Hello everyone!

Our annual community service project workday with Hearts and Hammers is
scheduled for Saturday September 15, 2001.  A member of our Returned
Peace Corps group founded Hearts and Hammers about 15 years ago, and we
(RPCVs) have participated at all levels since.  We really bring smiles to
the faces of the home owners, bring back their pride in their homes, and
upgrade the housing stock of our city.

We will be working this year on the home of Dorothy Trudell and her
husband at 3522 Jeffries in the Fair Park area of South Dallas.  They
have lived in the house for over 20 years, and we will be scraping,
painting, replacing porch posts, hanging a new back door, fixing siding
and some yard maintenance. It is a fairly straightfoward house, and the
homeowners are very nice.

Please mark you calendars for that Saturday, to start at 7:30 in the
morning.  With enough volunteers we should finish before 4pm, just in
time to return to the Hearts and Hammers warehouse for burgers,
refreshments and good companionship. I am team captain, and will keep the
list of who says they are coming and let everyone know more details as
the date approaches.

I look forward to hearing from all of you!

Gary Zimny
214.357.8337
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Hello everybody on the list-serve.  We have finally gotten our list
serve up and running.  This way anyone can sign up (they no longer
have to write to Lynn or Trish) and you can remove yourself whenever
you wish. Please feel free to check out the other advantages at the
list serve.  We have a calendar for everyone to view what is coming
up. Thanks to John Caldiera for his work getting all of the names
transferred.

We also have our web page renewed.  You can get to it by going to:
http://outdoorplace.org/rpcv/ or by linking to us through the
National Site at www.rpcv.org

As for upcoming events: Thursday July 19, 2001 Happy Hour 6:30-? at
Flying Saucer in ADDISON!  14999 Monfort Dr. Call 972-934-ALES if you
get lost.

Everyone knows that most of our fundraising is done at International
Dinners.  As of yet, we don't have a host for the fall dinner. If you
would be interested in hosting an International Dinner at your house
please let Lynn Portz know ASAP at 214-821-6697.  We would like to
advertise it in the Newsletter coming out Aug. 1.

ALSO LOOKING FOR: If you are the owner of a pool and would like to
host a pool party now in the hot summer months call Lynn Portz at 214-
821-6697.  Participants will bring their own beverages and chairs.

As many of you know, the North Texas Peace Corps Association is
working to obtain Tax Exempt Status.  While working on the 501(c)(3)
form this past week, two new bylaws are needed to be created.  Below
you will find all of the Bylaws for the NTPCA with the two new ones
at the end (Art. IX and Art.X).  To apply for Tax Exempt Status we
needed to have a Dissolution Clause and recognize that we are an
affiliate group of the National group. Due to the timing, the need to
get the application in the mail, and to the previous bylaw on how to
amend the Bylaws, I would like to take a vote.  All in Favor  -- DO
NOTHING.  Anyone opposed, please respond with a personal e-mail to me
at lportz@... (do not Reply to this message).  We will have
until the 15th to take a vote.

Bylaws of the
North Texas Peace Corps Association
(Formerly, Dallas-Fort Worth Returned Peace Corps Volunteers)

Articles
Art.I. NAME   The name of the organization shall be the North Texas
Peace Corps Association.

Art. II PURPOSE The purpose of the organization shall be, within the
world at large, to further the objectives for which the Peace Corps
was created and, within the geographical vicinity of the northern
Texas cities of Fort Worth and Dallas and environs, to further like
goals for the betterment of the inhabitants of the area.

Art.III. MEMBERSHIP Membership shall be open to all who may identify
as their personal goals or ideals some or all of the goals of the
organization.

Art. IV. OFFICIALS  The officers of the organization shall be
those whose positions have been created by the membership in its
capacity as a n acting steering committee.  The duties of officers
shall include active participation in the work of the steering
committee.

Art. V. COMMITTEES
1. THE STEERING COMMITTEE The steering committee shall be the body,
which directs the organization in the name of the membership at
large.  Eligibility for serving on the steering committee shall be
open to all of the membership.
2. OTHER COMMITTEES Other committees shall be created as needed to
perform specific tasks or specialized functions necessary to the
operation of the organization.

Art. VI. MEETINGS The times and places of meetings both for the
steering committee and for the membership at large shall be
determined by the steering committee.  Every practical effort will be
made to inform the membership at large of such meetings.  Other
committees will set the times and places of their meetings,
communicating such information to the membership at large if the
committee decides that attendance by non-committee members might
further the goals of the committee or might provide the membership
with useful information.

Art. VII  AMENDING THE BYLAWS These bylaws may be amended by a two-
thirds vote of members present at any steering committee meeting,
provided that written notice stating the proposed amendment (s) has
been given at either the previous meeting of the steering committee
or has been previously publish along with the time and place of the
meeting where a vote is to be taken, in the organization's newsletter
sent to all members.

Art. VIII STANDING RULES  The organization shall be structured and
governed by a set of standing rules that guide the operation of the
steering committee and other entities of the organization.  Other
committees may create their own standing rules as long as such rules
do not conflict with or serve to make invalid either these bylaws or
the standing rules of the steering committee.

Art. IX DISSOLUTION CLAUSE: Upon recommendation of the Steering
Committee that the NTPCA be dissolved and by majority vote of the
active members, all assets will be distributed to the Peace Corps
Partnership Fund.

Art. X AFFILIATE STATUS: North Texas Peace Corps Association confirms
its affiliated status with the National Peace Corps Association, and
will submit all required reporting documents in a timely manner.


Anyone opposed, please respond with a personal e-mail to me at
lportz@... (do not Reply to this message).  We will have
until the 15th to take a vote.

Hello everyone.  I hope you are enjoying reading our new newsletter
that should have arrived last week.  Some up coming events to be sure
to take note of are below.  I invite all of you to check on the
calendar here for more details about any of the activities.  (You
will have to sign in to activate the link to the calendar.)

Tonight!  Aug 16th 6:30 or so Happy Hour at the Flying Saucer in
ADDISON!  The last time to be in north Dallas for a while.  If you
are in the area, be sure to stop by.

Aug. 27 Steering Committee Meeting Chili's at Preston and LBJ (SW
corner) 6:00pm contact Lynn Portz 214-821-6697 (lportz@...)
if you have any questions, concerns, or something you would like to
have put on the agenda.

Sept. 1-3 Labor Day weekend camping trip at the Chickasaw National
Recreation Area in Sulphur, Oklahoma. Chickasaw National Recreation
Area is located 120 miles north of Denton. Take Interstate Highway I-
35 to Davis, Oklahoma and turn right (east) on State Highway 7 to
Sulphur. The fresh water and mineral springs, the Travertine Nature
Center, and Cold Springs Camp Area are on the edge of town but the
Buckhorn Campground is 7 miles south off of Highway US 177. Advance
sign-ups are not required but contact the Hromatkas to give them an
idea of how many people to expect.

There are no admission fees. The cost for camping per night per site
is $8.00 for a non-utility site, $14.00 for an electrical and water
hook-up site. We will camp in the Buckhorn Campground, about 7 miles
south of Sulphur on the Lake of the Arbuckles.

Saturday, September 8 from 6:30-10:00 pm.
Hosts are: Jim and Kathy Wohlgehagen (RPCV's Lesotho 71-73) 972-458-
7530

Place: 13218 Spring Grove, Dallas 75240 (mapsco 16N) Located North of
LBJ-635 and south of Alpha Rd, between Coit and Hillcrest.

To Participate: Call to reserve your tickets before Sept. 4th at
$15/person.  Lynn Portz at 214-821-6697 or Jerry Hamm at 214-826-
4757. Tickets at the door will be $25. All proceeds will go to the
Peace Corps Partnership Project. If you would like to cook, help out,
or have questions please contact Lynn or Jerry
This is a BYOB event. Soft drinks will be provided.

Sept. 15 Hearts and Hammers contact Gary Zimny 214.357.8337 7:30 am,
4 ish. We will be working this year on the home of Dorothy Trudell
and her husband at 3522 Jeffries in the Fair Park area of South
Dallas.

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

African Dinner

Date: Saturday, September 8, 2001
Time: 6:30PM - 10:00PM CDT (GMT-05:00)

Come have dinner with friends and family of Returned Peace Corps
Volunteers.  Tickets are $15 in Advance by calling Lynn Portz at
214-821-6697. or $25 at the door.  If you would like to cook,
clean or help out in any way, please call Lynn as well.

Our Hosts are Jim and Kathy Wohlgehagen 972-458-7530.  Their
house is at: 13218 Spring Grove, Dallas 75240.  Hope to see you
there!

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Annual Meeting- all members

Date: Saturday, February 2, 2002
Time: 6:00PM - 8:00PM CST (GMT-06:00)

The NTPCA annual meeting will be held at St. Thomas the Apostle
Episcopal Church on Feb. 2, 2002 at 6 pm.  It is located at 6525
Inwood Rd @ Mockingbird.  Come and let your voice be heard, we
will  decide on board members for the next year, and the group's
partnership program. Please bring a dish to pass.  Soft Drinks
will be provided.  For more info contact Lynn Portz at
214-821-6697 or lportz@...

Hello NTPCA members!

We must select different Peace Corps Partnership projects to fund-the
ones we picked at the annual meeting were funded before we sent our
check.

Here are two projects that meet our criteria.  Please review them and
respond to me with your vote at zimzim9@... by Friday March 29.

In the village of Ouadio Bosayo in Mauritania the community wants to
build a 3 classroom primary school.  The community is active and has
already done seed banks, health dispensaries and dug wells, and would
contribute labor, materials and cash, up to 25% of the project.  The
government will supply a teacher, materials etc and add the school to the
governmental system.

The project needs $4110 more, we would contribute $800.

The PCV is A. Bright from Shreveport, LA.


In the Ukraine the community of Rivne wants to insulate 3 orphanages
against the pervasive cold.  Right now the orphans must wear coats
indoors due to the cold.  The insulation project will be coordinated by
Ecoclub, a member of the International Energy Brigades.  The community
will contribute labor etc up to 32% of the cost.

The project needs $10, 196 more, we would contribute $800.

The PCV is M. Krauze from St. Louis, MO.


Please respond.  I will tally the votes and we will send funds.

Gary Zimny
214.357.8337

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1.You've stopped carrying toilet paper with you wherever you go.
2.You no longer eat all of the hors d'oeuvres at dinner parties.
3.Some of your clothes don't have that genuine stone-washed look.
4.People no longer avoid the dishes you bring to potluck dinners.
5.You have a friend who was never in Peace Corps.
6.You dream in English.
7.You use tissues to blow your nose.
8.You think twice before taking a 15-hour bus/taxi ride. You're not
     afraid of swallowing water in the shower.
9.You stop boasting that you got a dial tone immediately.
10.You travel with baggage instead of cardboard boxes or plastic bags.
11.You use a watch as you are no longer able to tell the time by the
    sun.
12.Your meals no longer consist solely of vegetables.
13.You start to eat rice again.
14.You use the phone instead of sending a note by bush taxi.
15.You no longer stand in stores amazed at the quantity and quality of
    goods and you stop trying to pay with exact change.
16.Parasites (both yours and theirs) cease to be a topic of
    conversation during meals.
17.You motion someone towards you with fingers up instead of hissing.
18.You stop expecting a Customs inspector to check your baggage and
    ask for a bribe after a domestic flight.
19.You stop proposing that Charmin be nominated the 8th wonder of the
    world.
20.You throw out your plastic grocery bags.
21.Your underwear has holes only in the correct places.
22.When you hear rustling in the trees you expect to see squirrels,
    not monkeys.
23.You have more than three changes of clothes.
24.If a fly lands in your drink you actually throw out the whole
    glass.
25.When turning a corner while driving you know exactly which side of
    the road you're supposed to be on.
26.Your birkenstocks are no longer considered your "dress" shoes.
27.When something breaks in your house you call a repairman instead of
    breaking out the ducktape, goat rubber and swiss army knife.
28.Rain is now a verb rather than a plural noun.
29.Your tevas lines have finally faded.
30.Your hand no longer twitchs reflexively when you see a white sports
    utility vehicle in the distance.
31.You no longer respond to "Mzungu" or "Yovo" or "Nasara" or "Toobab"
    or "Mundju" or "Whiteman" as if it's your given name.
32.You no longer think it's normal to start drinking beer at 9:00 A.M.
33.You no longer immediately switch into Special English when you
    encounter anyone with an with an accent.

You may have heard by now that Sharon Sugarek is going to Turkmenistan in a
few weeks to become their new Country Director. To give her a proper send-off
from all her Peace Corps friends, we're hosting a party at our house.

Here are the details:

     Saturday, June 8
     7 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
     5235 Monticello Avenue
         (12 blocks south of Mockingbird,
         1 1/2 blocks east of Central Expressway)

     Please bring an appetizer or dessert to share and BYOB.

     If you have any questions, call Jerry or Susan Hamm, 214-826-4757 or
e-mail ske9999@...

We hope you can come!

Thanks, John.

I feel that with some changes-delete 4th goal (it's redundant), restore 2nd goal
language, change "should" to "shall", other minor changes, this legislation
could be good. I will let the sponsors and writers know of my concerns, and
everyone who has an opinion should also.  Hopefully I'll see Dave Hibbard et al
at the RPCV 40th + 1 Conference in two weeks.

I will post the results of our poll on the group site.  Since our group doesn't
have a formal lobbyin/endorsement process we may not be able to endorse anything
as a group, but we can shar with our members' responses.

Gary




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Leave the law alone.  Peace Corps Volunteers would be much better off
working under the original law signed by President John F. Kennedy than
under any modifications that would foster the political ambitions of (gag)
George W. Bush,  who shouldn't even be "President" in the first place.  If
it ain't broke, don't fix it!  Roberto in Mount Pleasant

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Guadalupe River Tube Trip

Date: Thursday, July 18, 2002
Time: All Day

Tube Trip. Contact Jerry Hamm (214 826-4757, ske9999@...

A journalist is doing a 3 part series on Peace Corps and the University of
North Texas. She is looking for RPCV UNT alums to interview. If you would be
interested in talking to her or know of anyone that is a UNT RPCV please
contact me. Thank you!

Dana Ravelojaona
Peace Corps Recruiter
Dallas Regional Office
1-800-424-8580 opt.1 ext. 12
(214) 767-5435 ext. 12
dravelojaona@...

The below message is from Abel Ruiz about Peace Corps director Vasques
coming to town.  If you are available and interested please let me
know at chapinr@... in the next day or so and I will coordinate
setting up a meeting.  If you want to find out more about recent Peace
Corps developments, wish to give some input or just socialize this
would be a good opportunity to do so.

Subj: Peace Corps Director in Dallas
Date: 9/9/2002 10:53:32 AM Central Standard Time
From: ARuiz@...
To: chapinr@...
CC: JGarcia2@...
Sent from the Internet (Details)



Dear Roger, Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez has scheduled a visit
to the
Dallas Recruitment Office for Wednesday October 2nd. The Director's office
has authorized me to inquire whether your organization would be interested
in meeting with the Director after work on October 2nd (5:30 or 6:00- to
7PM). This can be an informal reception with your membership, and or
potential new Peace Corps Volunteers including a question and answer
period.


If you are interested in pursuing this, please let me know ASAP and we can
discuss how we can coordinate these efforts.

Thanks

Abel R. Ruiz
Dallas Regional Manager
Peace Corps

Ashgabat Update- August 2002

August 11, 2002

Dear friends and family,

The last two months have been quite a whirlwind I spent from mid June
to mid July in Washington DC in Overseas Staff Training (OST) at
Peace Corps headquarters acquiring the knowledge and some new skills
I will need to be an effective Peace Corps Country Director.  It was
a great experience and I must compliment Peace Corps on the quality
of the training.  It was excellent and I met a bunch of remarkable
people including my fellow trainees.

With a considerable sense of excitement and some apprehension, Lulu
and I boarded our flight (s) that would take us from Dallas to
Istanbul via New York on July 23rd.  Lulu had never flown before and
I was a bit concerned.  But she did great, flying in the cabin with
me, all the way in her carrier.  Thanks in large part to the
excellent training of my dear friend Kathy Carson who spent the month
I was in DC working with the dog trainer to get Lulu accustomed to
traveling and being around people. I have to also say a heartfelt
thanks to Mari Madison who held my hand, went shopping with me and
told me Lulu would do just fine.  And to everyone else who pitched in
to get me ready for this big adventure--thanks for your help, your
support and your good wishes.

On with the journey!!  Lulu and I made it to Istanbul, where we
enjoyed a 12-hour layover at the Hilton Hotel.  We took walks and a
nap.  And after a shower and dinner we went back to the airport to
retrieve our luggage, which seemed to grow every time I looked at it
But after a few discussions and the exchange of money to pay for Lulu
and my excess luggage, we were on our last flight—4 hours t Ashgabat
arriving at 3:45 am! Ugh!  But we were met by several of the PC staff
that shepherded me through the entry process, which took forever!
But the staff made me feels very welcome!  And Lulu never said a word
and no one ever asked for her papers in Ashgabat since she was so
quiet!

  So Lulu and I have settled into the house pretty well.  Although she
and Serk, the cat I inherited, have not yet made peace so breakfast
with the animals is always exciting around my house!  Amazingly, my
air shipment (250 lbs worth) arrived less than a week after I did. In
addition to Lulu`s dog food and pen, it contained clothes, which I
was glad to see since I had been wearing the same clothes for about 6
weeks and was sick of looking at them.  I was also very happy to see
a few cans of tuna, a good cooking spoon a big bath towel my 220 volt
curling iron and full salt and pepper shakers!  I'll be happy to see
my surface shipment, which has good sheets, more towels, cooking
stuff and lots of other goodies.  If I'm lucky it will arrive in
September or maybe October.

  I've been looking at houses, thinking about moving but haven't found
anything yet.  The one I am in is okay.  I am very happy to announce
that I am mobile!  There are no car dealers here in the sense that we
think of car dealers.  All cars are sold at Telcuchka  (the big
bazaar on Sunday.)  Telcuchka is Russian for "push and shove' and
that's what they do there! Andrey our head drive and I looked at cars
for about an hour and I picked out  a Jeep Grand Cherokee I liked.
It's a dark green with tan leather interior and every know option you
could think of! Had the owner bring it over for me to drive on Monday
or Tuesday, struck a deal and took possession the following Monday.
It's fun and seems to work fine except for the weird alarm system
that seems to have a mind of its own on occasion!  So far I only know
the two main streets but I can get to and from work and to the
Turkish supermarket and back.   So I can work and eat!

  When I started this job, one of my goals was to visit the volunteer
s at their sites before the new group of 50 trainees arrives
September 7th. So that's what I've been doing.  I have traveled to
Mary'a bumpy 300 kilometers from Ashgabat to visit with host families
of two volunteers, their host country counterparts--and the places
they work (schools, hospitals and clinics) and live with host
families.   What a terrific group of young people and the host
families are wonderful.  The Turkmen people are very hospitable.  So
starving has not been an issue lots of food, chai (tea) etc.

  I have to admit that this week I felt like such a tourist!  As we
were pulling up to the compound where I was to visit with another
volunteer and his host family (in a nearby town) , we encountered a
herd of camels (8-10) just walking down the road in this little
town.  As we came to a stop, I leapt out of the car, grabbed my
camera while saying hello to the Volunteer and his host brother.  I
snapped a few photos and then we chased the camels away because they
were eating a valuable tree in the yard.  Later   after lunch we took
several photos of the family etc.  Hope the photos come out okay.
They looked pretty good at the time.

People here love the volunteers and were very sad when Peace Corps
pulled out last Fall.  They are excited that more Volunteers are
coming soon. Everyone including the staff, the trainers, the host
families and the entities who will receive Volunteers are very
excited and everyone is working hard to get the training program
ready.  For me it's great to get up every morning and go to a job I
love!  (Note I didn't say it was an easy job!  It is definitely
challenging.)

For those of you wondering about the food in this far off, desert
country, this time of year there is plenty!  The melons are in season
and absolutely out of this world  (In fact today is the Melon
festival) .  Plus we have grapes, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers,
eggplant and cherries.  Peaches, figs, pomegranates are just coming
into season and ZI have spotted something that looks like butternut
squash.  (Since I adore figs, this place is heaven to me!)  On the
whole, food is cheap and there is plenty of mutton, chicken, beef and
some fish available.  The local milk is questionable but they have
irradiated milk, which is okay for cooking.  The breads are very
good.  I understand that during the winter things are scarcer.  But
people to can tomatoes and other vegetables and make fig preserves
so there is something for the winter.  I also understand that most
everything is available here year round.  Just the price varies.

So as you can see, Lulu and I are settling in. I like Turkmenistan
and we are happy to be here.  I miss you all and miss dancing,
hanging out together, etc.  But I do love being here.  And I have an
extra bedroom!! So keep us in your thoughts and send an email when
you can/.  Internet access here is very slow but we are trying to get
a high-speed connection into the office so things might get better.
I'll try to update you once a month or so.  Meanwhile hotmail seems
to be working fine or if you want to use snail mail, my address is

Sharon Sugarek
7070 Ashgabat Place
Dulles, VA 21089-7070
Have a great month and I'll send another report next month.
Sharon

Hearts and Hammers is Saturday Sept. 21!

Starts at 7:30 am!

Conact Team Captain Gary Zimny at

zimzim9@...

or 214.357.8337.

Thanks!

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The Director of the Peace Corps Gaddi Vasquez will visit Dallas on
Wednesday, October 2nd.  There will be an informal reception with him
at the home of Kathy Carson 7:00pm to 8:30pm for all returned and
potentially new Peace Corps Volunteers.  The Director will give a
short address and then open up to questions.  This will be a great
opportunity to discuss current and future directions of the Peace
Corps. Some refreshments will be provided.  Kathy's home is at 9021
Villa Park Circle, Dallas. The location is just behind the North Park
mall. Exit west off of 75 on Northwest highway, turn right on
Boedeker, go past Park and turn left on to Villa Park.  Any questions
contact Roger Chapin at 972-234-2190 or e-mail chapinr@....

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Salsa Dinner

Date: Saturday, October 5, 2002
Time: 6:30PM - 9:30PM CDT (GMT-05:00)

Salsa Dinner, Contact Kathy Carson, 214-378-9443.
kcarson@....

Hello All---

Who wants to join Crispin and I and some others on a trip to the State Fair? I earlier suggested next Friday evening for a few hours, others were unsure because the following Saturday night Salsa party is scheduled. Would you all be all right being out 2 nights in a row?  How does the following Saturday sound? That would be October 12, last weekend of the fair. 

Sorry to clutter your e-mail with another message but yesterday's
reminder of the Vazques went out with most of the information
missing. For those interested here is the message:

The Director of the Peace Corps Gaddi Vasquez will visit Dallas on
Wednesday, October 2nd.  There will be an informal reception with him
at the home of Kathy Carson 7:00pm to 8:30pm for all returned and
potentially new Peace Corps Volunteers.  The Director will give a
short address and then open up to questions.  This will be a great
opportunity to discuss current and future directions of the Peace
Corps. Some refreshments will be provided.  Kathy's home is at 9021
Villa Park Circle, Dallas. The location is just behind the North Park
mall. Exit west off of 75 on Northwest highway, turn right on
Boedeker, go past Park and turn left on to Villa Park.  Any questions
contact Roger Chapin at 972-234-2190 or e-mail chapinr@....

NTPCA is looking for a new person to volunteer to manage the newsletter
starting at the beginning of next year.  If you are intersted in helping out
please let us know.


>From: North_Texas_Peace_Corps@yahoogroups.com To:
>North_Texas_Peace_Corps@yahoogroups.com Subject: [N Tx Peace Corps]
>Reminder - newsletter submissions
>Date: 18 Oct 2002 06:02:14 -0000
>
>
>We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.
>
>newsletter submissions
>
>Date: Friday, November 1, 2002
>Time: All Day
>
>Newsletter submissions due to Anna Treinies
>(atreinie@...)

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

newsletter submissions

Date: Friday, November 1, 2002
Time: All Day

Newsletter submissions due to Anna Treinies
(atreinie@...)

NTPCA Christmas Party!

Tis the season for Santa (Kiribati 85-87) and his elves (Columbia 68-70)
and all other Returned and Prospective Volunteers, and their family,
staff and friends, to join to celebrate Christmas!  (or the Winter
Holiday, as you may prefer).

We're partying at Gary and Judy Zimny's house (he Returned from Solomon
Islands in 1980, she a Prospective volunteer) on Saturday December 14
starting at 7:00pm.  The address is 3839 Valley Lawn Place, 214.357.8337.
  From the intersection of Royal Lane and Midway Road in Dallasgo west on
Royal 5 blocks to Rosser and go right, second street is Valley Lawn, go
left, it's the second house on the right.

Please bring 3 non-perishable food items for our Food Bank collection,
and a covered dish from your country of service (or wherever including
take-out) for our dinner banquet, and BYOB!

I'm looking for a volunteer to put together some party games, to lead the
dancing, and of course the caroling lineup. Call me, please!

See you there!

Gary

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

NTPCA Christmas Party!

Date: Saturday, December 14, 2002
Time: 7:00PM - 11:00PM CST (GMT-06:00)

We're partying at Gary and Judy Zimny's house on Saturday
December 14 starting at 7:00pm. The address is 3839 Valley Lawn
Place, 214.357.8337.
From the intersection of Royal Lane and Midway Road in Dallasgo
west on Royal 5 blocks to Rosser and go right, second street is
Valley Lawn, go left, it's the second house on the right.
Please bring 3 non-perishable food items for our Food Bank
collection, and a covered dish from your country of service (or
wherever including
take-out) for our dinner banquet, and BYOB!

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Scottish Rite Tree Trimming

Date: Tuesday, December 3, 2002
Time: 5:30PM - 7:30PM CST (GMT-06:00)

Tree trimming at Scottish Rite Hospital
2222 Welborn St.
Contact Kathy Carson, 214-378-9443

December 2002- Update 3 from Ashgabat
  Greetings friends and family,

  Happy holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, etc. I am
delighted to report that there are three Christmas trees in my house
here in Ashgabat and one in the office. I shipped one small metal
tabletop tree over. I bought a 7 foot artificial tree here (it is
pretty nice and wasn’t terribly expensive) just after Thanksgiving
and decorated it with the trimmings I shipped over. And my friends
Kathy and Mari mailed a small artificial tree, complete with
decorations and lights, that is now glowing in the hall by the front
door! Wow. And thanks to wonderful friends who planned ahead (unlike
me) there are actually gifts under the tree for me and for Lulu. So,
thanks to all of you for that.

  A lot has happened since my last missive and I am not sure how much
you all really want to know. But the great thing about email is that
you can just delete it if you are not interested!

  Well I have added three more countries to the list of places I have
been. In November I went to Almaty, Kazakhstan and Bishkek,
Kyrgyzstan for business. It was great to get out of Turkmenistan for
a few days. I was ready for a change. Almaty is a city of 1.5
million people with a couple of huge grocery stores where they sell
things like taco shells and chili powder and other exotic items. I
bought really cool stuff like gardening hand tools, freezer
containers and flour tortillas!

  I also had the opportunity to have real pancakes at the American
Bar and Grill (I make awful pancakes and no one in Turkmenistan
knows what a pancake is). Ate Central Asia’s version of Mexican food
at the Santa Fe restaurant and it was not bad. And had some
excellent Thai food!  So Almaty was a real treat for me. Had things
there I didn’t even know I was missing!  Bishkek is a very nice city
more the size of Ashgabat (about half a million people) but also has
a nice supermarket with a selection of European products--and they
are known for their honey.  (In case I haven’t mentioned it,
Turkmenistan rarely has any products from Europe or the US. They get
stuff mostly from Russia, Turkey and Abu Dhabi.)  And the Country
Director in Kyrgyzstan arranged to have a turkey (local, not
Butterball) with all the trimmings for us –just before Thanksgiving.
What a treat.

  The purpose of the trip was to meet with the Peace Corps Country
Director for these two countries and Uzbekistan –not just to shop
and eat-- as my discussion may imply. And I am happy to report that
my peers are very capable and delightful people that I really enjoy
working with. It is good to have someone nearby to consult with when
a problem arises. And they all have great ideas of how to do things.
So we had an extremely productive business meeting as well.

  When I left to go to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan it was still pretty
moderate in Ashgabat—probably with afternoon highs in the 80’s.
Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan both had already had snow and it was quite
cool there. Have to admit that was a nice change as well. Had to dig
out my wool coat, gloves, etc. Both countries are quite lovely-the
mountains are quite spectacular to this flatlander! And apparently
this area is excellent for challenging trekking in the mountains.
It was refreshing but did not make me want to go put on skis or a
backpack!  Guess I am just too lazy for that.  Since we drove from
Almaty to Bishkek, I did have an opportunity to see the countryside.
It looks like pretty rough country to me. But I saw all kinds of
people on horseback, camels, sheep etc. The road was a little scary
but we had excellent drivers. But during the winter there is a
prohibition about driving through the mountain passes at night so
all our travel was done during the short daylight hours.

  Last week I was in India for a week, on vacation. My brother Rick
from San Francisco was coming to India on vacation so we were able
to meet and travel together for a few days.  I flew in to Delhi from
Ashgabat and had arranged for a car, driver and guide to meet me and
take me to Agra for a couple of days. My goal of course was to see
the famous Taj Mahal!  I stayed at the Taj View Hotel and did indeed
have a view of the Taj out my window. Unfortunately they do not
light the Taj at night—and this time of year it is very foggy at
night. That said I still had a couple of hours to view the structure
from my room in between treks to see things and eat dinner. The Taj
Mahal is indeed spectacular and a marvel of engineering and design.
It deserves the reputation it has and it was well worth seeing. The
intricate inlays of semi precious stones in marble are not to be
believed and the carved screen and other decorations in the complex
are quite amazing. I took lots of photos and bought an excellent
book on the Taj with lots of wonderful photos as well.  I’ll be glad
to share it when I get back to Dallas.

  I also visited the Agra Fort, which is well worth seeing too. (It
is much better preserved/restored that the Red Fort in Delhi for
example). Those Moghuls had a great time beating everyone and
construction monuments to themselves. But the architecture is
interesting and figuring out how they built and decorated these
structures is quite entertaining.

  After two days in Agra I flew to Mumbai (Bombay) to meet up with my
brother. We had a great time in Mumbai, touring around seeing the
sights. Went to Elephanta Island one day. The island has the man
made caves filled with carvings and statues carved there out of
volcanic rock by the Hindus. These caves were places of worship and
where priests lived. It was quite awesome as well. We took the
Rahjastan Express train overnight from Bombay to Delhi. That was a
wonderful experience. Good service, excellent food, and a way to get
a substantial distance and see some of the countryside.   I have to
admit I did not care much for Delhi. Too many people all wanting to
rip you off. It became a bit oppressive after a while. However, we
did see the wonderful mosque and it is worth seeing if you get to
Delhi.

  Needless to say, the food was wonderful the whole trip. Think I got
my quota of Indian food for the next year anyway. Learned a lot
about the different breads and found a few new dishes that I really
liked. And managed to spend some money on souvenirs and gifts—so I
did my part to lift the Indian economy!

  Have to sign off for now and get this out. Will tell you more
later. Look forward to a discussion of driving in Turkmenistan soon.
It is an unbelievable experience! Thanks to all of you for staying
in touch. Please email me and ask questions. The longer I stay here
the more this become normal and it already feel like home in many
ways.

  A happy, healthy and prosperous New Year to you.

  Sharon

We would like to remind you of this upcoming event.

Annual Meeting

Date: Saturday, February 1, 2003
Time: 4:00PM - 8:00PM CST (GMT-06:00)

Annual Meeting, St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 6525 Inwood Rd &
Mockingbird Lane
Contact: Roger Chapin, 972-234-2190. Please remember to bring a
dish from your country of service to pass around.  Soft drinks
will be provided.