Service to Our Country

The first draft of my blog on Monday was titled "McCain's Service." In subsequent drafts I changed it to "McCain's Military Service." I wanted to be sure to specify just what service I meant. Ever since then my thoughts keep coming back to service: different kinds of service, the value of various types of service, and the many ways people serve our country and our citizens. In the process of clarifying my thoughts on the topic, I had several conversations with my son in Vermont regarding his service in the Peace Corps and I also thought about a book I recently read.

The work of the Peace Corps and similar volunteer organizations is a public service that not only benefits the countries they serve, but our country as well. There have been a total of 190,000 Peace Corps volunteers to date and currently 8079 volunteers are serving in 74 countries. These volunteers are working in agriculture, education, medicine, construction, small business, etc., with great results. And, by the way, with a current budget of only $330.8 million dollars. Less than a day of military warfare in Iraq??

I also thought about the work of Greg Mortenson that he describes in his book,"Three Cups of Tea." Since 1993 he has built over 58 schools serving over 24,000 students in Afganistan and Pakistan using no government money, yet gaining the trust of thousands of families in rural areas of those countries. His projects have been funded by American citizens. Greg believes that if you want to have a positive impact on a culture, educate the girls. His humanitarian service is of great value to our country and the world.

In my conversations with my son about his work in the Peace Corps, I asked him, "What did you leave behind in Paraguay?" He talked about the development work -- new latrines, wells, fruit trees, beekeepers, erosion control, reforestation, an understanding of agricultural chemicals, etc. Then he paused a moment and said, "But you know what, I think the most important thing I left behind is letting people know that gringos are just people, too. We are not Baywatch, Miami Vice, MASH, or any other old, dubbed show. We are just people. We are not Bush I or II, or Clinton, or any other government figurehead. We are just people who laugh, love and care. People that you can become great friends with."

Then I asked what he gained from his experience and he said, "Besides the obvious stuff like second and third languages, I gained perspective -- what it is really like to live poor in a third world country; what really makes one happy; needs vs. wants; looking at things from the perspective of another culture. Things like that." Then he added with a smile, "Finally, I gained my wife!" (also a former Peace Corp volunteer in Paraguay)

Later that evening Kent sent me the following email:

Mom,

I forgot to remind you about when I arrived in Paraguay. It was 2 months after the coup that rid the country of Alfredo Stroesner who had been president since the 1950's. He was a huge pal of the US because he hated communism despite gross human rights issues and a series of fixed "elections." Then Jimmy Carter put sanctions on Paraguay for human rights abuses. Reagan continued the sanctions and the Peace Corps remained. People feared the Policia Capital and many fled to Argentina. Lots of these people lived in my village of Caazapa. The general who took over after the coup unbelievably agreed to hold elections. The elections were interesting to watch. Many didn't know how to vote. Many were afraid. Some asked if I was voting! People died so that they could finally vote in a fair election. Meanwhile, how many people vote in the US each election? I don't think I have ever missed voting in my country since that first election in Paraguay.

Kent

Service to our country, service for our country. Have you seen Barack Obama's plan for service? Expand the Peace Corps and Americorps; connect senior citizens to volunteer opportunities; require service learning for students, and more. It's a plan that will serve our country and our citizens and help to restore our position of respect in the world community -- please read it and tell others about it. And please remember that our greatest service to our country and to ourselves is to VOTE!