NEWSLETTER - Friends of Nigeria

FRIENDS OF
NIGERIA
www.friendsofnigeria.org
Spring 2009 Vol 13, No 3
NEWSLETTER
FON and the Fantsuam Foundation - an Update
Greg Jones (22) 66-68
[The FON Board voted in Feb. to invest an additional
$5,000 to support the Fantsuam Foundation’s microfinance
program.]
This just in from John Dada, the director of the Fantsuam
Foundation, on the loans facilitated by FON’s prototype
investment of $1,000 last August:
The Zankan Marwa [Kaduna state] women continue
to make progress with the repayment of their loans.
The loans were given on 9th August 2008. So far, there
are no defaults and the ten women are expected to
complete repayment of their FON cycle of loans on
9th February 2009. You would recall that there was a
balance of 17,000 Naira that remained from the FON
grant. Of this, N15,000 was disbursed to a client in the
Bassa Centre and her repayment is also on course. The
balance of N2,000 was used to cover administrative
costs and fuel for trips to meet with the Zankan Marwa
group. [See the FON Fall 2008 and Winter 2008
Newsletters for details of this first FON grant to Fantsuam.]
The women have all indicated interest in continuing
with the next cycle of loan which entitles them to
N20,000 each.
As the size of loans given to the women grows, it
is important to build their capacity to handle higher
sums of money. As part of preparation for that next
cycle of loans, the Zankan Marwa women are now
being offered Business Development Service (BDS)
training. The Fantsuam Field Officer, Hajara, has
completed training of two of the three modules. The
BDS training is a participatory learning activity that
teaches skills of Business Planning, Team Work, Risk
Assessment and Identification of new business
opportunities and threats to business growth.
At the conclusion of the first cycle of loans, there
FON’s Annual General Meeting
August 2009
Boston
Details will follow via the FON website, the
Google group, and the FON Summer 2009
Newsletter (May or June)
Fantsuam Director John Dada, left, and
Assistant Director Kazanka Comfort, center.
will be a post-loan impact assessment and this will be
followed by the disbursement of the next cycle of
N20,000 each in February 2009. There will be full photo
coverage of that event, with the community leader in
attendance and that will form part of the next progress
report to FON.
We also heard from Cicely Brown, a VSO volunteer my wife and
I met while we were visiting Fantsuam in November. She plans to
visit the Zankan Marwa women soon and promises to write up her
visit for FON. In addition, Cicely writes a very interesting blog,
usually including great pictures. You can access it at http://
cicelyinnigeria.blogspot.com. I found past entries in her blog
fascinating, so I spent far more time reading it than I ever planned
to.
Fantsuam is also expanding its presence on the internet. A 5-
minute you-tube explanation of FF’s programs can be seen at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlEBTCZ67NI. A google
search returns over 11,000 links, including a Wikipedia entry that
concentrates on FF’s wireless internet and computer activities. See
also the Fantsuam website www.fantsuam.org.

Letters to the Editor
FRIENDS OF NIGERIA
NEWSLETTER
Quarterly publication of
Friends of Nigeria, Inc.
affiliate of the
National Peace Corps Association
Editor
Warren Keller
warrendkk@yahoo.com
Assistant Editor
Jim Clark
jclark7341@triad.rr.com
Nigeria News Editor
Virginia DeLancey
v-delancey@northwestern.edu
Book Editor
David Strain
destrain@pacbell.net
Production Staff
Earl (Buzz) Welker
mysk3@aol.com
Steve Manning
mannings317@yahoo.com
Alice O’Grady
arogrady@hotmail.com
Mary Ann Palmieri
palmieri@wildblue.net
Printer
Leesburg Printing Company
Leesburg, Florida
FON
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President
Mike Goodkind
mgoodkind@earthlink.net
Vice President
Mike Malaghan
mgm@malaghan.net
Membership Chair/Treasurer
Peter J. Hansen
pjhansen@ia.net
Secretary
Bob Wynne
sswynne@comcast.net
Lucinda Boyd
cindarboyd@mindspring.com
Virginia DeLancey
v-delancey@northwestern.edu
Greg Jones
gregory.j@comcast.net
Fr. Edward Inyanwachi
esinyanwachi@dons.usfca.edu
Warren Keller
warrendkk@yahoo.com
Anne Sherwood
annesherwood@comcast.net
Gregory Zell
gregzell@mindspring.com
Anne Sherwood (11) 64-66
Thanks for the wonderful newsletter
(fall). As always, I have to sit right down and
read it (well, I do leave a couple of articles for
later), but it is always welcome.
I was so saddened to learn of the deaths
of two favorite Peace Corps friends of mine.
Anson Chong (11) 64-66, who grew up in
Hawaii, arrived back in NYC for our flight to
Nigeria with an armful of flower leis for the
women in our program. We felt so special
and wore them until they were limp and
tatttered. Later, when I lived in Hawaii, I
learned of his many achievements from folks
who knew him there. He was a true son of
the islands who gave much to his
community.
Warren Ziegler (staff) 63-65 was
Director of the Eastern Region when I
arrived in 1964. During training, I had asked
to be placed in an urban setting, but the
information never arrived in Nigeria for
posting purposes, and I landed in Ovim, a
small village far into the “bush.” When
Warren visited me, it was clear that I was
enjoying my school, the students and the
Nigerian principal, but yearning for some
company other than my cat and a pet
monkey. So, during my school break, I
worked in the Peace Corps office in Enugu
along side Peggy Sheppard (10) 64-66, the
Peace Corps Secretary.
Mike Malaghan (25) 66-69
You have put together an incredible
collage of the experience. Thank you and to
everyone who contributed to put this
together so well and in so short a time.
Chris Collman (16) 65-67
I saw Warren’s email [to the Google group],
then Mike’s follow up. Well, I thought, I am
late for work -- what is another delay?
Not what I expected at all and yet what I
expected when I started reading the stories.
Well done everyone!
Recently, I have been emailing a lawyer in
Lagos (no, not about my $10 million ticket
held by Mrs. Ubunto on my behalf) about
I lived with Peggy, and although we worked
hard, we also had a wonderful time in the city.
We spent some nice evenings at the Zieglers, and
I’ll always be grateful to Warren for being a
Director who listened and cared about the success
of his volunteers.
Murray Frank (staff) 61-64
I can’t resist. Re: item on p 15, in the Fall
2008 Newsletter: I climbed Kilimanjaro in the
spring of 1965.
Frank Fong (23) 66-67
The bald-headed guy identified as ?? between
Kathy and Barbara in one picture and as ?? after
Kermit in another is Frank Chance (21) 66-
67. [See the Fall 2008 Newsletter.] He was a PCV
teaching in the town of Benin in Nigeria and had
finished his tour and was on his way home via
East Africa. He did Kili with us. [See the Winter
2007-8 Newsletter.]
[The Back to Nigeria special edition Winter 2008 Newsletter
has generated more letters than any other in my 2+ years as editor.]
Ikot Ekpene and a friend of my daughter who
just arrived in Lagos for a 2 year employment at a
secondary school. We have slowly been
comparing notes about different people and
customs. Reading the newsletter gave me
encouragement that maybe, just maybe I might
visit Ikot Ekpene one more time.
Thank you all for going and sharing.
Catherine Onyemelukwe (4) 62-64
Sounds like a wonderful trip. Clem and I are
going to Nigeria on Monday for Christmas and
New Years. We’ll be thinking of you all who just
went, many of you for your first time back.
Web Site
friendsofnigeria.org
Website Manager
Greg Jones
Thanks for the great stories.
Web site Newsletter Manager
CLeigh Purvis Gerber
(Continued on page 3)
2 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

Letters ...
(Continued from page 2)
Mike Goodkind (16) 65-67
Great back to Nigeria issue and kudos to the overseas
correspondents and newsletter crew. I really appreciated the mix
of nostalgia and the first rate reporting on obstacles,
opportunities and the realities on the ground.
Bill Schroeder (13) 64-66
I greatly appreciated the candor of the writers.
Ed Gruberg (5) 62-64
I enjoyed the recent issue of Friends of Nigeria Newsletter
(winter 2008). The various reports from the exPCVs of their
recent trip to Nigeria vividly evoked their connections and
comparisons to earlier times and their criticisms. I have been back
to Nigeria twice since I left in 1964. Both trips were filled with
equivalent resonances, frustrations, disbeliefs, outrages,
epiphanies and nostalgia.
But I think one comment by Mike Malaghan should not go
unchallenged. He ended his report: “I left Nigeria thinking their
worst day in history was the day they gained their independence
from Britain.” Does he really think Nigeria should have remained
a colony? Perhaps the trains would still be running and it would
be easier to organize a tour and district officers could keep
everybody in line. But in the year 2009 do we still have to
enumerate the reasons why British colonialism in Nigeria was
shameful?
Robert J. Attaway (18) 65-67
It was with more than usual interest that I read your recent
Return to Nigeria special edition. I’m not much on nostalgia, but
I couldn’t help feeling a bit of this and was pleased to recognize a
couple of familiar names in the group. I was especially struck by
Obituary – Alan C. Crew (13) 65-67
Friends of Nigeria is saddened to report the death of Alan
C. Crew who served as a teacher in Benin City from 1965-67
as a member of Nigeria 13.
Alan was born July 3, l942, and passed away peacefully in
his sleep on October 30, 2008, at his home in Worcester, VT.
He is survived by his son, Ian, of Berkeley, CA; his sister,
Marilyn Owen, of Cincinnati, OH, and many, many dear
friends around the world. Though his death was sudden
and unexpected, his family was comforted knowing that he
was very happy, having recently entered a very positive part of
his life both personally and professionally.
An informal gathering to share memories, stories and
reflections of Alan was held Thursday, Nov. 6, 2008, at the
Unitarian Church of Montpelier (VT). A memorial service
and celebration of his life will take place in the spring of 2009
at the Farm and Wilderness Camps in Plymouth.
(Published in the Times Argus on 11/04/2008.)
Mike Malaghan’s “Things Fall Apart.” His description of
deteriorating conditions reminded me of a return trip I made
myself in the mid-80s. Emblematic of that experience was my
memory of a small traffic circle in Lagos. In 1966 it was clean and
colorful with bright red flowers. In the 80s the flowers were gone
and huge piles of smoldering trash had taken their place,
complete with people poking through the rubbish. For all its
promise, for all that is good in its people, Nigeria seems forever
on a downward spiral of corruption, environmental destruction,
over-population, and violence. I think of the ending of Cry the
Beloved Country when the narrator wonders when the dawn of
their emancipation might come, and I wonder when, if ever, the
dawn of Nigeria’s emancipation from the problems which ail it
might also arrive. I do not feel optimistic at all.
Kenneth Johnson (25) 66-68
Fascinating reading the latest issue about “Back to Nigeria.”
Mike Malaghan and I shared a British House in Maiduguri
for our first several months, then he moved into town to a
second floor apartment. Our next door Peace Corps Volunteer
neighbors included Greg Jones.
Mike worked with a shoemaker, a small businessman, in
Maiduguri. I don’t know if Mike received monies for his projects,
but having organizations that give to cottage industries would
certainly help Peace Corps Volunteers. Greg wrote about helping
small businesses with loans (the latest issue of the FON
newsletter). This is a splendid idea. We can contribute to the spirit
of Peace Corps service by giving money to organizations helping
small businesses or cottage industries in the developing world.
Keep up the good work of publishing the FON Newsletter.
Many thanks for this special issue.
Andy Buhler (CUSO) 69-71
Just a quick note to say thanks for putting the “Back to
Nigeria” special issue out.
I read it with bitter-sweet memories and more than a little
sadness at the declines mentioned by many of the writers. I was
not a teacher [or a PCV — I was with CUSO] so I do not have
the strong people ties that most of your respondents have. My
life as a med lab tech without much in the way of work did not
provide the person-depth to much of my Nigerian experience.
Still, one of the fellows who has continued to correspond over 40
years gives me a reassurance that some small bonds were made.
A few months ago I was mightily surprised when I received,
out of the blue, a text message in my email. Ever dubious of
419s from Nigeria I actually got a confirmation that the sender
was the youngest child of one of my then lab students — a child
I never knew but one who now uses text messaging from
Ogwashi Uku, a small village which had trouble even
keeping daily electricity going when I was there in 1970-71.
Such a country of contrasts! Thanks again to all for sharing
their traveler’s experiences for the “Back to Nigeria” issue for the
rest of us homebodys to relive vicariously.
SPRING 2009 3

Nigeria News
Bill Gates Donates $50 Million to Fight
Polio
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates visited
Nigeria for two days at the beginning of
February on behalf of the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation. While there,
he announced that his foundation is
committing more than $50 million for the
fight against polio in Nigeria and is
working with the Abuja Chapter of Rotary
International. Mr. Gates also announced
that the foundation has just concluded a
$25 million agreement with the World
Bank to support the purchase of more
than 100 million doses of oral polio
vaccine in Nigeria.
While in Nigeria, Mr. Gates toured
some of the most polio-endemic regions
and met with mothers, traditional birth
attendants, and Muslim women’s groups.
His itinerary took him to Sokoto to meet
with the Sultan of Sokoto and other
traditional rulers and to Abuja to meet
President Yar’Adua, Vice President
Goodluck Johnson, and members of the
Northern Governors Forum.
Nigeria is one of only four countries in
the world, and the only one on the African
continent, where polio remains endemic.
In addition to the work of Rotary
International, a USAID-funded grassroots
mobilization initiative called Community
Participation for Action in the Social
Sector, known as COMPASS, is promoting
oral polio vaccines and changing long-held
suspicions in Kano where nearly 40
percent of all new polio cases occur.
COMPASS also provides insecticidetreated
bed nets to a local hospital where
they are given for malaria prevention for
babies if the mothers attend polio
immunization three times or come for the
last dose of the polio vaccine. (Sources:
VOA News [Abuja], 9/30/08, 2/3/09;
Leadership [Abuja], 1/26/09, 2/1/09. 2/2/
09, 2/3/09; This Day [Sokoto], 1/25/09;
This Day [Ilorin/Sokoto], 2/2/09).
Edited by Virginia DeLancey (4) 62–64
cholera and gastroenteritis in September
and October in parts of northern Nigeria.
Cholera outbreaks occurred in Katsina,
Zamfara, Bauchi and Kano states, killing
97 people in two weeks in September, and
the death toll could be even higher. The
gastroenteritis outbreak affected between
2,000 and 3,000 people and caused more
than 200 deaths in five northern states. A
few cases also occurred in at least three
other states.
In January, cholera broke out again in
northern Nigeria, following reports of
epidemics in neighboring countries,
especially Niger. It also killed at least 27
children in Ebonyi State in southeastern
Nigeria.
Malaria killed 401 people in a period of
four weeks in September and October in
Katsina state, and the number could be
much higher because it does not reflect
those who died at home. The disease has
now become endemic in the state.
Pneumonia is also a health issue. It
has become a major waster of infants in
Nigeria, equaled only by malaria, with six
million children affected and 200,000 dying
yearly of the disease. Nigeria now ranks
second in pneumonia-induced deaths in
the world, next to India, a country which
has a much larger population of about
900 million. The deaths are preventable,
since the HIB vaccine is very effective, but
that vaccine has not yet been introduced
into the health delivery system of Nigeria
because it has not been approved by the
Federal Government. (Sources: Daily
Independent [Lagos], 1/29/09; Daily Trust,
1/30/09; IRIN [Abuja], 10/21/08; IRIN
[Kano], 9/22/08, 10/17/08; IRIN
[Lagos], 1/16/09; VOA News [Abuja],
10/17/08).
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is
MacArthur Fellow
Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi
Adichie was named a 2008 MacArthur
Fellow. The “genius awards” are given to
25 individuals in diverse fields, including
art, science, humanities and business. The
John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
Foundation gives each fellow $500,000
without restrictions to use for any future
work. According to the Foundation,
Adichie’s 2006 novel, Half of a Yellow Sun,
“unflinchingly portrays the horror and
destruction of the civil war following the
establishment of the Republic of Biafra.”
Adichie also has a previous novel,
Purple Hibiscus. She was a 2003 O. Henry
Prize winner and was shortlisted for the
2002 Caine Prize for African Writing. She
grew up in Nigeria before coming to the
U.S. where she completed B.A. and M.A.
degrees. She now divides her time
between the U.S. and Nigeria. (Sources:
www.macfound.org ; Chicago Foundation
for Women, www.cfw.org, 10/7/08).
World Bank Approves a $150 Million
IDA Credit
The World Bank has approved a $150
million IDA credit for a Commercial
Agriculture Development Project (CADP)
to strengthen agricultural production
systems and facilitate access to markets for
small and medium scale commercial
farmers in five states, including Cross
River, Enugu, Lagos, Kaduna, and Kano.
The project will be implemented over a
period of five years (from April 2009 to
December 2014) and will focus on oil
palm, cocoa, fruit trees, poultry,
aquaculture and dairy, with maize and rice
as staples to address the food crisis.
Simultaneous attention will be paid to
supporting infrastructure, particularly the
rural network of farm roads and energy.
The credit will have a service charge of 0.75
percent, is interest free and payable in 40
years with a grace period of ten years. The
Minister of Agriculture and Water
Resources stated that the pilot project
would be scaled-up to cover the 36 states
of the federation and the Federal Capital
Territory.
Nigerian agriculture has been
characterized by subsistence farming for
many years. Because of its inability to
provide food security, and in an attempt to
bring investors into the agricultural sector,
the Nigerian government, as part of the
Food Security Programme, asked the
World Bank for assistance in raising the
level of subsistence farming to commercial
Cholera, Gastroenteritis, Malaria, and
Pneumonia Break Out in Northern
Nigeria
Poor sanitation and a shortage of safe
drinking water caused deadly outbreaks of
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Nigeria news...
(Continued from page 4)
standards. (Sources: Daily Independent
[Lagos], 1/29/09; Leadership [Abuja], 1/
30/09).
U.S. and Japan Provide Funding to
Boost Rice Production
USAID has provided $5.1 million to
Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Mali. The
funds, to be expended over a period of
two years, are to be used for improved
seeds and fertilizer to develop rice
production to reduce the global food
shortage. The funds were provided as a
result of research indicating that Africa,
especially Nigeria, has the potential to
produce rice that can compete with
imported rice from other parts of the
world.
Nigeria and eleven other Sub-Saharan
African countries are also to share a $4.2
billion, five-year loan from the Japanese
government to boost rice production and
support other development projects. In
addition to Nigeria, the first group of
countries to benefit from the rice
investment projects include Cameroon,
Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali,
Mozambique, Senegal, Sierra Leone,
Tanzania and Uganda. (Sources: Daily
Trust, 1/29/09; Leadership [Abuja], 1/29/
09).
Nigeria’s Textile Industry is on Verge
of Collapse
Following the recent closure of three
more textile factories, a total of 38 factories
have closed throughout Nigeria. About
2,500 textile workers also lost their jobs in
2008 due to operational difficulties and
downsizing in the few functional textile
factories across the country. The General
Secretary of the National Union of Textile
Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria
(NUTGTWN) blamed the federal
government for lack of deep commitment
to industrialization. Smuggling, high
operating costs arising from the high cost
of raw materials and energy have further
contributed to the problems of the textile
industry. Counterfeiting of Nigerian
textile trade marks is another problem.
Counterfeit products which are
substandard compared to the Nigerian
originals are printed mostly in China, then
brought back into Nigeria and sold at
relatively cheaper prices than the ones
produced in the country. This has led
people to buy the counterfeits rather than
the Nigerian products and has caused
further deterioration of the textile
industry. (Sources: Daily Trust, 1/28/09,
1/30/09; Leadership [Abuja], 1/29/09).
Under-17 World Cup Preparations
Disappoint FIFA
An inspection team from FIFA
expressed disappointment over the poor
level of Nigeria’s preparation for hosting
the Under-17 World Cup to be held in
October 2009. After touring the possible
venues in Nigeria, FIFA Vice President
Jack Warner expressed his disappointment
and said that of the nine stadiums
presented, only those in Abuja and Ijebu
Ode are ready and that those in Enugu
and Kano have the most work to be
completed. Other stadiums presented
were in Lagos, Warri, Kaduna, Calabar,
and Bauchi. Warner did not say that the
tournament would be taken away from
Nigeria, but he made it clear that time was
running out. He expressed hope that
upon his return in March or April things
would be in better shape and that it would
be possible to fulfill the promise that
Africa would host all three World Cups in
2009 and 2010 (Egypt Under-20, and
South Africa). (Sources: BBC Sport, 1/
27/09; Daily Independent [Lagos], 1/27/09,
1/28/09; Leadership [Abuja], 1/29/09;
This Day [Warri], 1/27/09; This Day
[Lagos], 1/28/09; Vanguard [Enugu], 1/
25/09, 1/26/09)
Nigeria Fears Lake Nyos Disaster
Officials in Nigeria’s Benue State are
taking pre-emptive measures for a possible
disaster that could occur if a dam fails at
Cameroon’s Lake Nyos. A report issued
by the UN Office for the Coordinator of
Humanitarian Affairs and the UN
Environment Program warned that a dam
hemming in the lake waters is on the brink
of collapse. If the dam fails, lake waters
would rush downstream, flooding several
villages in Cameroon and Nigeria, killing
people and livestock and destroying farms.
The lake lies high on the flank of an
inactive volcano. Its water is hemmed in
by a natural dike of volcanic rock that
geologists say has weakened over time.
Experts at Cameroon’s Institute of
Mining and Geological Research
acknowledge that the dam has weakened
but deny that there is an immediate threat
of collapse.
Officials in Nigeria’s Benue State are
building resettlement camps with a
$500,000 allotment from the Federal
Government. At least eleven settlements
in the state are considered high-risk zones.
The governor has urged the Nigerian
National Assembly to authorize the
purchase of relief equipment, including
helicopters. He noted that the UN report
recommended that the Federal
Government spend $15,000,000 over the
next two years to prepare for the
humanitarian help that might be necessary.
In 1986 Lake Nyos suddenly emitted
large clouds of carbon dioxide that killed
1,700 people and 3,500 livestock in
surrounding villages in Cameroon.
Scientists suspected that pockets of
magma lying beneath the lake leaked
carbon dioxide into the water, causing it to
change into toxic carbonic oxide. To
prevent a recurrence, American scientists
installed a degassing tube in the lake in
2001 to take the gas from the lake bottom
to the surface and release it gradually in
safe quantities. (Source: VOA News
[Douala], 10/27/08).
NCAA Downgrades Port Harcourt
Airport
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority
(NCAA) has downgraded the Port
Harcourt International Airport from grade
eight to grade seven as a result of
inadequate fire fighting equipment to
serve wide-body aircraft during an
emergency. This means that only smaller
aircraft can now land and take off from the
airport until the Federal Airports
Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) meets the
required conditions. The NCAA also gave
a 21-day ultimatum to FAAN to upgrade
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SPRING 2009 5

Nigeria news...
(Continued from page 5)
fire facilities at the Nnamdi Azikiwe
International Airport in Abuja to avoid
being downgraded, as well.
At the time of the downgrade, the
FAAN had only two fire tenders at the
international airport. While one of the
vehicles was unserviceable, the other was
leaking water, meaning that neither of
them could be deployed during an
emergency. There must be a minimum of
three fire tenders in international airports
and the fire vehicles must be in good
working condition. Except for Murtala
Muhammed International Airport, Lagos,
no airport in Nigeria meets this
requirement. (Source: This Day [Lagos],
1/30/09).
Federal Government to Clear Land
Mines in Ten States
The Federal Government has
concluded plans to begin identification of
land mine victims and to clear antipersonnel
land mines. The work will take
place in ten states, including Abia,
Anambra, Bayelsa, Benue, Cross River,
Ebonyi, Enugu, Lagos, River and Imo.
The flash points (ammunition dumps) to
be demined are 42 Nigerian Battalion Gun
Positions, six Biafran Battalion and
Ammunition Dumps near Owerri, and Uli
Air Strip, Abagana. The project involves
enumerating mine victims in the states
affected by the civil war and other flash
points in the country, as well as the
clearance of mines in all affected
communities.
Nigeria became a signatory to the
Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition
and Use, Prohibition and Production,
Transfer of Anti-Personnel Land Mines
and their Destruction in 2002. The
country is behind schedule, as the UN gave
all member countries, who are signatories
to the convention and still harboring
mines, until 2007 to complete the demining
projects. The de-mining is
considered necessary not only to further
heal the wounds of the civil war, but also
to guarantee free access to prime land
resources. The cost for the de-mining was
calculated to be N950 million ($6,361,543),
which was budgeted for 2007, but only
N500 million ($3,348,181) was released that
year. The government has now included
the balance of N450 million ($3,013,362) in
the 2009 budget. (Source: This Day
[Abuja], 1/30/09).
Sixty Million Citizens Own Power
Generators
An estimated 60 million Nigerians now
own power generators of varying sizes for
their electricity and spend $13.35 million
annually to fuel them, according to the
Chairman of the Manufacturers
Association of Nigeria (MAN), Imo, Abia
Branch. Moreover, an estimated 85 percent
of Nigerian firms own generators as an
alternative source of power generation. It
has been suggested that the electricity crisis
is the most important infrastructure
bottleneck in Nigeria today. (Source:
Vanguard, 1/26/09).
Helicopters to be Mandatory for Bank
Cash Movements
It will be mandatory to use helicopters
for inter-city and inter-state cash
movements by banks in Aba, Abia,
according to police, because of continued
attacks on bullion vans and the killing of
police escorts. Bullion vans may only be
used for intra-city cash movements, and the
time for such movements must be at the
discretion of the police. Any bank that
refuses to comply with the use of
helicopters will not have police escorts
attached to its bullion van.
A helipad has been constructed at the
Aba Area Command by one of the new
generation banks at the cost of N1.2
million ($8,035). It is believed that the use
of a helicopter is safer and more economic,
as the banks have lost billions of Naira in
recent robbery attacks on bullion vans
during cash movements. It is believed that
some of the attacks have been by organized
crime with an insider connection within the
affected banks. (Source: Leadership [Abuja],
1/28/09).
Human Rights Watch Urges Rejection
of Bill Banning Same Gender Marriage
Human Rights Watch has urged the
National Assembly to reject a bill seeking to
ban “same gender marriage”. In a letter
to President Yar’Adua, the National
Assembly, the Nigerian Human Rights
Commission, and other national, regional
and international bodies, the group urged
legislators and the president to reject the
bill and combat an environment of
stigma and violence against lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender Nigerians.
According to the group, the House of
Representatives voted favorably on the
second reading of a bill “to prohibit
marriage between persons of same
gender.” The bill would punish people
of the same sex who live together “as
husband and wife or for other purposes
of same sexual relationship” with up to
three years of imprisonment. Anyone
who “witnesses, abets and aids” such a
relationship could be imprisoned for up
to five years. According to the Africa
Director of Human Rights Watch, the bill
masquerades as a law on marriage, but in
fact it violates the privacy of anyone even
suspected of an intimate relationship
with a person of the same sex, and it also
threatens basic freedoms by punishing
human rights defenders who speak out
for unpopular causes. If the House
approves the bill on a third reading, it
must then be approved by the Senate and
President Yar’Adua. (Source: This Day
[Lagos], 1/27/09).
Clashes in Jos Kill Hundreds
Riots occurred and mobs burned
homes, churches and mosques, causing a
death toll of more than 300 in Jos last
November. The imam at the city’s main
mosque said that more than 300 bodies
were brought there and that 183 more
could be seen lying near the building. It
was uncertain how many in the Christian
community had been killed. Authorities
imposed an around-the-clock curfew in
the hardest-hit areas where Muslims and
Christians live close together. The
fighting began between supporters of the
region’s two main political parties
following the first local election in Jos in
more than a decade. (Source: Chicago
Tribune, 11/30/08).
6 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

Obituaries
John Frederick Schultz (15) 65-67
Friends of Nigeria recently learned of the death of Rev. Dr.
John Frederick Schultz. John was a member of Nigeria 15
and taught at the Government College in Zaria. He passed
away on April 27, 2007 at the age of 63.
John graduated from the University of North Carolina
prior to his Peace Corps service. After returning from
Nigeria, he completed his M.Div. at Union Theological
Seminary and his Ph.D. at Columbia University. He worked
for World Service from 1974-1990. He was ordained a
Presbyterian minister in 1986. In 1990, Dr. Schultz joined
Christian Children Fund, the international child development
agency, and was elected president in 1998. In 2004, he
received a Distinguished Alumnus award from the University
of North Carolina honoring his “outstanding contributions
to humanity through his work with relief and development
efforts throughout the world.”
Dr. Schultz is survived by his wife Patricia Kelsey Schultz,
his three children, two brothers and two sisters.
[Source: New York Times, May 1, 2007]
Ronald C. Sharpless (25) 66-68
Friends of Nigeria is saddened to report the death of
Ronald C. Sharpless. Ron served as a community
development specialist in Nigeria from 1966-1968.
Ron passed away on Friday, March 25, 2004, at the
Southwest Christian Hospice Center in Union City, GA at the
age of 62. At the time of his death, Ron was living in
Austell, GA.
Collie Coleman (25) 66-68
Friends of Nigeria is saddened to report the death of
Collie Coleman who served as a volunteer on the Ibiade
Farm Settlement located in Ibiade via Ijebu-Ode from 1966-
68.
Collie was born in Bailey, NC, graduated from Spaulding
High School and attended Shaw University in Raleigh, NC,
where he earned a BA degree in English. In 1981, he earned
a PH.D. in higher education from The Ohio State University.
Following his Peace Corps service, Collie had a long and
distinguished forty-year professional career. He served as a
cross cultural coordinator and director for volunteer training
projects in Swaziland, Somalia and Kenya. He served as an
academic dean at Allen University (Columbia, SC), academic
dean of Shorter College (Little Rock, AR), and later as
president of Allen University from 1984-1994. In 1994, he
returned to his native North Carolina to serve as vice
president for academic affairs at Shaw University. In 1999, he
was named executive vice president and academic dean at
Voorhees College. Collie’s last position was as associate vice
chancellor for outreach at UNC-Pembroke.
Collie is survived by his wife, Annie Hill Coleman; son,
Kyle Chavis Coleman; daughter, Connie Coleman Kirkley
and her husband, Robert; granddaughter, Miss Kayla Anne
Kirkley; brother, Harold and his wife Marvene; sisters, Hilda
Hector, Bobby Jean Stone and husband, Edward, and
Virginia Hall and her husband, Jesse. Collie is also survived
by numerous nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.
[Source: The Fayetteville Observer]
Kenneth E. Flood, Jr. (12) 64-66
Friends of Nigeria is sorry to report the death of Kenneth E.
Flood, Jr. who served as a volunteer in Asaba from 1964-66.
Ken passed away on Wednesday, January 21, 2009, at the age of
68 at Cherry Meadows Hospice after suffering a recurrence of a
melanoma.
Ken was born in Stevens Point, WI, on December 6, 1940.
He earned the Eagle Scout award from the Boy Scouts of
America in 1958 and graduated from P. J. Jacobs High School in
1959. After returning home following his Peace Corps service,
he married the former Janet Mayes and returned to school at the
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and received a bachelor’s
degree in education and a master’s degree in social studies in
1975. From 1968 until 2000, he was a highly respected member
of the faculty at Appleton East High School where he taught
social studies and coached the boy’s swim team for over twenty
years. Ken was an active member of the Appleton Education
Association, and had served as treasurer and past president of
the Wisconsin Retired Teachers Association. He was also
politically active, working on the board of canvassers for many
years, as well as acting as treasurer for the Outagamie County
Democratic Party, and until his passing worked as treasurer for
Congressman Steve Kagen.
Ken is survived by his wife, Janet E. Flood of Appleton; a
daughter, Victoria (Rod Boriack) Flood of Des Plaines, IL; two
stepchildren, Jon Boriack and his special friend Brooke of San
Luis Opisbo, CA, and Katy Boriack of Santa Cruz, CA; his
mother, Thelma E. Flood of Stevens Point; a brother, Marion
(Jan) Flood of Stevens Point; a sister, Christine Schmelling of
Stevens Point; and two sisters-in-law: Kathryn (Gordon)
Thayer of Morehead City, NC and Sharon (Charlie Ware)
Mayes of Palm Harbor, FL.
[Source: Appleton (WI) Post-Crescent]
SPRING 2009 7

President’s Column
Mike Goodkind (16) 65-67
Here are a few highlights of FON’s activities in the last few
months, including an overview of your support at work:
• Microfiance — In February your board voted to invest
$5,000 in the Fantsuam Foundation in Kaduna State for its
microloan program to enable women to pursue small business
ventures to sustain themselves and their families. This grant
follows a successful $1,000 pilot investment in July 2008. [page 1]
I have asked FON Director Greg Jones (22) 66-68 to head an
oversight committee including Director Fr. Edward Inyanwachi
to help facilitate our relationship with Fantsuam. As we’ve
reported in the past, this relationship was encouraged and
facilitated by Glenn Dodge, one of “our” VSO volunteers at the
time, and by the enthusiasm following a visit Greg made to
Fantsuam last November during FON’s Back-to-Nigeria trip.
Many of us have read with interest on the GoogleGroup and in
the special Winter 2008 Newsletter about that trip. We can all
share in the benefits that our continued relationship with Nigeria
is bringing via Fantsuam and through active VSO volunteers in
the field, such as Glenn, his colleagues and successors at
Fantsuam and throughout Nigeria.
• VSO — Most of you will be receiving a letter soon updating
our VSO Support Project, which helps to encourage and support
volunteer activities in Nigeria. It will soon be time for FON to
renew its annual commitment to this synergy, which means it’s
time for us to renew our support as well. Since 2004, FON has
contributed more than $31,000 to VSO to partially support three
rotating volunteers in Nigeria. You have seen many of their
stories in our Newsletter and in their postings on the Google
Group and website.
• NPCA — FON is also active domestically. Your board in
December voted to contribute $1,000 for planning and
participation in the National Peace Corps Association’s efforts on
behalf of the 50 th anniversary of the Peace Corps. We have a seat
at the table and we expect that this event in two years will not just
be a celebration but will help frame the dialogue that is producing
a new generation of service. Through our support we are leaving
more than memories: we are creating a legacy. I’m anticipating
with interest the future of Peace Corps -- hopefully including a
return to Nigeria -- and I’m confident FON will continue to be a
part of that broader picture.
• Communications — We have 110 members of our
GoogleGroup, including FON members, VSO volunteers and
other friends. Many of you are also aware of NPCA’s social
networking site, Connected Peace Corps. We are working out
some issues but expect that about the time you read this, we will
be moving our online GoogleGroup to the NPCA site, which we
expect to be more flexible and friendlier for users. The site will
also allow us to coordinate more easily with other groups and
people whose interests may match our own. You can get a
preview of what’s to come: http://
community.peacecorpsconnect.org/.
If you are already a member of the GoogleGroup, you will
receive instructions if and when it’s time to move. If you are not a
member, this is a great time to join that group, http://
groups.google.com/group/FONmembers.
Another area of communications is our FON Wiki, an online,
interactive, growing repository of our memories and
accomplishments, arranged by training group, from our years in
Nigeria. Go to the site and request log-in privileges to add your
story to our evolving “book”, http:// www.wikifon.org.
• Leadership — All of these and other activities require a
dedicated band of volunteers and leaders. FON is always actively
recruiting members to help in a variety of ways, including as
committee members and prospective future candidates for our
hands-on board. We are neither an advisory nor an honorary
board, and we are always looking for people who can make things
happen. Always needed are people with an interest in business
and finance to help with our board and philanthropic efforts, as
well as writers and editors for our newsletter and web-familiar
individuals who can help with our broadening array of internet
communication vehicles.
I’d be happy to discuss opportunities with FON and our
affiliates via email, mgoodkind@earthlink.net, or when we all
meet at our biennial meeting in Boston in August.
“Our” VSO Volunteers
Keep The Lorry Rolling!
As of Jan. 4:
Total raised to date: $31,062
Number of donations: 531
Number of donors: 323
Robert Wilkinson (the UK)
email: bob.k.wilkinson@btinternet.com
Esther Ten Hoorn (the Netherlands)
email: esther.global@gmail.com
David Perry (Canada)
email: david.perry.ghana@gmail.com
8 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

What’s New with WikiFON ?
Greg Jones (22) 66-68
www.wikifon.org has grown significantly. Thanks to Peter
Hansen (27), we now have 28 Training Directories where you can
see yourself when incredibly young and naïve. We also have
many issues of The Tilley Lamp, a PCV written and edited
publication from Nigeria. Several people have contributed stories,
pictures, and memories, resulting in a permanent repository of
our collective experiences. Any FON member can get a userid and
password to update the collective memory bank from Greg
Jones (22) gregory.j@comcast.net or Chris Collman (16)
chris.collman@gmail.com.
Some have said the site is somewhat confusing to navigate. I
suggest you go to the Sitemap page and delve into the categories
that pique your interest. Go to your own group listing and see if
anybody else has contributed something. Go to the stories
category and be inspired by what others have said. [The Sitemap
page is listed in the Navigation box on the left side of the Main Page;
both groups and stories are accessible through the Quick Table of
Contents on the Main Page. The Search wikiFON box on the left side of
the Main Page may also be useful if you are having trouble finding a story
or name.] Our collective memories defy easy categorization, so be
patient and give the process some time.
Highlights to check out:
Group V description. Training photographs, from David
Grove (5). If you were part of Group V and in one of these
pictures, you can add your name and improve the experience of
others viewing the site.
Stories. WID The World is Deep, an account by David Koren
(9) of his teaching experience in the Eastern Region before the
Obituary – Mark N. Sanders (08) 63-65
Friends of Nigeria regretfully reports the passing of Mark
Sanders. Mark passed away at the age of 68 on January 06,
2009, in Fort Wayne, IN. As a member of Nigeria 8, Mark
taught math and physics at the boy’s secondary school in
Ikom, Eastern Nigeria from 1963-1965.
Mark was born in Washington, IA, and earned a graduate
degree in engineering from Marquette University prior to his
Peace Corps service. Upon returning to the states, Mark
married his wife, Liz, in Chicago and began a 45-year career
with the International Harvester Corporation in Fort Wayne
where he continued to work until his death. According to
those who knew him well, Mark was a “man of few words,
each of them precisely implemented.”
Mark is survived by his wife, Elizabeth; sons, Stephen,
Anthony and Nathaniel; daughter, Virginia; brothers,
William, Anthony and James; and sister, Mary Phillips. He
was preceded in death by his son Eric Rossiter. A Mass of
Christian Burial was said by Fr. Thomas Shoemaker at St.
Jude Catholic Church followed by burial at Catholic
Cemetery.
[Sources: Fort Wayne Ledger, Michael Keffer]
Civil War and then his return to join the airlift of relief supplies
into Biafra. This was originally submitted in response to the
request for reminiscences of Biafra associated with Chimamanda
Adichie’s Half of a Yellow Sun. Actually, I adapted this from
David Koren’s original submission as a trial piece to show how
things might be done on WikiFON.
Stories. Training at UCLA - slices of memory by Bill
Schroeder (13), based on memories of the Group XIII training
experience and trip to Enugu.
Search wikiFON “hausa”. Hausa Phrases I Just Can’t Get Out
of My Head by John or Debbie Losse (22). Will jog the memory
of many assigned to the North.
Group VI stories. Football and the Whitehouse by Brian
Boyle (6). Features an article by Red Smith that Group VI antics
instigated.
Group XXII stories. The Nuns Who Almost Got Massacred
by Chuck Kollerer (22). About what it felt like as rioters were
attacking Ibos throughout the north in 1966.
Overall there are 78 stories, 6 bios, 2 batches of photos, and
10 lists of staff. All of them are worth reading. They will jog
your memory of your own experience, your own connections,
and your own list of those who influenced your service in
Nigeria. I hope you will commit those memories to paper or
computer documents and share them with the rest of us. Dig
out that box of aerograms from the attic, and have a great time
putting together the highlights from your experience of Nigeria:
we all have them.
The Tilley Lamp (1962-1964)
Peter Hansen (27) 67-68
Greg Jones (22) 66-68 has been going great guns obtaining,
scanning, and posting, issues of the Nigeria Peace Corps
publication The Tilley Lamp on our WikiFON (Go to
www.wikifon.org and “Search wikiFON” for “tilley”). Here is a
list of the issues already posted:
* December 1962, Vol. 2, Number 2
* March 1963, Vol. 2, Number 3
* July 1963, Vol. 2, Number 4
* September 1963, Vol. 3, Number 5
* December 1963, Vol. 3, Number 6
* March 1964, Vol. 4, Number 1
* July 1964, Vol. 4, Number 2
* December 1964, Vol. 4, Number 3
As you can see, we are missing:
* All of the Vol. 1 issues
* Vol. 2, No. 1
* Vol. 3, Nos. 1-4
* and any issues that were published after 1964.
Would you please check your attics and if you have any of
these missing issues contact Greg Jones gregory.j@comcast.net.
We would like to post a complete set.
Thanks. Don’t inhale too much dust. :-)
SPRING 2009 9

Book Review
The Old Lady of Vine Street -
The Valiant Fight for the Cincinnati Enquirer
By Richard K. Mastain (staff) 65-67
Rooftop Publishing (2007), 280 pp., $21.95 from amazon.com
Reviewed by David Strain (7) 63-66
It’s 1952, and the odds-on favorite to win the Republican
nomination and the Presidency is Mr. Republican, Senator Robert
Taft of Cincinnati, revered by Cincinnatians and whose family
owns one of three Cincinnati daily newspapers, the weakest, the
afternoon Times Star. The strongest, the morning Cincinnati
Enquirer, the old lady of Vine Street of this book’s title, has in the
previous decade distanced itself from the competition in
circulation, advertising revenue and general quality of product.
But through one of those quirks of estate planning, the Enquirer
is owned in part by the non-participating grandsons of the
former owner and driving force John Roll McLean, and in greater
part by the American Security and Trust Company as trustee for
McLean’s minor great grandchildren.
A secret deal is cut to sell the Enquirer to the Times Star, on
deferred payment terms which would in effect allow the Enquirer’s
future earnings to pay off the purchase price. This deal, it is
suggested by the author, was influenced by two factors: American
Security and Trust’s desire to gain favor with the expected-to-be
President; and the desire of the Enquirer’s publisher, Roger Ferger,
to continue in his present position at an increased salary. Left out
of the equation were the Enquirer’s employees who, when news
of the sale becomes public, were outraged at the Enquirer’s being
sold to what they considered an inferior operation, and concerned
about what a monopoly of two-thirds of Cincinnati’s
newspapers would do to freedom of the press, not to mention
their own jobs.
This fascinating story by author Dick Mastain (Peace Corps
Nigeria staff 1965-1967 Enugu) is the product of his 35 year
From Robin (Limpus) Ulmer (1) 61-63
Ginna Fleming (staff) 61-64 has a new book of
photographs of Afghanistan, Another Afghanistan. Ginna was
the wife of Murray Frank (staff) 61-64, one of the first
directors in Nigeria, and both were beloved by early
volunteers. The book is not only beautiful, but NGOs doing
important work in Afghanistan are using it for fund raising.
Ginna traveled to Afghanistan last spring to photograph
non-profit agencies helping bring education and health care to
that war-devastated country. She was entirely captivated by the
bravery of the wonderful people - especially women - working
there in immensely difficult conditions. She designed the
photo book and had a limited number of copies printed. Her
goal was to tell the story about the good things that are
happening there, behind the grim headlines, along with the
beautiful landscapes and portraits of people. For more, see
her website: www.ginnafleming.com/anotherafghanistan.
friendship with ace investigative reporter for the Enquirer, Jim
Ratliff, who spearheaded the employees’ revolt and their attempt
to overturn the “done deal” and have the employees buy the
newspaper instead. The chink in the “done deal’s” armor is a
seemingly inconsequential hearing in a Washington D.C. federal
court, to get the court’s approval of the fairness to the minor
beneficiaries of the trustee’s decision to sell. Ratliff, whose
dogged persistence and disarming candor get him through one
tight spot after another, hires as his Washington attorney former
Senator Millard Tydings who gets the employees inserted into the
hearing as “friends of the court.” From there on it’s all uphill.
The trustee’s self interest inoculates itself against employee offers
which would be better for their beneficiaries. To assure the court
that their offer is better, the employees come up with an all cash
offer. Ratliff and company then must, in a period totally
abbreviated from the usual financing investigation, obtain bond
financing to generate the cash needed above the substantial cash
commitments the employees have pledged.
Fortunately a number of heroes emerge: the Stuart brothers
of the Halsey-Stuart bond agency who accelerate the bonding
process; Jackson Martindell of the American Institute of
Management, who early on supports the employees fearing the
effects of consolidation of newspaper ownership in Hearsts,
Gannetts and in this case Tafts.
Remember this is 1952. . . and media monopoly is still front
page news today, as are conflict of interest and breach of fiduciary
duty. Mastain has novelized his telling of the story, and this gives
an immediacy and suspense to this story which kept me turning
pages into the midnight hours to see what would happen next.
Mastain assures the reader that while he has invented the
dialogue, it is consistent with the facts from his broad reading
about the sale and from his many conversations with Ratliff and
John Cronin, another leader of the employee revolt.
I am from Cincinnati but did not know this story from my
idle youth. But The Old Lady of Vine Street has more than local
interest. The story is riveting, the issues are relevant to the
present, and Ratliff and his cohorts are characters you can care
about and whom you’d like to emulate. Ultimately the
employees’ success proves short lived, but Dick Mastain’s success
in bringing this interesting and historically relevant battle to us
should endure.
From Roger Leed (6) 62-64
Steve Clapp (6) 62-64 has a newly-published memoir,
Africa Remembered, including lots of great photos, of his
Peace Corps days and subsequent travels home through
politically turbulent Central and East Africa. The book is
available at www.lulu.com.
10 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

Book Review
Dear Family: Letters from Nigeria
By Gayle Lewis (staff) 66-67
Reviewed by Andy Philpot (VSO) 65-67
Some years ago when I was the editor of the FON newsletter
I printed a letter by Gayle Lewis who was the wife of Del Lewis,
the deputy director for the Mid-West from 1966 to 1967. Gayle
has now published all her letters from Nigeria in a book Dear
Family: Letters from Nigeria, published by Abigail Press Publishing.
Del and Gayle arrived in Nigeria in June of 1966 in that
tumultuous time between the January and July coups. Her
unedited letters reveal a refreshing honesty, innocence and
excitement of living under somewhat more basic conditions than
she perhaps expected. To add to her daily round, the Lewises had
arrived in Nigeria with three boys in tow, all under the age of six.
While Del was off administering to Peace Corps volunteer
needs all day, Gayle was left to fend for herself in a very foreign
land that combined both Nigeria and colonial cultures. I was
amused at some of her reactions to some of the more British
aspects of the Nigerian way of life. I also smiled at her surprise
to find that no one celebrated the US Independence Day or
Thanksgiving and sometimes I got the feeling that as staff they
were less prepared for Nigeria than the volunteers.
It was interesting to see Gayle’s transformation from seeing
threats to her three boys, Delano, Geoff and Brian, from Tumbu
or putsi fly eggs in the washing to poisonous snakes lurking
everywhere to an acceptance of such perils as just part
of the fun of living in Nigeria. In her letters Gayle is
pretty laid back in her descriptions of some of the
moments of adversity that arose but perhaps she was
just protecting those at home from becoming
alarmed. The Lewises life was certainly different from
that of most of us volunteers in Nigeria at the time. Not only
did they live in Benin City in the relative comfort of proper
housing in the government reservation area but they also mixed
with an expatriate and Nigerian community that few of us had
contact with.
However, the letters are interesting in a number of ways; as a
reminder of life in the Mid-West at that time, a look at the life of
Peace Corps staff as well as an inside view of the more traditional
expatriate way of life in Benin but still without some of the frills
that were available to some of that community. The description
of some of the meals shared with their friends made my mouth
water in retrospect as I remembered eating endless meals of fufu,
egusi soup, tinned corned beef, and the occasional grass cutter
stew.
The book is illustrated with a good number of coloured
photographs taken by Gayle and Del and also contains some
delightful copies of notes written to them by their Nigerian
household staff which brought back memories of similar notes
that I had received but stupidly didn’t keep. As a whole, it is a
delightful nostalgic ‘read’ and might inspire the rest of us to dust
off our old letters before they crumble into dust and preserve
them for our families.
Gayle’s book is available from Amazon or from her for $25 +
S&H. You can contact Gayle at gaylelewis@zianet.com.
From Ron Singer (10) 64-67
I was very happy to be the featured poet last
fall at New Works Review (www.new-works.org).
“Featured poet” translates to an interview and
fourteen poems, four of them new. The theme
of this issue was political and a free PDF is
available for downloading.
In January, Cantarabooks published an e-
book of my fiction.
On Wednesday, March 18, 2009, at 6:30 PM
The New York Center for Independent
Publishing (20 West 44th St, between 5th and
6th Avenues in midtown Manhattan) will host a
special reading in celebration of Small Press
Month and the release of an international
anthology, Poetic Voices Without Borders 2, edited
by Robert L. Giron. I will be among the poets
reading from the anthology and their current
work. Visit: www.ronsinger.net.
SPRING 2009 11

Father and Son Share a Common Bond: Peace Corps
[The following interview with John Romano (11) 64-67 and his son Chris Romano (Nicaragua) 99-01 was first published in Peace Horizons on
February 23, 2007.]
Throughout Peace Corps’ 46 year history, more than one
generation of Americans has answered the call to service. Many of
today’s applicants to Peace Corps comment on how a parent,
aunt, uncle, or even grandparent inspired them to follow the
same path. Today’s applicants may not have witnessed the first
years of the Peace Corps, but they live them in spirit through their
parents and relatives who did, and who now pass on that legacy.
Although Peace Corps has evolved over the years, its mission has
remained the same, and its Volunteers remain as dedicated to
carrying out this mission as they did decades ago.
Returned Peace Corps Volunteers John Romano and Chris
Romano represent two generations of Peace Corps service. John
Romano, who currently works for the University of Minnesota as
a Professor in the Educational Psychology Department, served in
Nigeria as a Math and Science Teacher from 1964-1967. Almost
forty years later, his son Chris, Executive Director of the
Riverview Economic Development Association (REDA) in St.
Paul, MN followed in his footsteps as a Small Business
Development Volunteer in Nicaragua from 1999-2001. John and
Chris were asked recently to share some thoughts about their
respective experiences, and although their projects differed, they
both emphasized the importance of how the experience changed
them, and the importance of the relationships they forged with
their community members.
Their reflections:
What do you feel was your biggest accomplishment as a
Volunteer? Do you feel
like you accomplished what you set out to do?
John: I was able to develop and implement a secondary
school science curriculum and teach science courses. Science was
not offered in this all-girls secondary school, while the all boys’
school across town had a strong science curriculum. Another
major accomplishment was the development of a science lab,
which started off as one classroom, but before I left the Peace
Corps, a full-blown science laboratory building was built on the
school compound.
Over the long haul, I am not sure about accomplishments. I
hope that I was able to influence some students and their
community positively through my teaching and involvement in
their lives. I hope the school is still there and I hope it is thriving,
but I am not sure.
Chris: Ironically, my biggest accomplishments had less to do
with my “work” as a small business development volunteer, and
more to do with the relationships I made, and with the
connection I felt with the Nicaraguan culture and way of life. My
most satisfying days in Nicaragua were when I felt like I had really
connected to someone; that I understood them and that they
understood me.
John in Nigeria in the 60s.
I think I accomplished what I set out to do. My Peace Corps
experience had a lot to do with self discovery and self resiliency,
while at the same time it allowed me to offer my time and my
abilities. My Peace Corps experience had so much to do with
learning - both for me and hopefully for the Nicaraguans I got to
know.
What was your biggest challenge as a Volunteer?
John: As I look back, probably the aloneness in a foreign
culture and country as a 22 year old recent college grad. Also, I
took on responsibilities that, looking back, I had no business
taking on, such as major revisions of the school’s math and
science curricula and advocating for, designing, and seeing to
completion the construction of the science building. Some things
were challenges for awhile, such as no running water/indoor
plumbing, limited western food, and attending to keeping
healthy (e.g. boiling/filtering water, anti-malaria pills), but these
soon became routine and regular parts of my day. Continued
challenges were how best to teach the students. I had no
previous teaching experience, except for a couple of weeks in Peace
Corps training in New York City…so it was a huge learning curve
for me.
Chris: Language was huge. The effort that went into simply
being able to communicate [was a challenge] and the fact that
often times there was so much more I wanted to say but simply
couldn’t articulate.
[Addressed specifically to John] How do you see Chris’s
experience as being different from your own? Is it different?
Chris and John in Nicaragua in the 90s. Is it similar?
(Continued on page 13)
12 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

CUSO + VSO-Canada
Andy Philpot (VSO) 65-67
Anne Philpot (CUSO RV/staff) 68-99
A raging snow storm on December 13, 2008 was not enough to discourage a load
of old CUSOs and VSOs from attending a celebration in Ottawa for the formal
joining of CUSO and VSO-Canada. The well attended festivities were held at the
headquarters of the new organization, an old school that CUSO had bought a few
years ago and in which VSO had rented space. Funnily enough when VSO first
arrived in Canada, they moved into a downtown office block that had, some years
before, been the original home of
CUSO. Small world syndrome
strikes again.
Go to www.cuso-vso.org for
more information about CUSO-
VSO.
Anne, left, and Andy, above, talk over old times with Allan Culham and
Anita Hamilton respectively, both CUSO RVs from Botswana in the 1970s.
Father and Son ...
(Continued from page 12)
First, Chris trained almost exclusively in his host country and
lived with a host family. I trained for 2 months in New York City
(Teachers’ College, Columbia University) and only had a few days
in Nigeria prior to going to my PC site. In-country training is
much more beneficial. English was the official language of Nigeria
at the time, and so I did not have the extra burden of becoming
fluent in a foreign language. I did have limited skills with the local
dialect. My Peace Corps job was more focused. I knew I was to
teach math and science, and I had the structure of the school
calendar, school days, etc., so there was familiarity to me much like
in the U. S. My school had a Principal, other teachers, class periods,
vacations, etc. Chris’ job was much more fluid. My Peace Corps
experience was similar to Chris’ in that many of the cross-cultural
adjustments were similar. I visited him in Nicaragua and
appreciated seeing his connections to his host family, people he
worked with, and people in the community.
[Addressed specifically to Chris] Did your father’s
experience influence your decision to join the Peace Corps?
How do you see your father’s experience as being different
from your own? Is it different? Is it similar?
My father’s Peace Corps experience greatly influenced my
decision to serve. I might not have realized it at the time, but I
grew up valuing other cultures and other perspectives. In my
heart I had always known that travel was important, and that the
world was larger than my own backyard. Regarding our two
experiences - my Dad came to visit me in Nicaragua and I
remember his first day in my town. He kept telling me how it
reminded him of Nigeria (where he served), with the dirt roads,
the wandering livestock, and the poverty. At the time I remember
thinking it was amazing that although thirty years had passed,
present-day Nicaragua brought back memories of his Peace Corps
time. I think that I have been able to stay better connected to
Nicaragua than he was able to after his service. I think today’s
technology (whether email, or phone service, or mail service) has a
lot to do with that. I also served in a country that is a three hour
plane ride from the United States. Africa is on the other side of
the world.
I think both my Dad and I feel that the Peace Corps
experience was one of the best things we have ever done. I see
the way it has shaped his professional life and his values. I know
the impact it has had on my life.
Do you have any recommendations or advice for potential
applicants?
John: My main advice is not to get too hung-up with the
specific state-side work assignment that Peace Corps gives you.
Chances are that is going to change once you get in-country. The
main value of the Peace Corps, in my opinion, is the cultural
knowledge and competency one gains, and how you as a person
change as a result of the Peace Corps experience. While my Peace
Corps experience is now 40 years old, I can identify specific ways
that it has influenced my life and career.
Chris: Take advantage of the opportunity! It was very hard
for me to leave the States - but it was one of the best things I
have ever done. My Peace Corps experience has shaped who I am
as a person, in a way that never could have happened if I would
not have taken the risk. Also, don’t be so concerned with what
country you are assigned to. From the United States, you can’t
begin to imagine what this experience is going to be like. It is
ridiculous to think that you are in any position to judge these
different countries. Good luck!.
SPRING 2009 13

I am a graduate of St. Cloud State College in Minnesota
having grown up in the small community of Glenwood,
Minnesota where my dad was a farmer and a great politician and
worker for farmer cooperatives. He knew Hubert Humphrey and
was invited to the inaugural when Humphrey was made Vice
President of the United States. As president of the Young
Democratic Farmer Labor group in college,
I had the privilege of introducing Senator
Humphrey when he spoke to the student
body during the Kennedy campaign for
president. During the summer before my
senior year, I had been to Nigeria under
the University of Minnesota program
called Student Project for Amnesty. This
project allowed students to go to a foreign
country, study a subject and write a paper,
receiving 16 credits for the effort.
Because of this background, I wanted
to serve and joined the Peace Corps after
graduation. I returned to Nigeria on New
Year’s Day in 1964. As a Peace Corps
volunteer, I was stationed in Katsina, a
town of about 30,000 located north of
Kano teaching in an Islamic boys’ school.
Update Files – Then and Now
Audrey Gilbertson Fincke (8) 63-64
and took a job as a cartographer for the US Air Force. After
moving to St. Louis in 1965, I found a job where I was trained to
program computers. Larry was jealous.
By 1966, Larry’s draft board told him that he was very high on
the draft list. He immediately signed up for Officer Candidate
School with the Air Force. We were initially stationed in Oklahoma
City where we decided as a curiosity to go
to a revival. What happened was a
surprise. We accepted Jesus Christ as our
savior. It changed the rest of our lives.
We took the verse “go ye into all the world
and make disciples, teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have
commanded you” seriously.
When Larry arrived in the Philippines
where he was stationed during the
majority of his service time, he looked up
a church that was in the association of
churches where we had been saved and
found a local pastor who was traveling on
foot all over the country preaching. Larry
bought him a jeep that had a large seating
space. Larry also had the ability to sing in
the local language though he could not
I taught several math classes and one
speak it. He became the song director and
African History class. I was very amazed Larry and Audrey, June 5, 1964. traveled from town to town in the jeep
by the look of the town, with the camel
with members of the church. When he
gate, the houses that looked like pictures of cities in biblical started singing, crowds would gather to watch this crazy American
times, the heat, the desert, and the camel caravan that came into who could sing in their language.
the city every Friday.
Returning home, we had a child, Jeanine, in 1971. In 1973
My roommate and I had a nice house and a houseboy who during a routine medical exam, we discovered that Larry had
cleaned for us and shopped. He spoke little English and when contracted a disease called acromegaly. This disease causes a
we sent him to the market to shop, we were surprised by the growth hormone to reach the level in a young boy. For Larry it
meat we got, even though we showed him pictures of what to was life-threatening, caused an enlarged heart and liver and bone
buy. Some days it was donkey, sometimes camel, sometimes growth so that his foot size grew from 9 to 12DD. He had
mystery meat.
radiation and lost his programming job with the Oklahoma
The students also were a surprise. I thought they would be Publishing Company. Larry went to college on the GI bill and
well behaved because of how fortunate they were to be in school. drove a cab to provide for us while I did some programming
Not so. They were as bad as American students. One day I work. Then he became principal of the small private school where
walked into the classroom to find on the board a well-drawn
I taught.
picture of a naked woman with my face. The class was quiet. They
By the summer of 1974, Larry’s doctor had
were waiting. I knew who had drawn the picture, gave it a glance
told us that he would never work again. He was
and then said “Musa, we are very busy in this class. Would you
wrong. God was with us, and Larry found a
please make certain that the board is clean and ready for me each
programming job at Hillcrest Medical Center in
day?” What a disappointment.
Tulsa, Oklahoma. Moving there, I found
Larry Fincke (8), who was stationed in Okemesi, a small
programming work in various industries,
town in the western region, was the love of my life. We wanted
ending my career working for the same hospital
to get married but the Peace Corps wanted to send us home and
as Larry did. The work was consuming because
then station us as a married couple. When we got back, the Peace
you are on call 24/7.
Corps needed French-speaking people so we were sent home
Larry was very good at his job and loved it. I
Audrey now.
again. We then went to Minnesota where we both found
became a team lead for payroll and human
employment and were married on June 5th 1964.
resources for most of my career. Together Larry and I installed
Larry always wanted to program computers but after two payroll systems. During each, Larry had by-pass surgery. One
investigating IBM, he decided to defer the programming career
(Continued on page 15)
14 FON NEWSLETTER www.friendsofnigeria.org

Then and Now ...
(Continued from page 14)
of the medications he had to take after radiation therapy put
plaque in his arteries. Despite many problems he never
complained. He was my light and the joy of my life. Though we
were told he would not see the age of 50, Larry passed away
February 20, 2006 at the age of 64. He got to walk his daughter
down the aisle and see his granddaughter who turned two one
day before he died. He was a study in courage. I love him still.
I am now retired and living in the home we had together.
From Robert Craycroft (20) 66-67
High resolution aerial photos of Nigeria may be viewed
via Google Maps and Google Earth. Not much is labeled
so you have to rely on your memory for navigation. I’ve
been able to find my home and school in Jattu (near Auchi)
but no hope of finding them in Enugu.
PCV as an Honorific
Edward Spaeth (26) 66-68
What do fellow volunteers think about the following
proposal? Individuals who have completed their Peace Corps
service should be granted the exclusive privilege of being
allowed to add the initials ‘PCV’ after their name, e.g., Janet
Doe, BA, PhD, PCV. There are many instances of initials being
used in this fashion in the worlds of business and military.
The National Peace Corps Association in cooperation with
Peace Corps could serve as a certifying agency.
This would enhance the status of Peace Corps service and
of the individual. The initials, which initially might be cryptic
to the reader of a resume or business card, would thereby
serve as a talking-point when introducing oneself, providing
an opportunity to convey an expression of the value which the
individual places upon voluntarism and national service.
Treasurer’s Report
Fiscal Year 2007-08
Peter Hansen, Treasurer
Friends of Nigeria had another good year.
Income:
FON dues 9,787.50
NPCA dues 3,780.00
Unrestricted donations 850.00
VSO Project 10,795.62
San Francisco Event tickets 5,690.85
Miscellaneous 45.49
Total Income $30,949.46
Total Income exceeded last year’s by 33%. This increase can be
attributed principally to two factors, (1) an increase in
donations to our VSO Project, and (2) ticket sales for the
August 2007 San Francisco Event. On the downside, both
membership dues and unrestricted donations were down.
Expenses:
Publications (newsletters and directory) 5,179.00
NPCA (dues rebates & affiliation fee) 4,140.00
VSO Project 12,935.00
Membership Solicitation & Fundraising 1037.20
USPS & website 90.36
San Francisco Event 4531.72
Miscellaneous 171.71
Total Expenses $28,084.99
Total Expenses exceeded last year’s by 49%. The increase in
both Income and Expenses resulted from “pass through
revenue,” i.e., more money was donated to our VSO project
and consequently FON donated more money to VSO, and we
had ticket income from our San Francisco Event, but we also
had expenses for our San Francisco Event.
Professors Needed for Nigerian University
Dr. D.K. “Skip” Smith (Sierra Leone) 68-70
Dean, School of Business, American University of Nigeria
ww99@yahoo.com
I need to recruit professors to teach for the School of
Business and Entrepreneurship (SBE) at American University of
Nigeria (AUN) at our campus in Yola. We pay reasonably well.
Many associate professors earn between $70,000 US and $80,000
US tax free, and a few even earn a bit more. The university
provides free housing to all expatriate staff. I am a new member
both of the NPCA and of FON.
Additional background information on AUN includes the
following:
1) People interested in learning more about AUN should visit
our website. Please Google “american university of nigeria” and
our website should pop right up.
2) We are a wireless Internet campus. In fact, I believe we may
be the only campus in Nigeria with campus-wide wireless Internet
coverage. Each entering student is provided a laptop, so that they
are able to access easily the information resources available on the
web.
3) We opened fall semester 2005 with about 124 students and
about 14 faculty. In May 2008 at the end of spring semester, we
had about 650 students. Now at the start of spring semester
2009, I believe that we have about 1200 students. In other
words, our student population is growing very rapidly. I believe
that our faculty currently numbers approximately 73.
4) We are located in Yola, Nigeria, because the wealthy
Nigerian and former vice president of Nigeria who is behind the
founding of the university is from Yola and wanted his university
to be located there.
SPRING 2009 15

Make a Contribution (Tax Deductible) to FON
Join or Renew Your Membership
Support our Adopted VSO Volunteers...Keep the lorry rolling!
For new members, please provide all of the information requested.
For renewals, please include any changes (please check mailing label below for renewal date).
For donations, specify if your contribution is for the VSO Project and/or unrestricted.
Name ____________________________________________________________________
Address __________________________________________________________________
City/State/Zip _____________________________________________________________
Home Phone__________________________ Work Phone____________________________
Email_____________________________________________________________________
Current Occupation_____________________ Employer_________________________
Peace Corps Nigeria group ______ PC Service 19____ to____ PC Town ________________
PC School/Agency____________________ PC Job ____________________________
___
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___ I do not wish this information to be shared with the NPCA
___ Friends of Nigeria - Individual Membership $20
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Thank
You!
___ FON VSO Project Donation (Tax Deductible) - $35 ____ $50 ____ $75 ____ $100 ___ Other $_________
___ FON Unrestricted Donation (Tax Deductible) - $35 ____ $50 ____ $75 ____ $100 ___ Other $_________
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Comments and ideas welcome:____________________________________________________________________________________
Make your check payable to Friends of Nigeria and mail to Membership Chair Peter Hansen, address below:
Friends of Nigeria
c/o Peter Hansen
1203 Cambria Court
Iowa City, IA 52246-4530
Spring 2009
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