Peace Corps gathering - Woodstock

Were you in the Peace Corps?

Attend tonight's gathering of local Peace Corps volunteers here in Woodstock. All returned volunteers in northern Illinois are invited.

Rich and Susan Eyre, owners of Rich's Foxwillow Pines Nursery here in Woodstock (www.richsfoxwillowpines.com/) will host the gathering from 6:00-9:00PM at their home at 3004 Stieg Road, Woodstock.

The closest I got to the Peace Corps was in July 1992, when I was returning from 5 1/2 weeks in Belize. I had made a low-budget trip from Denver, having spent $400 door-to-door.

I had taken a 28-hour bus ride across Mexico from Corozal Town, Belize, and Chetumal, Mexico, and I had arrived at the airport in Mexico City about 30 minutes before the next Delta flight to the U.S. The gate agent got me on the plane, but my backpack didn't make it.

Upon arriving in Dallas, the border security guard at the international terminal questioned my arrival with only an orange daypack dangling from one hand. I began to explain about my visit with a former Peace Corps volunteer in Belize and my rush to the airport. When he heard the part about the Peace Corps, he said, "Oh, Peace Corps? You can go on."

And that was how I got back into the U.S. He didn't look at my passport or in my daypack. When I picked up my backpack the next day, it showed no evidence of having been opened or inspected.

Those were the good old days.