Obituary

Former E&E RPCV board member, David Gurr, passed away February 26, 2020 in New York.  David served in the first group of Ethiopia Peace Corps Volunteers and was in the Georgetown University training group. He was assigned to teach auto mechanics at the Technical School in Addis Ababa, 1962-64, with a short stint at the Point Four School in Asmara.   He served on the board from the late 1990s to the early 2000s. 

He chronicled his Peace Corps experience in a delightful article for Peace Corps Worldwide entitled First Peace Corps Auto Mechanics Instructor .   His country director, Harris Wofford, decided that he was needed to teach auto mechanics rather than an academic subject. Although not technically trained as an auto mechanic, he believed he could teach auto mechanics because he had after all built his own car, included two engines, and had been involved in organized drag racing and sports car racing. How difficult could it be?  Vocational teachers did not receive the training that education volunteers received, but he noted that he and his fellow vocational teachers did take a tour of the US Steel plant in Sparrows Point, Maryland. 

He expected that there would be cultural and language differences, but little did he know that one of his major challenges would be learning the British terms for the various parts of a car, so much so that he devised a glossary of terms that included:  Accumulator (Battery), Commentator (Alternator), Damper (Shock Absorber), Mudguard (Fender), Silencer (Muffler) to name a few. His memories provide a glimpse of the Peace Corps life for those early Volunteers and the students whom they taught.

In addition to his service on the board, he joined a group of RPCVs from Ethiopia and assisted in the Ethiopian and Eritrean Peace Initiative to end the first war of 1998.  This initiative was recognized as a significant factor by the United States Institute for Peace.

This led to the bestowal of the Loret Miller Ruppe Award to the Ethiopia and Eritrea Returned Peace Corps Volunteers in 2002.  The award, named after the widely admired 10^th Director of the Peace Corps, is presented by NPCA to outstanding affiliate groups for projects that promote the Third Goal of Peace Corps or continue to serve host countries, build group spirit and cooperation, and promote service. 

In recognition of the efforts made by these Ethiopia RPCVs, it is stated:

Ethiopia and Eritrea RPCVs (E&E RPCVs) have pursued every opportunity to advance the cause of peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea after a border war erupted in May 1998. Members of the groupﾒs Peace Initiative Committee helped establish a neutral, extra-official channel for the two countries to exchange views and proposals for resolving the conflict. Committee members also called upon the US Congress, the Department of State, the UN, other countries’ diplomatic missions and private organizations.

When progress toward a peaceful resolution reached an impasse in 1998 over administration of the disputed area of Badme, E&E RPCVs proposed sending RPCVs to Badme to serve as neutral custodians. Unfortunately, the Ethiopians wrested Badme from the Eritreans before an offer could be reached.

A group of E&E RPCVs went on a peace-building mission to Ethiopia and Eritrea in June of 1999, meeting with the president of Eritrea and the prime minister of Ethiopia, as well as other senior government officials and important members of the public. During the long search for a peaceful resolution, E&E RPCVs have been held in high regard by leaders and foreign representatives of the two countries.

David was a frequent contributor to The Herald, regaling the reader with his interactions with His Imperial Majesty, Haile Selassie; Peace Corps Director, Sargent Shriver; and Country Director, Harris Wofford. 

David Gurr, we thank you for your service.

With his wife, Gigi.

With a heavy heart, the E/E RPCV board would like to share information on the passing of one of our dear board members, Dr. Karen (Preskey) Glover. Karoo, as she was affectionately known, was a much loved member of the first group of PCVs returning to Ethiopia from 2007-2009 and made many friends during her time in Agaro. She continued to remain connected and support the work of Ethiopia PCVs during her time on the E/E RPCV board. Karen put up an incredibly brave fight against stage 4 colon cancer in 2019 but unfortunately passed on November 27th. She is survived by her husband, Josh, and two amazing daughters, Indy and Elliott. You can find more information here: https://boulgerfuneralhome.com/obituaries/karen-glover/…    (Kristen Straw Barredo, Finote Selam 2007-09; Facebook, February 14, 2020)

Karen joined the E&E RPCVs in early 2015, having recently returned from her service in Ethiopia (she was in the first group of the third wave of volunteers), bringing a contemporary perspective of the experiences of recent volunteers and the networking capability to help the organization thrive.

We introduced Karen to the community in an April 2015 article in The Herald.  As part of the first group of Peace Corps Volunteers to re-enter Ethiopia after a 10-year absence, Karen was assigned to the Agaro Health Center to work on HIV/AIDS related care and prevention activities with the Health Office.  Her contributions to the Agaro are extensive, including organizing meetings to analyze HIV data to assess the community’s health needs.  She integrated into the community to such an extent that she was able to help write the Peace Corps/Ethiopia Amharic and Afan Oromo language training manuals.

Karen initiated a Mothers Support Group (MSG) for mothers living with HIV to improve prevention of mother-to-child transmission services. She wrote and received a Peace Corps grant to train two health care providers as site coordinators and five HIV positive women as peer educators. As the first Peace Corps/Ethiopia Volunteer to start an MSG, she outlined the process to help more Volunteers start Mother Support Groups.

Karen collaborated with the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control on the Global Polio Eradication effort in September 2008 and April 2009. She monitored and evaluated vaccination teams and supervisors in Agaro and in other towns within the zone and conducted rapid convenience surveys to estimate percent coverage. Karen participated in two Operation Smile missions in Jimma, Oromiya to provide surgeries for people with cleft lips and palettes by coordinating efforts in Agaro to find potential patients and encouraging other Volunteers to do the same. During the mission, she translated between English, Afan Oromo, and Amharic for the nurses and surgeons. Karen corresponded with two elementary classrooms and a middle school class in the United States throughout her service to expose them to other countries and cultures.

Her impact on the community of Agaro and Peace Corps Ethiopia was significant and we were honored to have her join the board.  Despite being enrolled full time in graduate school in a doctoral program in biotechnology at North Dakota State University, she was an active member of the board contributing to major decisions enthusiastically and promptly.

Karen shared her love for Ethiopia and gave a hint of all her many accomplishments in an article for The Herald entitled “Mothers’ Support Group for women with HIV/AIDS.”  The article was spurred by the discovery of an Ethiopian restaurant in Fargo, ND, of all places.  It brought back the fact that it had been five years since she left Ethiopia and how homesick she was for her adopted country. 

She relates that her experiences were different from many volunteers in the past in that she was not assigned to teach in a school but had to develop projects on her own.  And that she did, quite successfully in fact. Take the time and reminisce with Karen whose life was cut short way before her time.

Karen, you were a bright shining light on the board.  We are grateful for your service.