Fall 2008
Dear RPCVs,
The RPCVw Board of Directors for 2008-09 at their annual planning retreat.
Meet the 2008-09 RPCVw Board of Directors
President: Jim Gore, Bolivia 03-05
Vice President: Molly Mattessich, Mali 02-04
Secretary: Joe Ford, Zambia 94-96
Treasurer: Jeffrey Lovelace, Bolivia 95-97
Membership: Bea Tijerina, Ghana 97-99 & Zambia
06
New Members: Elizabeth Olson, Burkina Faso 05-07
Communications: RaeJean Stokes, Ukraine 03-05
Web: Pei-Zei Lin, Burkina Faso, 04-06
Development: Lindsey Johnson, Phillipines, 05-06
Special Events: Tamar Schiffman, Uzbekistan 01 &
Ukraine 01-03
Social: Corey Taylor, Benin 97-99
Community Service: Jessica Benton Cooney, El Salva-
dor 04-06
Programs: Trish Calamari, Uzbekistan 04-05
As we reign in on the holiday season, all of us from
the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Washing-
ton wish to send you our best. In July of this year
our membership voted to elect the RPCVw Board of
Directors for 08-09. This is my 3rd year as President
of RPCVw, and I can sincerely state that this Board
is the strongest and most self-starting, go-getting,
get-it-done group of Directors that this organization
has seen in some time. As many of you have already
seen over the last few months through our listserv and
other outreach materials, we have taken a power-
ful stride into actively supporting our membership
through programs, events, and community building
initiatives, and this is only a start to what you will see
coming from RPCVw over the next few months.
The following articles of this newsletter will introduce
you to your RPCVw Board of Directors and the initia-
tives that they have and will continue to develop in
support of you, our members, in your efforts to live
your 3rd goal activities to their fullest potential.
Regards,
Jim Gore
President RPCVw
Annual RPCVw Holiday Party
Friday, December 5, 2008
6:30-9:30pm
Josephine Butler House, Columbia Heights
Members $25 ($30 after 11/14)
Non Members $30 ($35 after 11/14)
Buy tickets online at: http://www.rpcvw.org
*NEW* RPCVw Partnership Award Program
This year, RPCVw will award one Returned Peace Corps Volunteer with $1,000 to start or continue a third
goal initiative project. Our award will be similar to the Peace Corps Partnership program, but this year in-
stead of granting an award to a current volunteer, we will select a worthy project from an RPCVw Member
who continues to be involved in his or her community post-Peace Corps service. The award winner will be
recognized at a reception in the spring. Please stay tuned for more information and for nomination crite-
ria. If you have any questions please contact Molly Mattessich at vicepresident@rpcvw.org.

50 x 50 campaign
RPCVw’s exciting three-year membership plan went into ef-
fect in September and will run until the 50th anniversary of
the Peace Corps in 2011. The Returned Peace Corps Volun-
teers of Washington D.C. has launched a “50 by 50” mem-
bership campaign to increase our membership by 50 new
members each year between now and the 50th anniversary
in September, 2011.

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be reaching out to

On July 12, 2008, RPCVs young and not-
so-young, recently and not-so-recently
returned gathered together for the Annual
Picnic. Good food and fun was enjoyed by
all. Be sure to mark your calendars for next
years’ celebration: July 11, 2009. More details
to come in the spring.
current members, and looking to our community to spread
the word about the benefits of membership:
FREE ADMISSION to members-only events, from interest-
ing seminars to talks with guest speakers, fun social gather-
ings to community service activities, rewarding mentorships
to networking events.

Upcoming Events ACCESS to posting on our listserv that reaches a targeted

audience of over 2,000 internationally-minded and service-
minded people.
11/13/08: RPCVw Thanksgiving Dinner**
11/18/08: “War Dance” Private Screening
DISCOUNTS on ticket prices for our Holiday Party and An-
11/22/08: Harvest Hike
nual Picnic.
12/2/08: Peace Corps Hockey Night
12/5/08: RPCVw Holiday Party
CONNECTIONS to members of one of the largest and most
12/17/08: Food & Friends Service Project**
dynamic group of Returned Peace Corps Volunteers in the
** Denotes members-only
world!
And after the New Year, look for:
By the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps, RPCVw hopes
* Orthodox Christmas “Chow-Down”
to play a leading role with Peace Corps and the National
* RPCVw Ski Trip
Peace Corps Association in the effort to celebrate the incred-
* Continued Monthly Happy Hours
ible legacy of the Peace Corps. We can only do so with an
* and MUCH MORE!
active, motivated member base. Please recruit your friends
For more information on these and other events, and group-mates living in the D.C. area, and be part of a
check your inbox every Wednesday for the monumental initiative!
RPCVw’s weekly listserv. You can also visit us on
the web at http://www.rpcv.org or on Facebook. For more information about becoming a member, contact Bea at membership@rpcvw.
Are you a member of the NPCA?
The National Peace Corps Association is a community
of individuals and groups informed by the Peace Corps
experience. Our expanding network encompasses nearly
35,000 individuals and over 130 member groups and in-
cludes RPCVs and many others who simply support Peace
Corps values. In addition to staying connected to fellow
RPCV’s, your membership dues helps support efforts to
advocate on Capitol Hill to promote a better and bigger
Peace Corps. Other membership benefits:
RPCV Directories – providing names and contact information
for members
Worldview Magazine subscription
Opportunity to become part of the NPCA’s Advocacy Net-
work - a grassroots lobbying network supporting the Peace
Corps and sustainable development
Discounts and special programs
GEICO auto insurance
Bank of America credit card
Hospitality Network Directory
School for International Training Scholarships
To become a member today, please visit: www.rpcv.org.
“Swing State Ohio” is a
Swinging Success
On October 16th, nearly 75 members of
RPCVw and the greater DC community
gathered at Busboys and Poets for a
special screening of the documentary film,
“Swing State Ohio,” which covered the last
30 days of the 2004 presidential election
in Ohio. With our own election only a
month away, the screening was extremely
timely.
Filmmaker and RPCV Jed Wolfington was
on hand to answer questions and give his
impressions and thoughts about the 2008
election. Joining him was 2-time Ohio Con-
gressional candidate and RPCV Barbara
Ferris, who shared her personal experience
with the 2004 election and talked about
Ohio’s position as a swing state.

20 Intrepid Cycling RPCVw Members take to the C&O Canal

October 18, 2008

By Jeffrey Lovelace

It was a beautiful fall day as we left Georgetown on the C&O Canal path to make our way out to Seneca Creek, Md., via
Great Falls. As we headed out of DC we picked up a number of other RPCVw’ers. Finally, our contingent full, we proceed-
ed along a slightly gravelly and sometimes bumpy road following the canal. We had riders of all abilities and styles: road
bike warriors with skinny tires, recently returned volunteers in flip flops, prior RPCVw board members and current RPCVw
board members. The trees were fantastic as they shed their leaves and contributed an orange, red and yellow glow to
everything, the sun was out and brightly shining and the
wind was nonexistent, allowing us an easy ride along the
slightly-elevated grade of 6%.

At about mile 23 we reached Seneca Creek and with

stomachs in overdrive, hankerings for biscuits and gravy
we set out in search of a nice classic diner…what we found
instead was Poole’s Store — perhaps the oldest continu-
ally operating general store in Montgomery County. While
there were no biscuits and gravy, we did have some good
old fashioned sandwiches, ‘gorp’ and more!

The ride back was all downhill — though the trail seemed
to get a bit rougher and bumpier. We ended 50 miles later
at Tony & Joe’s for some well deserved food and drink.
 About the RPCVw
The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Washington, D.C. (RPCVw)
was founded in 1979 and incorporated in 1990 in the District of Colum-
bia. RPCVw is one of the largest organizations of its kind in the world.
RPCVw is a nonprofit 501c3 and represents more than 900 returned
Peace Corps volunteers, Peace Corps staff, and Peace Corps families
and supporters in the greater Washington, D.C. area. RPCVw is gov-
erned by an elected board of directors.
MISSION & VISION:
By fostering opportunities to share our unique experiences and com-
mitment to service, we create a community that celebrates the diver-
sity of the greater Washington area and world cultures.
GOALS:
* Undertake and sponsor educational and charitable activities in
support of the Peace Corps 3rd goal of “Helping promote a better
understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans;”
* Inform and educate members and the public on matters relating to
economic development and developing countries, including but not
limited to those countries which have been served by the Peace Corps;
* Support policies to maintain a strong and healthy Peace Corps;
Encourage continuing volunteer involvement of its members in serving
the needs of their local communities;
* Affiliate and strengthen other organizations with similar vision and
mission goals, such as the NPCA; and
* Provide the foundation of a Community of Returned Peace Corps
Volunteers to support all of the above activities.
Become a Sponsor
If your organization is interested in becoming
an RPCVw sponsor, please start by either log-
ging in to your existing account or create a new
account profile. You will then be directed to
a form where you will be asked to submit your
sponsorship proposal. Sponsorship proposals are
evaluated on a case by case basis by the RPCVw
Board of Directors. For questions please e-mail
development@rpcvw.org.
The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers
of Washington, D.C.
P.O. Box 66101
Washington D.C. 20035
Webite: www.rpcvw.org
Email: communications@rpcvw.org
Recipe of the Quarter
Georgian Cheese Bread
(a.k.a. Khachapuri)
Khachapuri, or Georgian cheese bread is
one of the most delightful of all Caucasian
specialties. It is made in many shapes and
sizes, but the large loaf and small diamonds-
shaped tartlets are by far the most popular.
Serves 12 to 15.
2 cups of unbleached white flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
12 tablespoons or 1 1/2 sticks of cold butter,
cut in pieces
2 eggs
1/4 cup of plain yogurt
1 1/4 pounds of mixed Muenster and Havarti
cheeses
egg yolk, beaten
Put the flour and salt in a medium bowl and
cut in the butter until the mixture resembles
coarse cornmeal. Beat 1 egg and stir in the
yogurt, then add to the flour mixture. Form
into a ball and chill for 1 hour.
Grate the cheeses coarsely, beat the other
egg, and stir it into the cheese. Set aside.
Preheat the oven 350°F. Grease a large bak-
ing sheet. On a floured board roll the dough
to a rectangle about 12 x 17 inches. Trim the
edges. Spread the cheese mixture on half the
dough and then fold the other half over to
enclose it, sealing and crimping the edges.
Transfer the bread to the baking sheet and
brush with beaten egg yolk. Bake for 50
minutes or until browned.
The bread is best served slightly warm, cut
into small squares.
Adapted from www.aboutgeorgia.net.
The RPCVw Newsletter is quarterly. Look for
the next installment after the New Year.