HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.R. NO.	291
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2011
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE RESOLUTION

commending and congratulating the peace corps on its 50^th anniversary.

     WHEREAS, on March 1, 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed an executive order establishing the PEACE CORPS, a public service organization dedicated to encouraging progress, creating opportunity, and fostering mutual respect and understanding throughout the world; and

     WHEREAS, over the past five decades, over 200,000 current and returned PEACE CORPS volunteers have collectively served in nearly 140 countries to fulfill President Kennedy's vision by bringing a wealth of practical assistance to communities around the world, including addressing critical needs in the areas of education, health care, agriculture, environmental protection, and youth development; and

     WHEREAS, working and living side-by-side with the people they assist, PEACE CORPS volunteers serve as ambassadors for our country, demonstrating the very best that our country has to offer, and return after their service enriched by their experiences, having gained a much deeper understanding and appreciation of the interconnected world we live in; and

     WHEREAS, our State has served as a willing partner in assisting the PEACE CORPS in the recruitment and training of volunteers; and

     WHEREAS, in 1962, Sargent Shriver, the founding Director of the PEACE CORPS, contacted Dr. Jake Stalker of the University of Hawaii at Hilo and Kio Hamakawa of the Department of Education to establish one of the first training centers in the Hilo area on the island of Hawaii; and

     WHEREAS, training for PEACE CORPS volunteers at the training center took place primarily at sites in and around Hilo, including the former Hilo Hospital which housed the administrative office, classrooms, and dormitories, and former school sites in Kurtistown, Waiakea-Uka, Pepeekeo, Ookala, Hakalau, Honomu; Honohina, and Kohala Girls School; and

     WHEREAS, a field station for the training center was also established in Waipio Valley to prepare PEACE CORPS volunteers for the rigors and obstacles that they would face in carrying out their service missions in unfamiliar foreign lands; and

     WHEREAS, the Hilo training center and Waipio Valley field station offered numerous advantages for the PEACE CORPS, including the geography, climate, ethnic composition of the communities in which volunteer training sites were based, and the spirit of cooperation found in these communities; and

     WHEREAS, between June of 1962 and September of 1971, over 7,000 PEACE CORPS volunteers were trained on the island of Hawaii; and

     WHEREAS, on Christmas Day in 1963, PEACE CORPS trainees and staff at the Hilo training center dedicated a plaque in memory of President Kennedy in front of the former Hilo Hospital; and

     WHEREAS, the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Hawaii will be hosting a series of events during November of 2011 to commemorate the 50^th Anniversary of the PEACE CORPS, to include a rededication of the plaque honoring President Kennedy; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Twenty-sixth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2011, that this body hereby commends and congratulates the

PEACE CORPS on its 50^th Anniversary and acknowledges in particular the contributions made by those hard working

volunteers and staff involved in the Hilo training center and Waipio Valley field station.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Peace Corps; Fiftieth Anniversary