Inscriptions to Inspire
The Peace Corps Foundation’s exemplary advisory board, with the input of our passionate community, has selected the final inscriptions to include with the Park’s detailed design proposal that will be reviewed by the National Park Service and U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.
Critical in this effort was capturing both the values of international service and partnership, and representing voices that embody the principles on which the Peace Corps was founded.
With two quotes from the original architects of the program and two from inspiring leaders from countries that have hosted Peace Corps Volunteers, we are confident that the Park’s visitors will find inspiration no matter where they are coming from.
Proposed inscriptions:
“ASK NOT WHAT YOUR COUNTRY CAN DO FOR YOU – ASK WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR COUNTRY” – John F. Kennedy
The quote that started it all, from John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address in 1961, served as a rallying cry for thousands of Americans who made up the initial cohorts of Peace Corps Volunteers. It’s a call to action that still resonates today, and helps remind people that everyone has the power and potential to make a difference in the world. This quote will greet visitors at the Park’s main entrance on Louisiana Avenue, NW.
“PEACE IS OUR CALLING. PEACEMAKING IS OUR SKILL. THE WORLD NEEDS PEACE. PEACE NEEDS YOU” – Sargent Shriver
R. Sargent Shriver, the first director (1961–66) of the U.S. Peace Corps, was a key architect of the program from the moment President Kennedy announced its creation. This quote, from his address at the John F. Kennedy Library on the 25th Anniversary of the Peace Corps in 1986, captures the timelessness of the values that inspired the agency from the beginning.
“BE NOT AFRAID TO SEEK PEACE, EVEN IF YOUR VOICE MAY BE SMALL” – Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of Liberia (2006–18), was the first woman to be elected head of state of an African country and was one of three recipients of the 2011 Nobel Prize for Peace for their efforts to further women’s rights. She invoked the cause of peace in her Nobel Lecture upon accepting the prize on December 10, 2011.
“IT IS IN YOUR HANDS TO MAKE A BETTER WORLD FOR ALL WHO LIVE IN IT” – Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela was South Afria’s first democratically elected president when he won the country’s first post-apartheid election in 1994 while in prison for his political activism. His commitment to justice and equality resonated beyond South Africa’s borders to inspire people around the world to work in the cause of peace. This quote was part of his speech at the 46664 concert in Hyde Park, London on June 27, 2008 for his charity promoting AIDS awareness.
