Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
Funny how dates work
September 22, 2007 Joseph's first full day in Africa;
September 22, 2008 Joseph with us in Georgetown visiting Kyle, after spending the weekend in Middlebury with Daniel;
September 22, 2009 Joseph's last day;
September 22, 2011 50th anniversary of the Peace Corp.
September is hard.
September 22, 2008 Joseph with us in Georgetown visiting Kyle, after spending the weekend in Middlebury with Daniel;
September 22, 2009 Joseph's last day;
September 22, 2011 50th anniversary of the Peace Corp.
September is hard.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Kyle Chow Speech at Arlington National Cemetery on the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corp
I would like to begin by thanking everyone who helped bring Joseph home; you were there for him when he needed you most. I would also like to thank our friends and family; you were there for us when we needed you most.
Joseph was among the best men that I’ve had the honor of knowing, he was everything you could ever ask for in an older brother. Talented in all aspects of life, he was artistic, athletic, smart, and humorous. He was a great in the classroom first as a student and eventually as an award-winning teacher of math, physics and chemistry in the Ndanda Secondary School. As a Peace Corps volunteer, Joseph served not only the students in southern Tanzania, but our great nation as well. The call to help those worse off was deeply ingrained in him. All of these attributes make Joseph special and, ultimately, someone I’ve looked up to my entire life. I’m so proud of Joseph.
I feel that these are common characteristics in all Peace Corps Volunteers, they are kind, compassionate, talented, and most importantly, giving. The people that we as a nation can look up to and admire, they are the best that our country has to offer.
We are so proud of those who serve, who give themselves, their time and goodwill, to help others. They are our role models; the ones that give us hope for the future; the ones that brighten even the darkest of days. Truly, they are the Greatest Americans.
And that’s why when a volunteer falls it hurts so much, because it’s always hardest to lose the best of us, to lose those with impressive pasts and limitless futures, those that we’ve looked up to our entire lives. When one fails, the whole world seems dimmer for it.
Even though it still hurts to think how proud I am of my brother, I consider myself lucky. Not for having lost him, but for having had him in the first place. I am one of the many, but, at the same time, too few, to have known him and learned from his story, his values and his life. I feel honored to have been so close to one of the best, one of the greatest Americans. We should all be honored to call these fallen volunteers our friends and colleagues, our sons and daughters, our sisters and our brothers.
So, do not grieve that they are gone, but rejoice that you knew them. They were special; they were the best of the best. And while yes it is sad that they are gone, the world was fortunate to have had them in the first place.
Above me reads an inscription “We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain.” While this is certainly true, we also must ensure they have not lived in vain. We have an imperative to examine their lives and learn from them, otherwise their deaths will be meaningless and their legacies empty. The price we paid was excruciatingly high, so the lessons learned must be extraordinarily valuable. If you believe as I do, that these fallen are truly the best of us, then we must improve ourselves by learning from their lives and the way they lived them. We must grow. We must be better.
Joseph’s life will always serve as a guide for my own; I’ll always make sure that I heed the call to serve my community. That I’ll go above and beyond merely what is required. He’ll always be a reminder to be kind, compassionate, and giving, to use my talents appropriately. And most importantly, to be the best man I can be, so that I can brighten your day as Joseph brightened mine.
Joseph was among the best men that I’ve had the honor of knowing, he was everything you could ever ask for in an older brother. Talented in all aspects of life, he was artistic, athletic, smart, and humorous. He was a great in the classroom first as a student and eventually as an award-winning teacher of math, physics and chemistry in the Ndanda Secondary School. As a Peace Corps volunteer, Joseph served not only the students in southern Tanzania, but our great nation as well. The call to help those worse off was deeply ingrained in him. All of these attributes make Joseph special and, ultimately, someone I’ve looked up to my entire life. I’m so proud of Joseph.
I feel that these are common characteristics in all Peace Corps Volunteers, they are kind, compassionate, talented, and most importantly, giving. The people that we as a nation can look up to and admire, they are the best that our country has to offer.
We are so proud of those who serve, who give themselves, their time and goodwill, to help others. They are our role models; the ones that give us hope for the future; the ones that brighten even the darkest of days. Truly, they are the Greatest Americans.
And that’s why when a volunteer falls it hurts so much, because it’s always hardest to lose the best of us, to lose those with impressive pasts and limitless futures, those that we’ve looked up to our entire lives. When one fails, the whole world seems dimmer for it.
Even though it still hurts to think how proud I am of my brother, I consider myself lucky. Not for having lost him, but for having had him in the first place. I am one of the many, but, at the same time, too few, to have known him and learned from his story, his values and his life. I feel honored to have been so close to one of the best, one of the greatest Americans. We should all be honored to call these fallen volunteers our friends and colleagues, our sons and daughters, our sisters and our brothers.
So, do not grieve that they are gone, but rejoice that you knew them. They were special; they were the best of the best. And while yes it is sad that they are gone, the world was fortunate to have had them in the first place.
Above me reads an inscription “We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain.” While this is certainly true, we also must ensure they have not lived in vain. We have an imperative to examine their lives and learn from them, otherwise their deaths will be meaningless and their legacies empty. The price we paid was excruciatingly high, so the lessons learned must be extraordinarily valuable. If you believe as I do, that these fallen are truly the best of us, then we must improve ourselves by learning from their lives and the way they lived them. We must grow. We must be better.
Joseph’s life will always serve as a guide for my own; I’ll always make sure that I heed the call to serve my community. That I’ll go above and beyond merely what is required. He’ll always be a reminder to be kind, compassionate, and giving, to use my talents appropriately. And most importantly, to be the best man I can be, so that I can brighten your day as Joseph brightened mine.
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