AAFSW/Secretary of State's Award for Outstanding Volunteerism
Year 2004 Winners
On Foreign Affairs Day, May 7, 2004, AAFSW is honored to recognize five deserving volunteers from the various geographic bureaus. They have made a remarkable difference in their communities, both American and host country, while serving abroad.
From L to R: Terri Williams, AAFSW President; Zina Lynch, Dakar; Mary Jo Armani, Guatemala City; Theresa McGallicher, Kathmandu; Amy Sebes, Tirana; Ginny Taylor, AAFSW SOSA coordinator. Missing due to scheduling conflict was June Carmichael
Mary Jo Amani, Guatemala City
Since her arrival in Guatemala in July 2001, Mary Jo has demonstrated extraordinary compassion for disadvantaged youth, dedicating hundreds of hours to improve the quality of education and to inspire a reading culture in poor, marginal areas of Guatemala City and the countryside. Safe Passage, a Guatemalan community organization working with children living at the city dump, has benefited from Mary Jo's teacher training program to develop a Montessori-like approach for young children. Building on this revolution in teaching methodologies, she began a children's library and brought in trainers to conduct workshops with teachers on how to use books effectively. Most recently she has developed a grant proposal for the construction of a new building for Safe Passage and funding prospects look favorable.
June Carmichael, Hanoi
Because of June's love of museums and 14 years in retailing, she identified a great need in the museum shops of Hanoi. She began a series of projects with the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology presenting lectures on the importance of museum shops, collaborating with the shop manager to design and locate vendors to produce a VME mug, and helped the museum director launch Vietnam's first museum membership program. She is currently working to produce a simple museum tote bag. June also encouraged the director to join in the worldwide celebration of International Museum Day and saw thousands of Vietnamese attend this special free family activity day, raising awareness of their own rich cultural heritage.
Zina Lynch, Dakar
Zina is involved with "Ker Yaakaaru Jigeen Ni" (House of Hope) shelter for raped, abused and pregnant girls in Senegal. She began her involvement by soliciting friends in the US for clothes, linens and hygiene items. She moved on to garner support from the USAF in Dakar to raise funds for the House's new building. And she enlisted support from Catholic Relief Services to manage the fundraising account and to establish a website for the shelter. Zina also is the Commissioner of Dakar's softball league, managing and operating the concessions to raise funds for the league and played an instrumental role in making the West Africa regional softball tournament an international success. Zina Lynch has made an impact on both the Senegalese and American communities that will continue long after her departure because of her efforts to ensure the sustainability of each of the projects with which she has been involved.
Theresa McGallicher, Kathmandu
A champion for the less fortunate she has encountered in Nepal, Theresa believes that introducing the "haves" to the "have nots" is a sure way to improve the lives of both. As chair of the Education and Training Committee of The Active Women of Nepal (AWON), she conducted site visits to prospective and ongoing programs to give out 218 scholarships and provided skills training to 64 women. Theresa spent countless hours online seeking other sources of funding for organizations her committee couldn't support. She also acquired and sold over 400 masks for the Masquerade Ball last year, AWON's biggest fundraiser. She sold Women in Development calendars to raise more than $6,000 for scholarships for girls. Four orphanages have also received Theresa's time and energy as she became their unofficial advocate bringing them donations of books, toys, clothes and other volunteers.
Amy Sebes, Tirana
Amy volunteers well over 40 hours a week addressing the often unheard
and neglected needs of trafficking in persons victims. With strong determination
and devotion to the cause, with relentless advocacy on their behalf, with
an entrepreneurial mind and endless energy, she is helping these victims
rebuild their lives. At a shelter in Tirana for trafficking victims, Amy
established the Association of Albanian Girls and Women (AAGW) to teach
these victims handicrafts, the sale of which will provide them with income.
She also works to ensure the victims have a voice in decisions that affect
their lives and well-being. Thanks to Amy's work through the AAGW, more
than 30 residents of the shelter--former victims of trafficking--have
had their hope and their lives restored.