Press Releases

Peace Corps / Guatemala is Recognized for its Contributions Towards Development and Peace

Peace Corps Country Director Cynthia Threlkeld was presented with a diploma acknowledging Peace Corps Guatemala’s commitment to the people of Guatemala.

Guatemala, May 26, 2006

In recognition of its efforts towards development and peace building, Junior Achievement International, through its chapter in Guatemala, Empresarios Juveniles, nominated Peace Corps/Guatemala to host the replacement of the White Rose of Peace in the courtyard of the National Palace on Friday, May 26, 2006.

The White Rose is a symbol of peace placed on a bronze statue that rises from the spot where, in 1996, representatives of guerilla forces and the Guatemalan Government signed accords ending 36 years of civil war.

Carolyn Wright, a Volunteer working in Municipal Development, and Myrna de Ruiz, who has worked with Peace Corps Guatemala for over 30 years, changed the rose together.

The ceremony was attended by Peace Corps/Guatemala staff, representatives of the Peace Corps Volunteer community, counterpart agency representatives, U.S. mission staff, and the Empresarios Juveniles Board of Directors.

Carolyn Wright, a Volunteer working in Municipal Development, and Myrna de Ruiz, who has worked with Peace Corps Guatemala for over 30 years, changed the rose together. They were chosen to represent all of the Peace Corps Volunteers and staff who have worked in Guatemala since the program’s inception in 1963.

Following the replacement of the Rose, Peace Corps Country Director Cynthia Threlkeld was presented with a diploma acknowledging Peace Corps Guatemala’s commitment to the people of Guatemala and the work Volunteers have done throughout the country.

Peace Corps Volunteers and staff pose around the monument that holds the White Rose of Peace in the courtyard of the National Palace, Guatemala City.

Currently, 169 Peace Corps Volunteers and 45 locally engaged staff work throughout guatemala on the following projects: sustainable agriculture (production, marketing, food security); environmental conservation and income generation (environmental education, eco-tourism and agroforestry); health schools; appropriate technology for family health; small business development (youth and adults), and municipal development.

In 2004, the Government of Guatemala honored the Peace Corps with the "Orden del Quetzal", its highest honor, for the work it has done to help Guatemalan communities and to strengthen the ties between the United States and Guatemala.