46 | OCTOBER 29 • 2020 

Looking Back

From the William Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit History

accessible at www.djnfoundation.org

A Tribute to the
Peace Corps
O

ne of the most successful service 
programs in American history 
debuted 60 years ago on Oct. 14, 
1960. Sen. John F. Kennedy, candidate for 
president of the United States, stood on 
the steps of the Michigan Union on the 
campus of the University of Michigan, Ann 
Arbor, and spoke to a crowd 
of 10,000 college students. 
He asked: “How many of you 
who are going to be doctors 
are willing to spend your days 
in Ghana? … On your will-
ingness to contribute part of 
your life to this country [the 
U.S.], I think, the answer will 
depend whether a free society 
can compete.
” 
Kennedy’
s impromptu speech is consid-
ered the birth of the Peace Corps. As presi-
dent, he signed an executive order on March 
19, 1961, that created this agency; Congress 
passed the Peace Corps Act in September.
Author Jeff Greenfield observed that this 
also marked an era when public service 
became an exciting option for young people, 
a signature accomplishment of President 
Kennedy.
Volunteers for the Peace Corps are 
American citizens. After training, they work 
overseas for two years, teaching about and 
developing projects for community health 
and education, business, information tech-
nology, agriculture and other areas. More 
than 200,000 Americans have served in 141 
countries since 1961.
There are 429 pages in the William 
Davidson Digital Archive of Jewish Detroit 
History that mention the Peace Corps. They 
provide great insight into the long relation-
ship between the Peace Corps and Detroit’
s 
Jewish community. Philip Slomovitz 
endorsed the Peace Corps in the March 
10, 1961, issue of the JN, also noting that 
it would benefit Israel and Prime Minister 
David Ben-Gurion. BBYO was an early sup-

porter of the Peace Corps, and the national 
Hillel organization agreed that its 217 uni-
versity chapters would operate as informa-
tion centers for the Peace Corps. 
The Peace Corps also inspired the cre-
ation of many related service programs. 
Domestic organizations included “Teach 
for America” and “
AmeriCorps VISTA
” 
(Volunteers in Service to America). It also 
inspired Jewish-centric programs such 
as the “Jewish Volunteer Corps” of the 
American Jewish World Service in 1993 
and “Project Otzma,
” a joint project with 
ORT in 1985. 
The JN is full of stories and notes about 
the impressive number of young Jewish 
men and women from Detroit and Michigan 
who served in the Peace Corps. For exam-
ple, see the story about Eeta Freeman, one of 
the Peace Corps’
 first volunteers, upon her 
return home from Pakistan (July 31, 1964). 
The husband and wife team, Norman D. 
and Gloria (Burns) Levin, joined and went 
to Korea (Oct. 10, 1968). Or, see the stories 
about Rebecca Riseman (Aug. 9, 1991); 
Meredith Perish (Sept. 6, 1996); Lauren Fink 
(June 24, 2010): Sara Goodman (July 19, 
2012; and a front page and feature story with 
Perry Teicher, Nov. 11, 2010). 
I could list dozens of additional names of 
Peace Corps volunteers that I found in the 
JN. And, with great pride, I cannot resist tell-
ing you that my niece, Kimmie, 
was a Peace Corps volunteer 
in Belize. 
The volunteers who served 
in the Peace Corps deserve our 
respect. They should be cele-
brated for their contributions to 
our nation and their willingness 
to work in very tough environ-
ments to help those in need. 

Want to learn more? Go to the DJN 

Foundation archives, available for free at 

www.djnfoundation.org.

Mike Smith
Alene and 
Graham Landau 
Archivist Chair

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