c)3 charity and all donations are tax deductible. NAMI has been rated by Worth magazine as among

the top 100 charities "most likely to save the world" and has been given an "A" rating by The American Institute of Philanthropy for

efficient and effective use of charitable dollars. I am honored to be on the Board of Directors of the statewide organization.

Every year I have said it is more important to walk with us than it is to donate in order to show the world how many people care

about mental illness and to help eliminate the stigma that is keeping our children from seeking help. Last year, 2750 persons

completed the 3 mile walk. This year to show you I am serious in this statement and to encourage you all to come to walk on

Susanna’s Team, I will donate $50.00 to NAMI for every one of you who either walks with me that day, or tells me that you couldn’t

find me but walked anyway. No donation necessary. Together we can save the lives of those we love the most. Please come join

me on May 18th. Let’s show Portland, and the state, how many people care about those with mental illness.

Thank you in advance for your support. Anyone walking on Susanna’s Team is invited to a reception after the walk at my

house. Please let me know if you are coming and I’ll send details.

Jerry Gabay (RPCV Malawi)

[email protected]


March 2014

Monday, 3/03, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm - Writers' Workshop. Please bring a writing sample and perhaps a snack to share. See

our Writers' Workshop page for more information. Hosted at Collins View Dance & Art Center by Mimi and Jack Sanders, 318 SW

Palatine Hill Rd in Portland (old church immediately east of SW Boones Ferry Rd, 503-293-6195).

Tuesday, 3/11, 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm - Book Club. Hosted by Linda Centurion, 3940 SE 47th Ave in Portland. The book to read

is Nine Hills to Nambonkaha: Two Years in the Heart of an African Village by Ivory Coast RPCV Sarah Erdman (2003). See

our Upcoming Book Discussions page for more information. Feel free to bring snacks to share. Location is across from where

eastbound SE Center St ends at SE 47th Ave. Access Center by traveling south on SE 42nd Ave from Powell, then turning east

onto Center. Or access 47th by traveling west on SE Gladstone St from 52nd, then turning north onto 47th. Please be on time;

we’ll be Skyping with author Sarah Erdman from 6:45 to 7:45!

Thursday, 3/13, 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm - Service Activity: Oregon Food Bank, 7900 NE 33rd Dr in Portland. We will be

packing food at the Volunteer Action Center. Children over age 6 with adult chaperone are welcome to volunteer with us! Wear

work clothing and closed-toed shoes. RSVP to service AT crpca.org. Last minute additions welcome. See our Oregon Food Bank

service page for more information.

Sunday, 3/16, 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm - Potluck Gathering. Hosted by Anne Kimberly, 4261 SE Alder St in

Portland (503-234-4094). Please bring a dish to share to the 5:30 pm potluck dinner. After dinner, starting at 6:30, there will be a

combination business meeting and program.

6:30-6:40: Introductions, announcements, and approval of minutes from the previous business meeting

6:40-6:50: Presentation of proposed grant (If you plan to participate in this decision, please review in advance the Grant

application under consideration March 16, 2014.)

6:50-7:00: Decide whether to award up to $1,600 to Framework International (Grant sponsors will leave the room while we

deliberate.)

7:00-8:00: Panel discussion on monitoring elections around the world. The featured speakers will be CRPCA members

Phyllis Shelton, Jackie Van Anda, and Mike Waite.

Wednesday, 3/26, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm – Job Search Support Group. Lloyd Center in Portland. Informal gathering of

CRPCA members and friends who are seeking new work. Location at Lloyd Center in Portland. Meet 7pm at the Food Court (3rd

floor) exiting the elevator to the left side of the food court, looking for CRPCA sign plate overlooking the ice rink edge, or call

Gordon Young at 206-351-6465 for our location if you arrive later. Contact Gordon at networking AT crpca.org for more information.

Monday, 3/31, 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm - Soirée. Lucky Labrador Brew Pub, 915 SE Hawthorne Blvd, Portland OR. This is a great

way to link up with other RPCVs, hear interesting stories from around the world, and grab a drink and a bite to eat among good

company. You can usually find us in the front room.

April 2014

Thursday, 4/03, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm - Writers' Workshop. Please bring a writing sample and perhaps a snack to share. See

our Writers' Workshop page for more information. Hosted by Barbara Pugh, 8211 SW Canyon Lane in Portland (503-703-4117).

Thursday, 4/10, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm - Salon Francophone. The focus of this event is the French language. We hold fast to

the simple rule – only French spoken here -- from the first greetings to the final farewells. All Francophones in our CRPCA

community are welcome, including family and friends. On a choisi un nouveau restaurant pour cette réunion: C'est Si Bon, 22 NE

7th Ave à Portland. RSVP à francais AT crpca.org.

Sunday, 4/13, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm - Potluck Gathering. Hosted by Linda Centurion, 3940 SE 47th Ave in Portland. Please

bring a dish to share to the 6pm potluck dinner. After dinner, starting at 7pm, there will be a business meeting featuring our

mid-year budget review and election of our 2014-2015 board members. Location is across from where eastbound SE Center St

ends at SE 47th Ave. Access Center by traveling south on SE 42nd Ave from Powell, then turning east onto Center. Or access 47th

by traveling west on SE Gladstone St from 52nd, then turning north onto 47th.

Monday, 4/21, 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm - Book Club. Hosted by Gabriella Maertens, 13302 NE Sacramento Dr in Portland

(503-254-5161). The book to read is Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (2007). See our Upcoming Book Discussions page for more

information. Feel free to bring snacks to share.

Monday, 4/28, 5:45 pm to 7:45 pm - Peace Corps Send-Off Party, at Multnomah Arts Center, 7688 SW Capitol Hwy in

Portland. Send-Off parties are delightful “feel good” events, bringing together past volunteers, future volunteers (especially

mid-process applicants), their families, and others interested in Peace Corps. As part of organizing the Send-Off Party, our local

recruiting team extends a special invitation to RPCVs: Showcase your experience and country of service by setting up a table at

the event. If you can pitch in that way, RSVP by Monday April 14 to Pravin Mallavaram ([email protected],

503-267-2025) and he’ll make sure you have space. And even if you can’t organize a table, come to the event to meet – and help

recruit – the next generation of PCVs.

Monday, 4/28, 7:45 pm to 9:45 pm - International Development Happy Hour, at Lucky Labrador Public House, 7675 SW

Capitol Hwy in Portland. Co-hosted by CRPCA, Jubilee Oregon, North West Fair Trade Coalition, Portland Area Global AIDS

Coalition and RESULTS-Portland. An informal gathering to share information, resources and network and just plain chat over food

and drink. Note the significant location and time change from our usual Soirées.





May 2014

Saturday, 5/03, 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm - (SOLD OUT) Portland Timbers Soccer Game Outing, Providence Park

(Jeld-Wen Field), 1844 Southwest Morrison St, Portland, OR. We purchased a block of tickets for the Timbers' game against D.C.

United.

Thursday, 5/08, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm - Writers' Workshop. Hosted by Jerry Gabay, 4238 SE Ash St in Portland

(541-578-0051). Please bring a writing sample and perhaps a snack to share. See our Writers' Workshop page for more

information.

Saturday, 5/10, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm - Potluck Gathering. Hosted by Shellie Bedell-Stiles, 4104 SE Yamhill St in Portland

(503-233-1471). Note that this Potluck Gathering will be on a Saturday night, the eve of Mother's Day. Please bring a dish to share

to the 6pm potluck dinner. After dinner, starting at 7pm, there will be a panel on research into agricultural practices in Niger. The

featured speakers will be Niger RPCVs Jocelyn Grupp Mueller and Amy Wilson. Stay tuned for more information.

Tuesday, 5/13, 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm - Book Club. Hosted by Patrice Hudson, 4222 SE Morrison St in Portland (503-866-7020).

The book to read is "The Unheard: A Memoir of Deafness and Africa" by Zambia RPCV Josh Swiller (2007). See our Upcoming

Book Discussions page for more information. Feel free to bring snacks to share.

Monday, 5/19, 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm - Soirée. Lucky Labrador Brew Pub, 915 SE Hawthorne Blvd in Portland. This is a great way

to link up with other RPCVs, hear interesting stories from around the world, and grab a drink and a bite to eat among good

company. You can usually find us in the front room. Moved up due to the holiday.





CRPCA is again co-sponsoring the Cascade Festival of African Films, which along with meaning so much else to our community, is

Portland's longest-running expression of Peace Corps' 3rd goal. All of the following screenings are free and open to the public.

The films that had been scheduled for that snowy weekend in early February have been rescheduled. Here are the remaining

screenings at PCC-Cascade's Moriarty Arts and Humanities auditorium.

Saturday, Mar 1st

7:00pm, 102 min. MOI ZAPHIRA! (Burkina Faso) Women Filmmakers Week with Film Director Apolline Traoré

Thursday, Mar 6th

7:00pm, 72 min. SAND FISHERS (France, Mali) Thursday Evening Documentary Film Series

Friday, Mar 7th

7:00pm, 107 min. MOTHER OF GEORGE (Nigeria, USA) Focus on the African Immigrant Experience

Saturday, Mar 8th

1:00pm, 18 min. BOROM SARRET (Senegal) Ousmane Sembène Retrospective with Dr. Amadou Fofana, author of The

Films of Ousmane Sembène

1:00pm, 110 min. FAAT KINE (Senegal) Ousmane Sembène Retrospective with Dr. Amadou Fofana, author of The Films of

Ousmane Sembène

7:00pm, 90 min. VIRGIN MARGARIDA (Mozambique)

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crpca march 2014 newsletter · the songkran festival (thai new year) in thailand; photo from george...

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