WASHINGTON, D.C., November 5, 1999—Peace Corps volunteer Scott Blunk, 30, of Clayton, Ind., has been honored as Chief of Ndungated in Alou, Cameroon, West Africa. Blunk served in the village of Ndungated for three years with the Government Secondary School, where he taught mathematics and physics.
Blunk played a vital role in ensuring that his village of 400 people has potable water. He was able to obtain funding for the system through the U.S. Embassy in Yaounde. Because of his valuable contribution to the development of the village, Blunk was declared the Chief of Ndungated by the elders of the village and the Fon, the highest ranked chief, S.A. Foto, during a farewell banquet the village held for him. Blunk, a Purdue University engineer graduate, is presently teaching physics and chemistry at the university level in the Far North province. "Scott\'s appointment as chief is something he is extremely proud of," said Paulette Blunk, Scott\'s mother, "He is grateful to the Ndungated people. They have made him feel like a true son of the village".
Fogap Pierre Marie, president of Ndungated Cultural and Development Association chaired the event. He praised Blunk for his hard work and commitment to the development of the village. Marie declared that it was because of Blunk\'s efforts to have potable water for Ndungated that the U.S. Embassy assisted financially. Blunk, though a U.S. citizen, is now also considered a native of Ndungated through his chieftaincy title of Forsangong, which means "teacher of the world".
Currently, more than 130 Peace Corps volunteers are serving in Cameroon, working in education, agriculture, and health. More than 7,000 Peace Corps volunteers are working today in 78 countries. Since 1961, more than 155,000 Americans have joined the Peace Corps.