Reunion Picnic Update

Boats for the Rock Island Peace Corps Reunion Picnic will depart from the dock at Riptide in Malakal at 9 am on Sunday morning, July 3.  Please RSVP to Lynn @ 488-2229 or Judy @ 775-3326 or email judyd@palaugov.org to let us confirm who is coming.  BYOB and/or desserts.  This will be a typical "4th of July Picnic."  Hot dogs, burgers, chips, watermelon and potato salad will be provided.

Likewise please RSVP if you plan on joining either the field trip to Lake Ngardok on Tuesday, July 5 or to the National Capitol on Wednesday, July 6.  Both tours start from the Belau National Museum at 8:30 am and return around 4 p.m.

Peace Corps Palau 50th Anniversary

Calendar of Events

The 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps in Palau is shaping up to be a great occasion:

Saturday, July 2, 6 a.m. - 8 a.m.
Bird Count with Dr. Alan Olsen, distinguished ornithologist and former Micro 1 PCV.  Join Dr. Olsen for his monthly bird count on Long Island.  Bring binoculars if you have them.

Sunday, July 3, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Traditional "4th of July" rock island picnic.  Transportation and food provided. Bring your own refreshments and snorkel.  Boat departure to be announced.

Monday, July 4, 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.
50th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony.  Speakers to include President of Palau, Minister of Education, and Micro 1 Volunteers, Donation of books to be presented to Palau Public Library.

5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Happy hour at Riptide in Malakal.  Swap stories and share memories with the aid of a slide presentation covering 50 years of Peace Corps activity in Palau. Light snacks provided.

Tuesday, July 5, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Field trip - "Palau Botanical Paradise."  Meet at the Belau National Museum and learn about medicinal plants found in Palau.  Continue to Melekeok to Lake Ngardok, the largest lake in Micronesia.  Bring your own lunch.

Wednesday, July 6, 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Field trip - "Palau - the Birth and Making of a Nation."  Meet at the Belau National Museum.  Continue to Melekeok to visit the Capitol building and view Palau's hidden art treasury. Bring your own lunch.

Thursday, July 7, 6 - 7:30 p.m.
Reception at the residence of Her Excellency Amy J. Hyatt, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Palau.

7:45 p.m.- 11 p.m.
Pot luck dinner at the home of former PCV Judy Dean in Ngesaol.

Friday, July 8, 6 p.m. - 10 p.m.
Night Market at Bethlehem Park in Koror.  Join us at the Peace Corps table to enjoy the evening festivities.

Peace Corps Palau 50th Anniversary:

Peace Corps Palau 50th Anniversary:

July 3-9, 2016

Please Join the 50th Anniversary Book Drive in Celebration of Peace Corps Palau!

The former PCV's living in Palau are organizing a couple of service projects to take place during our 50th Anniversary Celebration.  The first project is a book drive, and it is open to all former Palau PCV's, no matter where you are living or whether you plan to attend the celebration.  To participate, please send one or more books about your U.S. home state to:

Palau Peace Corps 50th Anniversary

c/o Lynn Polloi

P.O. Box 98

Koror, PW  96940

Republic of Palau

During our anniversary celebration, we will hold a ceremony at the Ministry of Education and present all the books we've collected to the Palau Public Library.

As another service project, during the Palau Peace Corps Anniversary Celebration, which will happen the week before Palau Constitution Day, we will conduct a tour that focuses on the steps towards nation-building in Palau.  While a few tour operators in Palau drop foreign visitors off at the capitol building for picture-taking, there are no organized tours that focus on Palau's historical development as a nation.  We will start at the Belau National Museum to understand the Spanish, German, Japanese and American influences on Palau's government and proceed to the National Capitol in Melekeok where we will learn the significance of the architecture and view the Palau Judiciary's incredible hidden repository of Palauan art.  Another tour we plan to offer will emphasize Palau's unique terrestrial ecology, starting with a lesson on medicinal plants at the Museum and then visiting the bird sanctuary in Ngeremlengui, followed by a visit to the Lake Ngardok Nature Reserve (Micronesia's largest lake) in Melekeok State.  The tours will be open to Palauan youth and led by former Palau PCV's.  We also want as many former PCV's as possible to join the tours to help as chaperones.  These tours, we hope, may serve as a model for the tour industry in Palau as examples of how to develop the nation's historical and cultural resources.

Stay tuned for more updates soon.

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Palau has grown by leaps and bounds since Micro 1 arrived nearly fifty years ago. Visitor arrivals have increased from 54,000 in 2001 to 162,000 for 2015. There are now dozens of hotels with accommodations in every price range. If you are planning a visit during the Peace Corps Palau 50th Anniversary celebration and have not already arranged accommodations, you should do so right away. Most Chinese tour agencies book rooms in advance, resulting in a lack of hotel rooms for other visitors.  Below are the relevant pages from the Palau phone book with hotel and motel contact information:

Peace Corps Palau 50th Anniversary Blog

Alii, former Palau Peace Corps Volunteers and Staff! 

Welcome to the Palau PCV 50th Anniversary Organization Blogsite.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS for JULY 3 - 9, 2016

and make plans now to join the

50th Anniversary Celebration

of Peace Corps in Palau!

Did you know that since Micro 1 arrived, back in the summer of 1966, there have been 370 PCV's who served in Palau?  I was happy to discover that, in fact, there are 17 other former Peace Corps Volunteers who now reside in Palau. Recently a core group of former PCV's and staff met to form a non-profit organization to plan a celebration of the 50-year presence of Peace Corps in Palau. The Palau PCV 50th Anniversary Organization is now officially chartered by the Government of Palau. According to the by-laws, membership in the Organization is automatic for any person residing in Palau who is a current or former U.S. PCV or member, past or present, of the Peace Corps staff.  Board meetings are held the first Tuesday of every month and the general membership meets the third Tuesday.  Officers of the Organization are:

          Judy Dean, President
          Lynn Polloi, Vice President
          Bill Keldermans, Treasurer
          Goretti Masayos, Secretary

We have a lot of ideas to make the 50th Anniversary Celebration a fun time for former PCV's and their families. Check this blog often, as we will be posting updates on our progress, travel tips, event schedules and more.

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