3/1/14

Good and Bad News

 

Evacuation

 

It is with a heavy heart and mixed feelings that I am telling you that all of us PCVs in Ukraine (approximately 230) were evacuated last week to Washington DC due to the unstable political situation and escalating violence.  As I have mentioned on previous blogs, Peace Corps is an apolitical organization, believes in assisting countries with development, mutual cultural exchanges, as well as nonviolence, democratic principles and the right of each nation to choose its own destiny.  Even though I, along with many other PCVs, felt safe and were not threatened, there remained the possibility of being caught up in the  escalating violence and political confrontation.  The Peace Corps was in touch with the US Embassy  daily in ongoing evaluations of our safety and decided to evacuate all of the PCVs for the present.   As the situation was deteriorating, there was the possibility of transportation and communication infrastructures being affected which would have made it much more difficult to do our jobs and also to have a safe evacuation.  The Peace Corps staff remaining in Ukraine will evaluate the situation, including the recent Russian intrusion into Crimea,  over the coming weeks and determine if it is safe for us to return, which a great many of us are hoping to do.  For now we are still PCVs, but are on what is called Administrative Hold.

 

 

PCVs meeting the evening before evacuation to provide mutual support

 

 

Peace Corps manager Iryna helping us with closure and giving insights into the events

 

Following the evacuation to Washington DC, the Peace Corps staff gave all of us information over several days on how the decision to evacuate was reached, as well as discussing our options which includes going back to our sites (when it is deemed to be safe), transferring to another site, reapplying, applying to Response (short term placements), or deciding to do close of service.  All of us PCVs will be discussing our individual status and options with family and friends.  In addition, Peace Corps discussed in detail with the PCVs the stress that we have been through as well as how to cope with readjustment to life in the US, which is quite different that life at our sites.  The PCVs were very thankful for the huge effort involved in getting so many of us safely evacuated. In addition counseling was offered and discussions initiated about our health benefit coverage during the Administrative Hold period.  We did have a chance to say tearful goodbyes to each other and get a few last photos.

 

 

Our original cluster from pre service training

 

 

 

 

 Discussing options

 

Social Work Classes

 

I am now able to share a photo of myself with the Social Work students that I taught during the previous semester.  The students are proudly showing their Certificates and I my wooden Ukrainian bell that I received as a gift!  The work on evaluating the survey that was completed with older persons in the  Veteran Home will continue.  I was scheduled to teach my classes to an even larger group of students this semester, but that is on hold for now.

 

 

Health

 

My dental work is finally completed after 10 visits to the dental office in Kiev.  The photo is of myself (with the "million dollar smile"!) and my dentist.

 



 

SPA Grant

 

I mentioned in my last blog that we had been awarded funding through the Small Project Assistance Program to start the Center for Social Research and Coaching.  The funding for this project will also be on at least temporary hold, given the evacuation of the PCVs.

 

HIV/AIDS Training

 

The Donetsk Branch of the Sociological Association of Ukraine (DB SAU), in cooperation with the Peace Corps has just completed  two days of training 2/13-2/14 on HIV/AIDS at the Secondary School # 2 for 27 teachers from two area secondary schools on the first day, and for 27 University and secondary school students on the second day.  This event was a big success for the Donetsk area, and will help to reach many of our young students with the information needed to make wise behavior choices on this very important issue in Ukraine.  The teachers who now have the training can go back to their classrooms and provide training to their students - a “training the trainers” idea that Peace Corps has found to provide a bigger impact.  The well informed Ukrainian trainer was provided by the Peace Corps, with support from DB SAU.  My counterpart, Olena, was the prime organizer of the event, recruiting the volunteers, getting supplies and refreshments, and overall providing much needed leadership for the event.  It was a good example of a “team effort” with social work students from the University providing registration help, secondary students helping with marketing the event, drawing posters, doing setup and cleanup.   This is an event that DB SAU and Peace Corps can be proud of co-facilitating!

 

 

 Two Social Work students doing registration



Red Ribbons for HIV/AIDS Awareness

 

Posters drawn by student Ksusha

 

 

USA and Ukraine cooperation for HIV/AIDS Awareness Training

 

Training the Teachers

 



 

Olena, my counterpart, as primary organizer

 

Trainer from Kiev

Hooray, we have our Certificates!

 



Ksusha, student and artist

 

 



Travel

 

During my last visit to Kiev for my dental treatments, I was able to visit the World War II "Patriotic War" museum to take the following photos.

 

 

WW II Memorial

Eternal Flame

 

Holodymr Memorial

 



 

English Clubs

 

The four English Clubs that I have been involved with are still going well.  We have covered topics from the principles of democracy to favorite music to cultural exchanges.  I will definitely miss my English Clubs as they are a place where I have made friends as well as a venue for helping us understand each others cultures.  The photos were on a topic of the Arabic alphabet.

 

 

 

Conclusion

 

This will be my last Peace Corps blog unless the situation in Ukraine improves enough so that we can return.  It has been a very rewarding experience, and I feel that I have changed in many ways.  The changes that I made in Ukraine may be small, but sometimes small changes can eventually lead to big changes.  I have been honored to have served with the Peace Corps and am very happy to have made friends in Ukraine and humbled by the spirit of freedom, hospitality and cooperation that I experienced during my almost one year tenure there.

 

Keep your fingers crossed that I may return!

 

This blog represents my own views and is not meant to reflect Peace Corps policy.

 



9/22/13

 

Now, What Is Paul Doing?

Slaying a Dragon?

Shooting off the HUGE Czar's Cannon?

Trying To Find Donetsk on the Map?

 

 

Or Just Smelling the Flowers?

 

Site News -Trainings

 

NGOs Things have been developing well at my site since my last blog 2 months ago.  I have been to 2 trainings during August in Kiev.  The first was a very interesting training on NGOs (non governmental organizations) that I attended with my counterpart Olena.  We learned the intricacies of NGO development including:

• Why Do Ukrainian NGOs Need Organizational Development
• NGO Organizational Capacity Assessment Tool
• Strategic Planning Process - Defining Vision and Mission of the Organization
• Strategic Planning Tools identifying Your Strategy
• Marketing Your NGO
• Public Relations of Your NGO - Building Effective Communication
• Advocacy as Organizational Tool
• Planning an Advocacy Plan
• Identifying Fund Raising Resources

 

 

Paul and Olena

 

Four of us Cluster Mates (Gail, Paul, Deborah and Dagmar) from our PST days

 

 

These topics may sound a bit dry, but it turned out to be a golden opportunity for PCVs and counterparts to meet together as pairs and work on the development of a draft of our Organizational Development Plan.  There were interpreters present to help us with language issues (definitely needed for me!).  Olena and I had a chance to talk in some depth about the development of the Social Education Center at the Donetsk State University - I believe that I referred to it previously as the "Center of Excellence", but is the same concept.  We hadn't really discussed these ideas very much previously so it was really important to communicate with each other.  It was difficult but really important!  Each of the PCV/counterpart pairs developed a flip chart diagram of our mutual visions that we posted on the wall for viewing - the "Gallery Walk" on the last day of the 4 day training.



 

 HIV/AIDS  Later in month I attended a 5 day workshop with Anya (one of the sociology instructors) and Lisa (a student from a nearby secondary school).  We took the platzkart train from Donetsk to Kiev, which is about a 13 hour overnight trip.  This topic is really relevant in Ukraine which has one of the highest current rates of HIV infection.  There were 25 similar teams from all over Ukraine who attended.  We covered topics such as:

• HIV/AIDS definitions (HIV is the virus AIDS is the illness), trends and statistics
• Immune system, HIV life cycle, Health Support
• Human biology and ways of treatment
• Stigma and discrimination
• Risk reduction
• Overview of epidemiological situation in Ukraine

 

 

 

Our Team's Design for Our Training



We also had daily language classes (with Tamila, our instructor from PST days!) on the Russian words and phrases for all the relevant terms relating to HIV/AIDS.  There were several experts from Peace Corps HQ in Washington there who gave us important overviews of the Peace Corps emphasis on this world wide epidemic.  Joe, one of the HQ staff, gave us frequent reminders of being sensitive to the huge personal tragedies suffered by individuals, families and communities from this devastating illness.

All of the teams  had an opportunity to develop personal approaches to how we can provide community training when we go back to our communities, using our artistic efforts and creative efforts to design on flip charts how we can do it!  These were put on the wall for a Gallery review (see our effort above) as we did at the previous training.  Peace Corps is very much goal oriented - the knowledge that we receive is meant not just as "nice things to know about",  but is meant to be applied in the community.  Sometimes the Peace Corps reminds of  Ricky Nelson (for those of you old enough to remember), who used to say, "I don't mess around, boy!"  The three of us in our team developed some very good rapport during the training, and had lots of laughs along the way!  Team building is one of the important, sometimes unspoken, events that comes from these trainings.  We are planning on doing an HIV/AIDS event at the secondary school here in Donetsk, probably in November.

 

Getting ready to sleep in the platzkart upper bunk ( jumped up there like an old pro, for the first time!)

 

Anya and Lisa

 

Important Russian words and phrases



 

Training venue in Kiev

 

Joe, from Peace Corps HQ

Our group at language class

 

 







Oбщежитие (dormitory)  Things are really cooking here at the dorm!  The students came back from summer vacation and so things are really busy here - imagine 250 students coming and going all the time!  I study Russian occasionally with the Дежурный (on duty staff at front desk) and have also started practicing with an Italian student here from Sardinia (who speaks English!) as well as a couple of the students here who are fluent in English.  As I've mentioned before my progress is very slow, as my 66 year old (almost) brain cells struggle to remember.  But I keep plugging along - Google translate has become a good friend of mine.

I hope to get the boards installed soon in the swing set outside our dorm.  One of my Ukrainian friends donated and cut the boards, and my friend Sasha (dorm maintenance man) I believe will help put in the screws to hold the boards to the seat.  It is a small project, but is needed.  I still do regular trash pickup in the area around the building, although I haven't yet developed a community group to work on it.  I have spoken with our new commandant, who is aware of the issue, and the area is doing a bit better, in my opinion.

Another nice development, is that my friend Sasha has installed some blinds in the kitchen (giving me some much needed privacy!) as well as recently putting in a dozen or so ceramic wall tiles above where I cook.  I have a TV but no cable and it may not happen as it is evidently expensive to run wires around the building.

 

Violetta, on duty

Doing my laundry

 

Sasha and Alex having fun! (nice blinds!)

 

Playground graffiti about the Shaktar football team

 

 

 

 

Seats to be installed soon 

 

 

Fun I finally made it to a Philharmonia concert here in Donetsk this week and it was wonderful!  It was an organ concert highlighting works by Bach, Mozart and Schmitt.  Some of the Bach pieces I recognized, and when I closed my eyes during one of the fugues I thought that I was in heaven!  I plan on going to more concerts as time allows.  I also have been to 2 Shaktar football games that were really interesting, although I admit to being ignorant of all of the rules of soccer.  I go with Kamala the husband of my counterpart, and his friends.  We have a really good time.

 

 

 

He proposed at halftime during a Shaktar game - she accepted!

 

Paul and Kamala

 

All of us enjoying the game

 

 

 

Shaktar just scored a goal, and all hell broke loose!

 

 

Recorders  I haven't been playing the 15 minutes a day that Bill assigned me as my homework on the alto, but I do play a few times a week.  A little more than a month ago, Virginia, one of the PCVs a year ahead of me, come over to the dorm.  She sings soprano and loves madrigals.  So I did download several from one of the free sites and we played music together for a couple of hours - she singing on the soprano line and me playing recorder on the tenor or bass lines.  We had a blast!  I heard yesterday that there may be some of the students here in the dorm who sing, so I will try to recruit some, as most of the madrigals are 4-5 parts.  Anne is hopefully going to email me a few as well (thank you Anne!) to give us some fresh pieces to play.  Any other recorder players are welcome to email me pieces if you want to help out a poor, starving (for music, that is!) PCV...

 

Site Visit  The last thing that I will mention before I close is the site visit recently by Oleg, my Regional Manager.  He visits all of his people on a regular basis to evaluate your progress, discuss any problems, etc.  He has been personally very helpful to me on several issues.  We just found out that he will still be our RM after some recent budget cuts when we lost 2 RMs.  I am happy  :-)

 

 

Oleg, Paul and Olena in the University office

 

Iryna (head of International studies), Paul and Olena

 

 

My oft delayed Social Work classes start 10/4, I now have 3 English Clubs and a SPA grant proposal to go in soon for the Social Education Center (please keep your fingers crossed that we get funding for this).  It is a really innovative, creative and exciting vision that my Ukrainian counterpart and instructors have been dreaming of for some time.  More on this on my next blog, so stay tuned...

 

I thought that this blog would be short, as I didn't think that I had much to talk about, but look at me, rattling on and on.  I hope that I'm not boring you to tears with TMI!

 

 



 до свидания!

 



 

This Blog is my view and is not meant to reflect Peace Corps views or policies