2015 Group Renewal for NPCA Mountain Laurel RPCVs of N.E. PA Website: www.cse.lehigh.edu/~edk/PC/ Reported by: Mary A. (Mimi) Stanford 1330 W. Market Street Bethlehem, PA 18018 Our group is very small (if not the smallest) in NPCA, fewer than 20 regulars; some of us are from the 60's, but we are represented from all decades and geographical areas. In 2014, we continued our tradition of meeting about 8 or 9 times/year at different ethnic & affordable restaurants, where we hope to attract new RPCVs from the area. Usually there are prospective PCVs (like college seniors) or parents of PCVs already in country, in addition to the 'usual suspects.' These dinners are organized by Ed & Janice Kay or sometimes John & Fran Kennedy. Attendance ranges from 5 to 20. These dinners are mainly for social purposes with a little business when necessary. On Saturday 22 February 2014 we had a potluck at Ed and Jannie Kay's house. We constructed a PowerPoint(tm) presentation to which each RPCV contributed four pictures from their Peace Corps service. In the Fall of 2014, we ordered 50 calendars from the Madison, WI, RPCV group. We sold 48 and gave away 2 to some students who came to a Peace Corps recruiting meeting. The profit from this annual sale was $355.00. This amount was disbursed in January of 2015, so recipients will be reported next year. From the profits of last year's sale (disbursed in January of 2014) we funded: Liberian Assistance Program $125 Global Mamas $125 Somaly Mam $125 Heifer Project $125 We also regularly make micro-finance loans through Kiva.org, re-loaning money for new projects as others are paid back. Ed Kay is the liaison for Peace Corps.gov, and he organizes meetings or panels whenever the Peace Corps recruiter comes to the Lehigh Valley. N.B. Mimi Stanford absorbs the expenses for calendar postage & mailers, and also for checks ($1 each) and other minor expenses. These incidental expenses do not come out of the group's finances/bank account at Wells Fargo. This amounted to approximately $20 in 2014.