July Newsletter: Embracing the magic of in-person connection

Dear Supporters,

I believe that relationships are best built face-to-face. It’s why I travel around the country to meet in person with Peace Corps Park stakeholders to present the vision for the project. There’s no substitute for the connection you can make around an idea in person, and giving the opportunity for people to ask questions always helps us better understand the motivations (and concerns) of our broad community of supporters.

My colleagues and I were delighted to share the vision for Peace Corps Park with attendees at the Peace Corps Connect conference hosted by the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA) in Washington, D.C. this month. Our display at a table in the exhibit space attracted a lot of attention, and we were energized by the amount of people who came to learn more about our efforts to build this lasting symbol to our shared values in our nation’s capital. We had so many conversations and were thrilled with the support and enthusiasm we received.

It was an active weekend, with Peace Corps Park Advisory Board Chair Jody Olsen hosting a lunch with her cohort of former Peace Corps directors, and Arianna Richard and I joining the Friends of Togo annual meeting and potluck, where we were presented with a $2,000 donation from this group of returned volunteers, former staff, and host country partners. Several people also visited the future site of Peace Corps Park near the U.S. Capitol and National Mall.

We found so much common ground among everyone we connected with, further proving the strength of this vision, and are inspired to redouble our efforts to bring this inspiring project to life in Washington, D.C. and through its digital companion experience.

Thank you for being a part of this story, and for anything you can do–whether that’s making a donation or telling others in your network about the project and encouraging them to support it. That is how we are going to get this done, and every contribution counts.

Yours in service,



Glenn A. Blumhorst
Chief Advancement Officer
Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation

President and CEO, National Peace Corps Association (2013-22)
Returned Peace Corps Volunteer, Guatemala (1988-91)

GBlumhorst@PeaceCorpsCommemorative.org

A particular challenge that groups like ours face in designing public spaces is not just building for that space’s optimal, intended purpose but to do so while also controlling for the unintended purposes it may be put to. If you are a skateboarder, you already know where this is going. There are skateboarders all over the world, and no matter where they are they make the city their skate park. The aesthetic and athletic value of their sport notwithstanding, skateboards’ metal trucks can wreak havoc on any stone step, curb or public bench they grind on.



The Peace Corps Park design team, led by Larry Kirkland and his design team and Michael Vergason Landscape Architects, knows how attractive long, curved stone edges (like those on the granite benches that form the centerpiece of the Park) are to skateboarders, so they reached “across enemy lines” to consult with a skate park designer in Los Angeles and anticipate how skaters might try to use the space.

The resulting analysis shows surfaces for sliding and grinding on all parts of the benches: Inner edges, outer edges–even on the irregular contours of the hands shaped into one end of each bench. The consultants also identified the most likely takeoff routes and acceleration zones, giving Kirkland and team two key problems to solve to ensure the Park’s surfaces aren’t worn away, chipped or discolored by Washington D.C.’s community of street surfers: discourage grinding on the benches and make skating on the granite pavers uncomfortable.

“The simple answer that we all see used in every city was to use some kind of metal stopper to stop the grinding,” Kirkland said, “but we all agreed that there must be a better solution.” 

Looking for a way to better integrate the skateboard deterrent into the design of the benches, he sought to take advantage of the fact that each bench will be made from three different blocks of granite and turn the seam between each block into something functional. The result (on the right side of the image below) is a stainless-steel element that protrudes from the bench surface where necessary (the horizontal surfaces) but sits flush on the vertical surfaces that won’t see skateboards.

As for the second problem, we spoke about the artistic and symbolic value of the textured pavers at the center of Peace Corps Park in a previous update, but their design also reflected careful consideration of its effect on skateboarding.

In designing the exact depth and pattern of the texture that will be carved into those granite pavers, the team considered the diameter of wheelchair wheels and skateboard wheels to land on a depth that would impede a skateboard but not a wheelchair.

Once the physical samples of the pavers came into the office, the team took out a skateboard (and a wheelchair) and tested the design in real life before they finalized the design.

Their approach is just one more example of the high standard the Peace Corps Park design team has brought to every element of its vision, insisting that the artistic concept be reflected in every part of the design, and not taking the “easy” solution to a practical problem if that means compromising the symbolic value of the Park. 

With this commitment, we know that Peace Corps Park will be integrated into the D.C. landscape and daily life of its people while ensuring it retains its visual appeal to inspire generations to come.

Park team makes an impression at Peace Corps Connect in Washington, D.C.

This month, some of us from the Peace Corps Park team joined Peace Corps community members from across the country for two days of discussion, inspiration and partnership at NPCA's Peace Corps Connect conference in Washington, D.C. It was a reminder of the power of in-person conversations to show, not just tell, what this project means to us and our community, and how we can involve as many people in the effort as possible.

Peace Corps Park had a table in the exhibition space, set up with textured granite samples and plaster models of the Park’s three benches to give people a tactile experience to complement the maps and renderings on display. Simply put, we were delighted by the response of the many Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) and friends of the Peace Corps who came to learn more about the project. It’s clear that so many of us are motivated to join together to establish a permanent commemoration of our values in Washington, D.C.

We were delighted to share our vision for the Park with Dr. Allison Greene, the current CEO of the Peace Corps, and we met leaders from diverse RPCV affiliate groups whose enthusiasm for the project will animate many future conversations about potential partnerships—both for fundraising and for events to be held at Peace Corps Park once built.

We were also particularly inspired and motivated by the more recently returned volunteers we met, who showed just as much passion and support for this lasting symbol to our shared story as those in our community who have been supporting Peace Corps projects for decades. We look forward to working with them, and others, to make Peace Corps Park a reality as soon as possible and thank them for their support!

Verify your listing in our annual report

We are currently preparing the Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation’s 2024 Annual Report, which will list all donors who contributed last year in addition to highlighting other developments and operational details for the period. While we always strive to capture donors’ names accurately, we invite you to check the draft donor list and let us know if you see any issues with how your name is listed! If your name is not on the list and you believe it should be, please let us know by replying to this email.



Click here to review the 2024 donor list.

If you or your group are interested in learning the details of our plans for Peace Corps Park, Glenn spends a great deal of his time traveling across the country and back, meeting with stakeholders across all 50 states. He is always happy to share the vision in person—and there’s a good chance he’s already planning to be in your area! Just reply to this email and let Glenn know if you’d like to arrange a meetup. Up next:

Aug. 23       Washington, D.C.: Friends of Tanzania annual meeting

Aug. 31        Arlington, VA: NoVa Summer Potluck

Sept. 21       Bozeman, MT: Annual RPCV group meeting

Sept. 24-27  Santa Fe, NM: Wine and Chile Festival with Peace Corps Park reception at Zane Bennett Contemporary Art (registration details to follow)

Sept. TBD     Chicago, IL: Peace Corps Park reception

Oct. 3-4     Washington, D.C.: Peace Corps Iran conference

Oct. 7      New York City: Peace Corps Park reception

Oct. 8      Boston: Peace Corps Park reception

Oct. 30    Washington, D.C.: Peace Corps Park reception

Connect with us on social media

Whether or not you’ve been able to support the project with a donation, an easy way to amplify your impact is to give us a boost on social media. Follow us and re-share our posts to help raise awareness in your network!

@PeaceCorpsPark on Instagram | @PeaceCorpsPark on Facebook | @PeaceCorpsPark on LinkedIn

PeaceCorpsCommemorative.org

PEACE CORPS COMMEMORATIVE FOUNDATION
Compassion   Generosity   Perseverance

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The Peace Corps Commemorative Foundation is the trade name of the Peace Corps Foundation,
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