Posted in N&V

What’s New in December

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*-Do you want to get a personal email notification of a new Complement issue or new material?   Email us at openinforvm@gmail.com and we will put you on the mailing list

Past articles are all on display;  If there is a “Load More” link at the bottom of the page, clicking it will bring up the older articles. 

If there is something you missed in the November issue, just click the link

 

And in this month’s Complement:

NEWS & VIEWS

The Herrons’ Peace Corps Adventure in Belize….. and The Gambia, by Joni Johnson
      – A double-header Peace Corps experience

Russy and Anita – As Young As The Peace Corps, by Joni Johnson
      – A view from the very beginning

Surviving Winter: Driving on Ice and Snow, by Joni Johnson
      – How-to videos for brushing up slippery-surface skills

The RVM Campus Snow Route, by Bob Buddemeier
     – Now that you know how to drive in snow, this is where to drive

         in Big, Borrowed, or Both

3550:  the Portland Mirabella quarterly magazine (most recent issue)

Mirabella Monthly, Newsletter of the Seattle Mirabella (December issue)

 

ARTS & INFO 

Holidays at the Manor, by Connie Kent
      – Outcroppings of seasonal spirit

Fuzz — a book review, by Anne Newins
      – Stories of collisions between humans and other species

RVM December-March Event & Entertainment Schedule

December Library Display, by Anne Newins
       – There’s no book like a snow book

Elf Mischief, by Connie Kent
       – Not soft and fluffy!

Nit-Wit Newz: Medford to Paris — by Rail, by A. Looney
      – World-class recreation at RVM

Our Holiday Poem to You,
     – A sentimental poem for a sentimental season
     

PREPARE

The RVM Campus Snow Route (map): SNOW ROUTES-022411

The following two articles are cross-listed with the News and Views section

Surviving Winter: Driving on Ice and Snow, by Joni Johnson
      – How-to videos for brushing up slippery-surface skills

The RVM Campus Snow Route, by Bob Buddemeier
     – Now that you know how to drive in snow, this is where to drive

 

Billiards at RVM

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by Tim Miller

BILLIARDS (aka POOL) AT ROGUE VALLEY MANOR

Gosh, it sure is a lot of fun to play Billiards here at Rogue Valley Manor!

Well, here’s my story and how I got involved.

I arrived at the Manor a little over a year ago; so many fun things to do here…tennis, pickleball, bocce ball, golf, lawn bowling, table tennis, line dancing, exercise classes and soooo many board games and other activities. All designed to keep us healthy and happy!

What else to try out? As I was visiting the Manor downstairs, I came across some folks playing Billiards.

I remember in my youth playing “pool” and some hit and miss pool at other times in my life. In fact, we had a pool table in our attic for few years. It was nice, but boring. I seldom had anyone to play with.

Just before arriving at RVM, I was playing pool quite a bit where we lived at the Eagle Crest Resort.

I said to myself “what the heck.” Let’s start playing pool again. So much fun and good folks to help me along, thanks to Dan, Butch, Rita and Diane. Very soon I started researching and practicing pool again.

Now I go down and play pool any old time I like. Who cares if it’s rainy, too hot outside or 5am in the morning? The tables are always available. And, WOW, what great tables. I feel like I am playing in a very luxurious Country Club. The tables are the highest quality and they were just refurbished to “like new”.

I can remember as a kid playing on a table in the back room of my barber shop. The table was ancient and I think it even had bumps on it, and it sort of leaned to one side.

Sometimes it’s just a lot of fun to go down and play a solo game by myself or maybe just practice a little (I can sure use the practice). The other day I called a friend I hadn’t seen in a while and we are going to get together soon and play some Billiards. Maybe we will contact a couple of other players listed on RVM Billiard website and play some team Billiards.

After playing for a few months in the “Ole RVM Billiard Parlor,” pretty soon I was playing a fairly decent game again. No expert, but I was having fun and feeling a certain degree of proficiency. I have always enjoyed my passion for sports by sharing (instructing) with others whatever expertise I had learned (Judo, Tennis, Boating and Pickleball). Living in a Senior community…Billiards was the ideal place to start lessons in Billiards.

Beginner Billiard Lessons have started at Rogue Valley Manor! Over the next few months, we had about 20 students complete the 2-hour Beginner Session (learning the fundamentals). Interestingly, 14 of these 20 students were women. The great thing about pool is that the male has NO physical advantage. There have even been a few students who wanted to take their lessons a step further…6 of them are now enrolled in an advanced pool mentoring program (3 ladies & 2 men).

In a couple of months, we will have open enrollment of our next Beginner Lessons…watch for it on MyRVM. STAY TUNED!

For more information about Billiards at RVM, contact:

Dan Curtis (X6899) dbcurtis@gmail.com Co-chairperson for our Billiards community; or

Butch Findley (X6161) bf6695@gmail.com Co-chairperson for our Billiards community; or

Tim Miller (6891) tennistim2@gmail.com Instructor

Visit our Website at: RVM Billiards

Interesting History of Billiards

It evolved from a lawn game similar to the croquet played some-time during the 15th century in Northern Europe. Play moved indoors to a wooden table with green cloth to simulate grass, and a simple border was placed around the edges. Initially, the balls on the table were hit with a mallet. Later the “pool cue’” evolved which allowed more precision hitting.

The term “poolroom” now means a place where pool is played, but in the 19th century a poolroom was a betting parlor for horse racing. Pool tables were installed so patrons could pass time between races. The two became connected in the public mind, but the unsavory connotation of “poolroom” came from the betting that took place there, not from billiards.

In the 1920’s, the poolroom was an environment in which men gathered to loiter, smoke, fight, bet, and play. The rooms of today bear no resemblance to those of the earlier times. Until very recently, billiards was completely dominated by men. In the past, it was very difficult for a woman to develop billiard skills because male players, her family, and friends usually did not support her efforts. These situations have changed…women are now accepted as equals with men in Billiards today.

“Billiards” is an all-inclusive term. It includes any game played on a billiard table, with or without pockets. These various games include snooker, pocket pool, etc.

com·mú·ni·ty

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by Bob Buddemeier

Community is a term often used at and about RVM.  What do we mean?  The first entry that pops up from a google search of the internet gives us two choices:

  1. a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.
  2. a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.

RVM residents clearly qualify under definition 1 – we’re all here, we’re all old, all or almost all of us are US citizens, mostly upper-middle-class, and on and on.  However, most of us would like to think of ourselves as a definition 2 community.  Are we?  And what might we do to increase that specific sense of “higher” community?

We have lots of subcommunities in the definition 2 sense; co-religionists, musicians, golfers, and more – but we don’t see them alloyed into a definable whole.  Of late, we have had more general common feelings and attitudes of frustration, isolation, and powerlessness. That, however, is not the bonding experience we seek; it’s more on a par with inmates of the same prison.

Community development is defined as “a process where community members come together to take collective action and generate solutions to common problems.”

That may not be the only way to develop community, but most of us can probably recognize it as an effective one. It does present a problem in our situation, in that Retirement Communities (there’s that word again) are usually chosen at least in part on the basis of the customer’s perception that the administration does a good job of eliminating problems.

In turn, collective action by the residents is usually something that Administrators try to avoid (apart from general support for benign institutional activities like the Employee Thank-You Fund). RVM has had one such episode in the Great Centennial Insurrection.  When the proposal to repurpose part of Skyline Plaza showed signs of becoming a popular cause, it rather promptly disappeared.

Is there a way to encourage collective actions to solve common problems without building on – and thereby probably intensifying – differences in priorities among residents or between residents and administration?  A focus on responses to external problems can build community both among residents and between staff and residents, and recent events have demonstrated that it works.

 

Jackson County lists as its natural hazards of greatest concern: The Cascadia Earthquake, Emerging Infectious Disease, Wildfire, and Winter Storm.  We have already experienced two of the four, and winter is just beginning.  In addition, this list does not address “non-natural” hazards such as war, terrorism, or civil unrest.

For the moment, these would seem to be enough, especially since one pandemic and one (local) wildfire do not exhaust the potential for more.

The Residents’ Preparedness Group (RPG) was formed over a year ago, before the disasters of 2020 took shape.  At that time the problem perception was formed by the inevitability of the Great Cascadia Earthquake, the wildfire devastation in CA, and statements by Executives of the previous RVM administration that in case of a disaster, cottage residents would be “on their own.” (For the record, both Stan Solmonson and Drew Gilliland have clearly stated that this is NOT current policy – as confirmed by dispatch of employees to notify cottage residents of the evacuation.)

RPG’s purpose is to assist, support, and to the extent possible, substitute for if necessary, RVM’s response to resident needs in case of emergency or disaster.  The RVM administration and staff did an outstanding job of carrying out the wildfire evacuation – which occurred in the middle of a workday (with several hundred employees on site), and in good weather.  In a worst-case scenario, a major earthquake in the middle of night (with a dozen employees present) in mid-winter, residents could be dependent on other residents over a protracted period without utilities or the possibility of resupply.

This problem perception and response has already shown the potential power of community building from the bottom up – collective action by the members of the community. Attention has spread from the initial cottage focus to the high-rises, and about 90 people (over 10% of the independent-living residents) have committed to participation.  Most act as neighborhood/floor coordinators or area/building coordinators; a few are providing supporting functions like radio network implementation, documentation, and research.

One result is that now almost every RVM resident lives within a few hundred feet of another resident committed to providing support for their well-being.  Let’s be clear: this is not a blood-oath do-or-die commitment, but it is nonetheless an important novelty to be confident of having neighbors ready to provide advice and assistance to the best of their ability.

Another result is that the effort has linked RVM Administration to the RPG and provided an indication of capabilities on two occasions.  The RPG network, although still in the early stages of organization and lacking formal procedures, responded to requests for information about resident dining needs, and to the need for in-person communication in the evacuation.

The potential seems clear. Although the original – and still important –goal was emergency and disaster preparedness. This requires that the coordinators be acquainted with needs and capabilities of their neighbors, and try to build local communities oriented to mutual support.  That knowledge and structure has many potential applications in terms of identifying and addressing both individual and local needs.

Will the RPG effort merge with and influence the larger community 1 to move closer to a community 2?  It remains to be seen.  At the moment, the on-the- ground organization has outpaced the organizational support and management component, and people are needed to assist with information management, outreach, and coordination. The initial response has been strong and the needs and opportunities are there.  The challenge will be to sustain the continued interest and input that adds new dimensions to resident life at RVM.

April Critter of the Month

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by Connie Kent

Wile E. Coyote

Our April Critter of the Month is Wile E. Coyote. Wile E. Coyote is a Looney Tunes character created by Chuck Jones and Michael Maltese. He debuted with his frequent adversary, Road Runner, in the 1949 Warner Brothers cartoon “Fast and Furry-ous.” 

Coyote-on-a-Stick, photo by Connie Kent

 

A few weeks ago, in an effort to frighten the turkeys away, the Manor installed several two dimensional foam-backed coyote cutouts around the campus. Although Stan called them “Wile E. Coyote,” they didn’t look much like their namesake.

 

 

In any case, the turkeys were not impressed.

Unimpressed Turkeys, photo by Robert Mumby

Linda riding Wile E. Coyote, photo by Sandy Becker

 

Could the coyote-on-a-stick serve another purpose? Sandy Becker spotted Linda Lingleser trying to ride one.

Discouraged Wile E. Coyote

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think our coyotes must have gotten discouraged. I haven’t seen them around lately.

 

 To go to the issue contents page (“What’s New”)  CLICK HERE

Surviving Winter: Driving on Ice and Snow

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By Joni Johnson

Even though we don’t experience much snow in winter, we still get days of snow and ice. It is wise to review the important dos and don’ts about driving in winter conditions. This is certainly true for anyone new to this area, but also a good reminder for those of you who have been around a while.

We’ve come up with some important tips for driving in winter conditions and then have found various you-tube videos that will explain more thoroughly how various conditions affect your braking capabilities, how a 4-wheel drive affects driving in difficult conditions and most importantly, how to deal with skids on icy and snowy roads.

The five most important tips in driving in the winter are:

  1. Plan Ahead- know what the weather conditions might be- even if you are just going to Ashland or Jacksonville. What is the predicted temperature? Is snow or rain expected?
  2. Accelerate and decelerate slowly. Otherwise, the tires will spin, even if it is a 4-wheel drive vehicle.
  3. Slow down. If the speed limit is 55 or 65 mph, you may only want to be going 30 and certainly no more than 45 mph.
  4. Increase your following distance to double or even triple the distance you usually allow so that you can decelerate slowly and not have to brake abruptly, which will quite probably send you into a spin or into the vehicle in front of you.
  5. Try to avoid coming to a complete stop on a hill, and if you have to, leave lots of room around you. However, it is better to continue moving slowly rather than coming to a complete stop if that is possible.

 

Here is a video that explains how various weather conditions affect the grip of your tires to the road and therefore how fast you can stop.  It is very interesting.

 

 

The next video explains how a 4-wheel drive can affect your driving in wet and snowy conditions.

 

 

Certainly, while going over the passes would be better in a 4 wheel drive, the most important thing would be using snow tires and /or chains.  In difficult conditions, one or the other is required in order to avoid a ticket or a fine.

In typical winter conditions, vehicles rated at 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight (GVW) or less, and not towing or being towed, are allowed to use traction tires in place of chains. However in very bad winter road conditions all vehicles may be required to use chains regardless of the type of vehicle or type of tire being used. This is known as a conditional road closure. A conditional road closure may occur on any of Oregon’s highways and is frequent in the winter on Interstate 5 through the Siskiyou Pass south of Ashland.

“Traction Tires” are studded tires, retractable studded tires, or other tires that meet the tire industry definition as suitable for use in severe snow conditions.

And finally, one of the most important things to know when driving in bad weather is how to avoid sliding on slippery roads, and if you are caught in a skid, how to correct  one without damaging yourself, your ego or your car.

 

 

I hope these tips and videos have helped.  If you need any more suggestions, there are many YouTube videos out there just for you. Put in “driving in icy or snowy conditions” and take your pick.

RVM Campus Snow Routes

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In mid-November, drivers at RVM encountered barricades and detour signs on some of the campus roads  The reason — a dress rehearsal for snow-and-ice season, with the  employees practicing getting onto campus via the “Snow Route.” The Snow Route (shown in the map below) is designed to keep traffic off of the steepest streets, which experience has shown are difficult or impossible to negotiate under slippery conditions.

Traffic control is set up and manned by the Security Department, while road clearing is handled by the grounds team of Facilities Services. Jens Larsen, Director of Security, explained that Transportation is also involved in shuttling staff up or down the hill when RVM Drive is closed.

When asked about the decision and set-up process, Jens said “We sometimes pre-stage road barricades that direct this route if we know bad weather is coming, but the timing always depends on the time of day and what staff is on the hill when the weather hits.”

The plan is to divert all employee traffic in and out through Mira Mar and the South Village. Conditions may dictate closing parking lots and additional roads depending on the nature of the event. Ice is typically a bigger challenge than snow, because it just hits without any visual clue that it has arrived.

RVM has a snow hotline (extension SNOW-857-7669), primarily for staff to call before driving to work.  However, residents can also use it to determine current conditions. The road controls help ensure the safety of residents as well as staff. When conditions are poor, One Call Now is used to try and warn staff and residents to NOT venture out unless it is an emergency, and notices are also programmed on Channel 900.

The Grounds team is well equipped for plowing, scraping and salting, but the time required to restore normal safe travel conditions will depend heavily on the nature of the event and the staff available to work on it. When roads and walks are treacherous, residents are urged to stay home if at all possible, and to use Manor Transport if they must go out.

 

If you would like to download a PDF of the map, CLICK HERE

COVID UPDATE

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What to do:  if you haven’t already, GET A BOOSTER.  It significantly increases immunity and decreases disease severity.

For information, contact  Aaron Williams, RVM Infection Preventionist, x7409, awilliams@retirement.org

 

What to wear: a well-fitted high-quality mask.  In order of effectiveness, N95, approved KN95, layered surgical and cloth masks, surgical mask, and do NOT rely on a cloth mask only.

For more information, see:  https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/24/health/cloth-mask-omicron-variant-wellness/index.html

 

What to know:  Current data and statistics on the local COVID situation.

For information, see:  https://jcgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/324ac6f9a39e4121a2ee4f04156856ca

Birders Take Flight at RVM

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By Anne Newins

Most people notice birds, but they may not understand why so many people are interested in feathered fauna.  This article originally was going to be about why birders bird, but after talking with three of RVM’s most knowledgeable birders, their desire to inspire and educate others took over as the topic.  The focus is on Gary Shaffer, Carolyn Auker, and David Guzzetta, but there are many other past and present birders on campus.

Gary Shaffer has lived in the Rogue Valley for 47 years, much of the time on a 20-acre ranch.  About 25 years ago, his wife mounted a bird feeder, and Gary’s interest took wing.  He connected with Wild Birds Unlimited, which sells a wide array of bird related items and has a highly knowledgeable staff.  He began taking classes, and says that “one pair of binoculars led to another.”  About 15 years ago, Gary became interested in photographing birds, making use of the improved camera technology.

When asked why he is interested in birds, Gary replied that “it gets you out of the house, away from the television, and out into nature.”  Gary’s affinity with nature also includes a deep interest in dragonflies, insects, and mushrooms.  He leads tours for local groups, including the Southern Oregon Land Conservancy.

Gary Shaffer

Although Gary has traveled the world looking at birds, he currently is focusing on the Rogue Valley.  He engages in friendly competition with several other birders.  Several years ago, he counted the largest number of species in Jackson County:  245!  Gary’s eagle eye has resulted in eleven new species being sighted on the RVM Campus since he and his wife Annette moved here two years ago.  A gallery of his bird photographs is found in the companion piece The Birds of Gary Shaffer.

The reason that we know how many species have been seen on the RVM campus is due largely to the efforts of David Guzzetta and Carolyn Auker.  David’s interests in birds date back to his college years, when he was an intern for the Fish and Wildlife Service and took zoology and environmental classes at San Jose State University.  Carolyn’s interest was piqued when she and David met and later married.  Like Gary, their love of birding is related to the solitude and beauty found in nature.

I first met David and Carolyn many years ago when we all lived in Merced County, CA.  Their desire to share the pleasures of birding led them to help start “The Fledglings,” an informal group of novices and more experienced birders.  We were all able to enjoy the many field trips, regardless of our levels of knowledge and skill.

Dave Guzzetta

Not long after moving to RVM seven years ago, David and Carolyn began a series of initiatives to help residents enjoy birds.  They spearheaded a campaign to place bird feeders outside the windows of residents of the Health Center and the Memory Support Center.  Residents donated feeders and the RVM Foundation supplied funding for the hooks to hang them.  Manor staff eventually took responsibility for the maintenance of the feeders and providing seed.  The ability to watch birds is both relaxing and stimulating for residents who may have little mobility.

Quickly finding kindred spirits, David and Carolyn have facilitated two bird watching excursions on the Quail Point Golf Course.  They made the acquaintance of Shannon Rio, director of the board of the Klamath Bird Observatory and a popular OLLI instructor.  Shannon now makes annual presentations as part of the Thursday Night program series and has led several Manor bus tours to the Klamath Basin, most recently this spring.  Many Complement readers also will have read David’s articles about birds in hillTopics.

A major project has been the establishment of a Manor birding interest group, which currently has 91 members.   The Bird Group, also known as ‘Old Coots,’ is for all birders and potential birders at RVM.  Members exchange information about sightings, general knowledge, and other tidbits.  This past winter a rare Costa’s Hummingbird took up residence on the Manor Rooftop Garden for several weeks.  Word of the sighting quickly spread regionally, and “bird chasers” from as far as Eastern Oregon and San Francisco came to see it.

 

To find the RVM Birding site, go to MyRVM / Resident  Information / Groups and Activities / Birding, or, make sure you are logged in to MyRVM and Click Here

The links in the text below will connect directly to the ebird site; to return to this page close the browser tab associated with the page.

The RVM Birding site includes other important sources of information, including direct links to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (ebird.org).  The ebird site includes an eBird Field Checklist for RVM, and thanks to David and Carolyn, offers an RVM hot spot, named “RVM campus”.  The hot spot provides a place where birders can list their sightings, and includes a wealth of information about species observed on campus and when they were seen.

Thanks to our intrepid birders, 152 species have been seen on campus.  Credit goes to a number of people, but special recognition should be made of Dick Heintz, who has posted about 75 new

Carolyn Auker

species to the site thanks to his many years of observations. Lee Purkerson has been a frequent contributor, and Gary Shaffer continues to significantly expand the list.

Past resident and naturalist John Kemper also was an important part of the birding community, at RVM and statewide.  His guidebooks to birds, wildflowers, and places of geographical beauty continue to be circulated at the RVM library.

Carolyn is currently involved in an ambitious effort to provide photos of all the birds seen on campus to ease identification.  She encourages photographers who are not birders to submit Manor bird photos to the birding group.  They will be identified and added to the Birder’s Gallery on my RVM, where pictures from the recent trip to the Klamath Basin may also be found.  When on the MyRVM Birding site, click on “photos” to access the photos of over a dozen contributors.  Clicking on each photo shows the species name.

Even if your interest in birds has been limited mainly to your dinner entree, take a look outside your window.  There is a world of beauty, drama, humor (thanks to turkeys) and solace flying beyond that pane of glass. Thanks are due to our residents who make watching birds an even more rewarding experience.

The Herrons’ Peace Corps Adventure in Belize….. and The Gambia

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This is part of a series of articles on the experiences of RVM residents in the Peace Corps.  Also in this issue is the article on Russy and Anita Sumariwalla; the November issue featured Joni Johnson and Asifa Kanji and David Drury.  Stay tuned…

Another Peace Corps Adventure- So good that they signed up for # 2

by Joni Johnson

Jean Herron, a resident at RVM since Bastille Day, 2001, joined the Peace Corps with her husband John in 1985.  He had retired not long before and was not quite ready to settle down.  Jean, who had not yet retired, decided to join him in a new adventure, and so the Herrons were off to Orange Walk, Belize, for a two-year experience from 1985-1987.  Jean had been a high school English teacher in Eureka.  John had a varied career, first in forestry for ten years, then as a high school chemistry teacher, also in Eureka.

According to folk stories, Orange Walk got its name from the many orange groves that had hugged the banks of the New River, which flows through the town and was a major trading route centuries before for the Maya. The town is a cultural mix of Mestizos (Spanish-Maya), Maya, Chinese, East Indians and Creoles.

Jean and John’s assignment was to train elementary school teachers. To prepare, they did the second half of their three month Peace Corps training 53 miles south of Orange Walk, in Belize City, home of the only Teachers Training College in the country. In Orange Walk, because they made a substantial salary of $350, they were able to afford a house with running water and a toilet and even hot water, when the water heater for the bathroom was turned on and left to heat for a while.  Water was potable with a few drops of Clorox.

For the first year, both John and Jean taught elementary teachers how to teach. The Belizean teachers were there on provisional credentials and were required to attend classes and receive support.  Jean also taught an English class every day from 10 to 12, changing elementary schools each day. In addition, she and John did demonstration lessons for their teachers in each elementary school and then left the teachers assignments to complete. They did all of their traveling on a motorcycle, John driving and Jean in the back.  At one point, Jean, tired of always being in the rear, decided to do the driving.  Unfortunately, John was 6’4” and significantly heavier, and with the weight distribution having changed dramatically, a push on the accelerator caused John to fly off the seat.  Luckily, he was wearing a helmet.  From then on, he was the driver.

Jean continued her position as teacher trainer throughout their two years in Belize. However, John transferred to the Forestry department to help the Belizeans with their forestry efforts.  Belize has extensive forest and abundant mangroves.  Among the environmental issues facing Belize are deforestation and the management of forest resources. It is generally believed that the amount of deforestation that has occurred in Belize is much less than that which has occurred in other rain forest countries.  When Jean’s daughter, Kathleen, visited Belize in 2013 she noticed how proud the natives were of how they were managing their forest resources. This was one of the projects on which John had worked.

After their return to the United States in 1987, the Herrons were still not quite ready to settle down.  And so they reapplied to the Peace Corps. This time they were sent to The Gambia, which is the smallest country in mainland Africa and totally surrounded by Senegal except for its western coast along the Atlantic Ocean. It was a British Colony before achieving its independence. Senegal, on the other hand, had been a French colony.

This assignment proved more difficult for the Herrons for several reasons. In addition to English, they needed to learn a native language (Mandingo).  The culture proved more challenging because of the hardships they saw, not only in terms of poverty but also in terms of culture.  Women were definitely relegated to second class and were expected to handle everything except the raising of cash crops.  Because of the extreme poverty, there was a great deal of corruption. When financial aid came in from a variety of foreign organizations to pay for various projects, the money would often be embezzled and the projects would receive significantly less than what had been offered. The Gambian system of extended families put financial demands on the wage-earners, which contributed to the corruption.

Jean and John enjoyed their experience with a completely new culture in
spite of their frustration with the system, even learning to eat from communal bowls. This time, Jean helped students develop their school gardens. She had been a big gardener during her time in Eureka, California.  And so she helped the teachers and their students improve their garden projects. John worked again in forestry with the Gambian Forest Service, teaching lessons on forest conservation.

Unfortunately, the Herrons could not fulfill their two-year obligation in The Gambia. John fell seriously ill after the first year, and they had to return home. Luckily, he was able to recuperate over time. But they were sad to cut short their stay. Jean loved her Peace Corps experiences.  She and John appreciated the kindness and respect they received from their new friends in both Belize and The Gambia. Jean often told her children, “The Peace Corps gave us the chance to make a difference in the lives of many people, and we became better people because of it.”