Item 40 - William T. Snyder to Harold S. Bender, August 7, 1946; some undated documents (2 entries)

“(William) Snyder entered MCC service in 1943 as a Civilian Public Service (CPS) volunteer assigned to Luray, Va. MCC founders H.A. Fast and Orie 0. Miller soon invited Snyder to serve at the Akron headquarters treasurer's office. He moved to leadership in the canning and drying program, then to the dairy farmer and dairy tester programs of CPS. In 1945, Snyder became director of MCC's Mennonite Aid Section. During his tenure, the section brought about 13.000 to 15,000 refugees from Europe to North and South America. In the early 1950s, Snyder led MCC programs involving settlement of and assistance to refugees in Paraguay. The MCC board appointed Snyder MCC associate executive secretary in 1955. Three years later, in 1958, the board named him executive secretary, a position he held until his retirement in 1982. Snyder was MCC's third executive secretary. Proceeding him were Levi Mumaw. 1920 to 1935 and Orie 0. Miller, 1935 to 1958. Snyder was instrumental in shifting MCC interests from Europe to the Third World and in connecting MCC with the larger, ecumenical development effort. When Snyder took office in the 1950s, MCC served in fewer than 30 countries; in 1981, it served in 48. In 1958, 497 workers served with MCC; by 1982 that number had increased to 850.