Global Humanitarian Tim Miller on His Role as New Peace Corps Country Director for Sierra Leone
Our very special guest speaker for December 12, 2024, was former Sunriser Tim Miller. Tim joined Santa Rosa Sunrise in 2004 when he moved to Santa Rosa to become the Executive Director for the American Red Cross. He left the club to work in the Philippines. He later returned to Santa Rosa and became the Executive Director of West County Community Services and rejoined Rotary with the Russian River Club. Tim has now accepted a position as Peace Corps Country Director for Sierra Leone and will move to Sierra Leone shortly. Tim initially joined the Peace Corps after college at UC Santa Barbara and served in the Philippines from 1986 to 1988.
The Peace Corps was established by President John F. Kennedy in 1962. Its goals are to help interested countries in meeting their need for trained people, to promote a better understanding of Americans on the part of the peoples served, and to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans. Over 240,000 people have served in the Peace Corps. Volunteers are currently serving in 25 countries in Africa. Africa today has 54 countries, many with explosive growth and a very young population.
Sierra Leone is in West Africa and is the size of South Carolina. The population is about 70% Muslim and 25% Christian. Its capital is Freetown. Sierra Leone has had a history of political violence, including a civil war that ended in 2002, but has more recently been peaceful with a tradition of largely free elections and no religious strife. Sierra Leone had a transitory population until about 2,500 years ago. It was settled in the 18th century by African Americans who had fought for the British in the Revolutionary War. It was a British colony until 1961. Its primary language is English with Krio a secondary language. The county suffers from an unstable electrical grid: Tim told us that offshore Turkish ships with huge generators supply a portion of Freetown’s electricity. Only 26% of the population has electricity. Sierra Leone has the 3rd highest maternal mortality rate in the world and the 11th highest infant mortality rate. Its literacy rate is 49%.
The Peace Corps’ role in Sierra Leone is to focus on mortality and education. Volunteers teach and provide community health education. The Corps has 60 staff members in Sierra Leone. 57 of these are Sierra Leone nationals, 3 are U.S. Headquarters is in Freeport. Tim’s jobs will include managing the budget, relations with the government and staff, program implementation, and volunteer programming. There is a Rotary Club in Freetown and Tim expects to attend meetings.
Good luck, Tim, on this amazing opportunity. We know you are going to do a great job!
Click HERE to view a limited time recording of Tim's engaging program.
