Monday, 5 April 2004
Press Release
by James A. Morris

“Re-dedication of Peace Corps Plaque at Pack
Forest” In November of 1962, two groups of US Peace Corps trainees gathered at the University of Washington. One group was destined for Thailand to teach English, the other bound for the Dominican Republic to work on forestry projects and school construction. Part of the training for the school construction group–Dominican Republic V–involved building a “firehouse” at the university’s Charles Pack Experimental Forest located on the western slopes of Mt. Rainier near Eatonville, Washington.. Each Saturday during November, December, and January, while the forestry group studied among the trees, the school construction group wielded shovel, trowel, and hammer (most often in the rain and fog). A highlight of these Saturday sessions was the hosting by Eatonville citizens of a superbly home cooked supper before heading into winter night back to the main campus in Seattle. The construction staff admired the enthusiasm of the trainees and were patient with their emerging skills. Regardless, a roof was raised before the trainees moved on to Puerto Rico for another month of training before arriving in the Dominican Republic in March of 1963.

The original plaque commemorating this effort of Volunteer Trainees, Community, and University was mounted some forty years ago. In the ensuing years, the “firehouse” has become the paint shop for Pack Forest. The plaque, showing the effects of 40 years of weather, had been moved inside the building. One of those former Peace Corps trainees, James A. Morris, visited Pack Forest in June 2003 to revisit the site. The plaque remained but it was a mystery to some. So, with the cooperation of Pack Forest staff, Morris commissioned and donated a new plaque which is now mounted on the original Pack Forest “firehouse.”

The plaque lists the Peace Corps trainees who worked on the building and the training staff who led the construction effort: “This building was constructed by Peace Corps Trainees at the University of Washington as part of their preparation to build schools of similar preparation and design in the Dominican Republic. It was completed in January 1963.”

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Eatonville, Washington, is located in southern Pierce County, Washington State, along State Route 161 and U.S. Highway 7. It is the first stop to scenic recreation areas such as Mount Rainier National Park, Gifford Pinchot and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forests, Northwest Trek, Pioneer Farm, and Pack Forest. READ MORE