Peace Corps Legacy Association

06/03/2026

05/25/2026

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
This is the grave marker of Dale Swenson. If you visit Fallen Peace Corps Volunteers at www.fpcv.org, the first name on the list (at the bottom) of those who died in service is Dale. Dale was killed in Campos dos Goytacazes, Município de Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, while I was serving in Brazil in 1962. He was an only child buried in a small country cemetery in Northern Wisconsin. With no remaining family in the area, his grave has gone unattended over the years. To celebrate the Peace Corps' 65th anniversary on this Memorial Day weekend, remembering the fallen, I thought it an appropriate occasion to journey there to restore his and his family's markers.

05/19/2026

These are the known RPCVs from Brazil who passed this past month, including Dr. Robert Castellini. Full obituaries can be found on Connect+

● Erma Dunnington (1964-67) 3/3/26
● Craig W. Eby (1973-75) 4/17/26
● Thomas G. Hiers (1964-66) 4/10/26
● Susan Jean (Beard) Pavelec (1976) 4/5/26

05/19/2026

As we approach Memorial Day, we wish to remember all the brave men and women who have served our country in the military, Peace Corps, and other forms of national service. Here is one of those who passed this past month and honored that mission.

Following 29 years of military service with the United States Air Force, Colonel Glenn H. Smallwood added approximately five years of additional service with the Peace Corps. Along with military assignments in the U.S., Smallwood was also stationed in Korea, Germany, and Turkey. In 2008, Smallwood and his wife, Cherry, began service with the Peace Corps in Botswana. He also worked as a short-term Response Volunteer in Suriname and would later return with Peace Corps Botswana to assist with the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

05/01/2026

Passing of a Brazil Peace Corps Volunteer who some may remember
https://www.crippenandflynnchapels.com/obituary/dr-ronald-castellino?

View Dr. Ronald A. Castellino's obituary, send flowers, find service dates, and sign the guestbook.

05/01/2026

Honor America’s 250th Anniversary
Get a Replica Brick
By donating a personal Plaza brick by July 4th, donors will also be eligible for a 50% discount on an exact replica brick—a permanent keepsake for families or a display piece for your community, school, or college to promote the Peace Corps. Your replica will invite discussion.
Let’s celebrate America’s 250th by spreading the symbolic Peace Corps message around the country. Please become a Plaza donor and join 200 other Plaza donors in 150 towns and cities across America who have already received or ordered replicas.
Order your replica brick by May 20th, and it will arrive by July 4th.
(Sample shown below.)
Order a brick at: https://www.fundraisingbrick.com/online-orders/rpcvplaza/

NOW IS THE TIME TO ACT
– Along with your Plaza brick order, consider ordering a replica at 50% discount before America's anniversary on July 4th.
For more information, contact PCLA at: [email protected] or visit the website: www.peacecorpslegacy.org

05/01/2026

If you have not seen this article, it emphasizes how beneficial the Peace Corps is to America beyond service abroad.
https://www.peacecorpsconnect.org/return-on-investment/?

As federal funding for international aid and cultural exchange programs continues to shrink, policymakers are increasingly asking whether these initiatives deliver tangible benefits to Americans. In 2021, National Peace Corps Association commissioned a major study to mark the Peace Corps’ 60th ann...

04/14/2026

Speaking of handicaps, I had the pleasure of chatting with this wonderful lady today. Amazing person. She was in the Peace Corps in 1962, in the Dominican Republic. She was the first blind person ever to be in the Peace Corps. What is amazing is that she is also an author. She donated a large brick in the Plaza and also got a replica, both of which she will never see.

When people think about handicaps and why they can't do things in life, and how life has beaten them down with their poor me stories. I would like them all to read Marilyn's story. Incredible. Pass it on.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00A3XHYDK?ingress=0&visitId=53d50be9-76d3-4df5-bebe-6d3ff0f4a7f5

04/12/2026

ABC's This Morning with George Stephanopoulos at 9:00 am will feature 4-Star General Joseph Votel, former head of the Middle East General Command, who spoke at the National Service Park Launch in 2023 in Plainview, Minnesota.

04/03/2026

https://community.peacecorpsconnect.org/news/11493536

While Macalester has long been recognized as a “top producer” of Fulbright scholars and Peace Corps volunteers, leadership believes this new ...