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The Peace Corps Expansion Act 2009 is Here!

WRITE A LETTER TODAY!

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Dear                                   ,

I am writing to you from ______ to request you to co-sponsor HR 1066, the Peace Corps Expansion Act 2009.   This bill, which authorizes $450 million, $600 million, and $750 million to Peace Corps in 2010, 2011, and 2012, would allow the Peace Corps to grow and innovate at a time when the US needs soft power initiatives like Peace Corps to help restore US standing.  

The Peace Corps is neglected and underfunded.  In 2009, we will send fewer than 3,500 volunteers to the Peace Corps - less than half the number in 1966.  Over twenty nations without Peace Corps missions including Indonesia, Vietnam, and Sierra Leone have requested new programs, but due to insufficient funds, Peace Corps cannot respond.  In 2008 alone, over 13,000 people applied to become volunteers, a 16% increase over 2007.  The number of minority applicants and applicants over the age of 50 also rose by double digits in the last year.   The desire for Americans to serve internationally is matched by a long list of countries that want volunteers.  This is an appropriate time to grow and revitalize Peace Corps.

The Peace Corps had a profound impact on my life and US community.  I served in _______________.

I hope you share my view that the Peace Corps is a vital component of our public diplomacy toolbox.  Since 1961, nearly 200,000 Peace Corps volunteers have provided meaningful, small-scale development assistance, reversing stereotypes about Americans and returning stateside to enrich communities domestically with new language and other skills.  Peace Corps continues to be one of America’s finest expressions of friendship and solidarity across the globe.  

The Obama-Biden Administration is working diligently to reinvigorate our foreign policy and burnish America’s image. To do this, we must maximize every element of soft power. Investing in Peace Corps in the manner outlined in HR 1066 would help to reestablish our credibility and moral standing abroad, while exposing people to the core American values of peace, progress, tolerance and prosperity.  To meet the President’s stated goal of 16,000 volunteers in the Peace Corps we must pass the Peace Corps Expansion Act 2009.

I appreciate the ardent support you have provided to the Peace Corps in the past and welcome support of this important and timely bill.  Please contact Marc Hanson in Congressman Sam Farr’s office at 5-2861 or marc.hanson@mail.house.gov to sign on.

Sincerely,

NAME
PEACE CORPS YEARS (IF RPCV)
ADDRESS
PHONE, EMAIL
TITLE(S)

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The Peace Corps Expansion Act 2009 is Here!

WRITE A LETTER TODAY!

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