World Friendship Day 2006

LA RÉGION DE LA CAPITALE CANADIENNE

2006-04-12T11:20:00.000-04:00

Rapport de l’activité de la Journée de l’amitié de
LA RÉGION DE LA CAPITALE CANADIENNE
le dimanche 5 mars 2006

Quelle journée inoubliable!
En ce magnifique jour ensoleillé, 40 joyeux troubadours prennent la route pour se rendre, à l'invitation de Diane et de Joe Roy, à leur domaine de Montebello dans un cadre enchanteur et on ne peut plus hospitalier. Salutations d'usage, heureux de retrouver anciens et nouveaux membres de notre groupe de la Force de l'Amitié, les conversations vont bon train arrosées de bon vin et de bon pain. Ouf! si ce n'était que du pain mais les victuailles de toutes sortes débordent sur les tables. On se régale royalement.

Le grand air creuse l'appétit puisque nous avions l'occasion de faire une randonnée en traîneau en petits groupes durant le repas. Disons que certaines randonnées ont été plus périlleuses que d'autres et que certains ont dû faire de belles pirouettes pour éviter les blessures lorsque le traîneau a fait une embardée à deux reprises. Plus de peur que de mal et un gros fou rire par la suite.

En somme, une journée fort réussie où la chaude amitié était au rendez-vous. Notre reconnaissance et nos sincères remerciements aux hôtes et aux organisateurs de cette merveilleuse journée. Chapeau!

Nicole Dubé

Un poème pour l’occasion par Evelyne Janis :

On fête l'Amitié mondiale chez-nous!

Le ragoût réchauffe , les "bines" aussi,
Les amis arrivent les bras pleins!
Bientôt la belle table est garnie
Chez Diane et Joe, on se sent bien!

Les amuse-gueules pour commencer-
Un verre de vin, ça jase fort!
De nouveaux amis à rencontrer
Avant de faire un tour dehors.

Bientôt on apperçoit dans la montée,
Deux beaux percherons tirant l'traîneau-
Tour à tour, on va se promener
Dans les 'pays d'en haut' !

La bonne bouffe au retour,
La bonne chanson au piano-
Qu'il fait bon chez les Roy-
On y retourne bientôt?

Un grand merci à Diane et Joe Roy pour leur chaleureux accueil à l'occasion de la Journée de l'amitié mondiale de la Force de l'amitié.
(de Éveline- aux noms des convives! )

The Friendship Force of Quad City, Iowa USA

2006-04-12T11:16:00.000-04:00

Our glitzy evening began as colorful hand held, feather plumed masks, bright metallic fringed horns and other Mardi gras surprises greeted members, former members and guests upon arriving at Lavender Crest Winery, Colona, Iillinois, USA on Fat Tuesday, February 28, to celebrate our Quad City club's 25 years of being an active part of the world's largest cultural exchange program, Friendship Force International, and simultaneously joining all 366 clubs in 57 countries in celebrating World Friendship Day.

After signing in with Marilou Simpson, Mildred Hillard and Verla Wulf, guests enjoyed fortunes whispered by fortune teller, Laura Brown, moved on to have Arlene Vincent apply bright temporary hand-or-face Mardi gras tattoos, lined up to try their hand at the Where-in-the-World action game run by Gail Van Gundy (assisted by Shellie Mortensen) and smiled at the photo-op where they added their heads atop a colorful jolly jester cardboard cutout, artfully created by Theresa and Jim Stelk. Mid evening, everyone paused to Create-Your-Own-Meal at sumptuous buffet tables surrounded by tables of eight that had centerpieces of lighted candles in wine bottles on bright Mardi gras tablecloths.

In between the main course and dessert, a jubilant King Neptune, (aka club president, Don Simpson,) resplendent in crimson robe and jeweled crown, entered the front door and showered each table with lucky beads, coins, bright metallic streamers, candy, bracelets and good wishes for the coming year.

After everyone received these "gifts," the lights in the room were darkened as a surprise birthday/anniversary/Mardi gras cake, topped with sparkling candles and surrounded with glowing miniature lights, was wheeled in amid ohs and ahs from guests. The traditional good luck baby trinket was hidden within the cake to surprise one lucky guest, who turned out to be Bill Kimler -- and according to legend, he should enjoy immense good luck in the coming year! Club fouders, Mary Jeanne and Joe Blough, were then asked to ceremoniously cut the first pieces of cake as we fondly looked back over the past 25 years.

After announcements, the group sang, 'Let There be Peace on Earth,' and for a fnal surprise, as everyone was leaving, they were presented with their 'jester' photo that Jim Stelk had transferred to a postcard as a unique and lasting memento of the evening's celebration.

Soon to follow, and over time, photos that Harry Frick took will be published here.

Co-chairmen were Ramona Zude and Theresa Stelk.

The Friendship Force of Sarasota, Florida, USA

2006-04-12T11:11:00.000-04:00

International friendship celebrated on Siesta Key
BY MEGAN MCHUGH
The Sarasota chapter of Friendship Force International celebrated International Friendship Day on Thursday on Siesta Key, with a potluck featuring dishes from Korea, Ireland, Italy and elsewhere.Group members dressed in clothing traditional to such countries as Indonesia, Australia and Japan while sharing anecdotes from their world travels.Travel logs decorated the walls, articulating experiences in words and photos.The organization, a nonprofit group founded by Jimmy Carter and dedicated to world peace, primarily focuses on international exchanges in which participants offer up their homes to international tourists and in turn become guests in foreign homes.Chapter president Ramona McGee heralds the group as a "great opportunity to meet people" while learning about new cultures.There are 10 chapters of Friendship Force International in Florida and hundreds throughout the country.Four members of the Dayton, Ohio, chapter were present to celebrate International Friendship Day with their Sarasotan friends

The Friendship Force of Howick, New Zealand

2006-03-23T12:23:00.000-05:00

The Howick Friendship Force held a progressive dinner to celebrate World Friendship Day on March 1st. This involved aproximately 35 members plus three new members attended

The Friendship Force of Marlborough, New Zealand

2006-03-15T12:16:00.000-05:00

The Exchange Director for Western Colorado JoAnn Roemar and her 21 ambassadors were delighted to be welcomed to The Friendship Force Club of Marlborough at the Garden Party in the Woodend Gardens on Tuesday 7th. March, It was our choice to celebrate World Friendship Day at this time. Also we welcomed our World President George Brown who just dropped in for this occasion to deliver his 1st of March Friendship Force Day message New Zealand style. George's comments to the 45 club members and 22 ambassadors was very well received even though his surprise visit almost blew JoAnn's socks off.

Good food and good weather ment it was a very pleasant and happy occasion.

The Friendship Force of Central Coast, Australia

2006-03-07T18:04:00.000-05:00

FOUR GENERATIONS OF INTERNATIONAL FAMILIES INSPIRE CENTRAL COAST AUSTRALIA CLUB ON WORLD FRIENDSHIP DAY

USA Friendship Force members, Blake & Helen Bidwell, just happened to be visiting Bev and Ted Watson,(their Australian ambassadors from the Central Coast's 2001 Exchange to Madison Connecticut) on World Friendship Day. Bev, helping to organise our local function gave them no option but to attend and share with our club members their very special Friendship Force story!

Blake’s mother had hosted two ladies from Hanover on the third ever Friendship Force exchange in 1978, when whole planes were chartered to bring groups to and from the USA. As happens in most homestays firm friendships were formed, continuing over many years and resulting in the next generation friendship between Blake & Helen & their German counterparts, Elke & Gunter. Their son Crawford had a long homestay with Elke & Gunter and son Axel in Hanover where next generation friendships were forged between Axel & Crawford. Lynnea, Helen & Blake’s daughter, loved to entertain and joined a singing group which toured Europe. Axel was very taken with Lynnea and as well as going to many of their performances in Europe followed her to Connecticut for a holiday and yes, this led to a marriage uniting of two families.

And now? Will little Kurt & his soon to arrive Baby brother or sister continue this lovely story – with Grandfather Blake & Grandmother Helen around to inspire we are sure they will!!!

After Blake & Helen finished their moving story this prompted the 2001 Central Coast ambassadors to share wonderful memories of our Connecticut exchange, and then the floodgates opened to other memories as long time members were able to tell us that our club had come a full circle – back into the very living room in our first President’s home where our club on the Central Coast of Australia was born 20 years ago.

This function was being held in the home of our club’s first President Helene Turier and her husband Peter. A problem which many of our members had considered a real setback – the loss of the community hall, where we have met for many years and the lack of finding another suitable venue for our meetings, – had forced us back into members home once again. Yes it was a tight squeeze for our 50 members present, as after our sumptuous BYO spread we sat wherever we could find space in the upstairs living room, but the intimate conditions proved advantageous with easier conversation and lots of reminiscing.

Following last years very successful Silent Auction we then proceeded to hear of the successful bidders on the great variety of items we had placed in one of the downstairs bedrooms and members had been visiting to make bids earlier in the evening.

Probably the most novel item up for auction was the services of a Scottish bagpipe player “Tom the Piper” who performs professionally at birthdays, weddings and other occasions. When not in his tartan kilt, sporran, etc., members would know him as Tom Chaplin, husband of Hazel, both having only recently joined our club and now looking forward to hosting ambassadors from Tottori in May.

Other innovate auction items were a delicious home made cream filled sponge, a candlelit dinner for two including fine wines, wine waiter & top chef, a cruise for four on beautiful Lake Macquarie (President Warren is Captain & Secretary Joy is the skipper & galley slave) to name a few auction items.

The $600 raised will be forwarded to FFI to assist with the Expansion Program, which ultimately benefits every member of FF.

Thanks to our first President Helene and husband Peter for opening their home and for providing a spectacular view of McMasters Beach despite the weather on the day. The Turiers are perfect hosts and were delighted that it was an easy way to have all their friends visit without making too much work for them, as members helped with preparation & clean up.. The Board hopes that many future events can be held in member’s homes as it provides a warmer, more personal atmosphere than hired halls.

Bev Watson

The Friendship Force of Western Tokyo, Japan

2006-03-07T10:12:00.000-05:00

On February 11th our club held a mini bazaar in aid of FFI after our Annual Meeting in honor of World Friendship Day 2006.

Some of our members made beautiful hand crafts ,knitted goods and stichworks. Some people baked delicious cakes and cockies. All the goods sold very well. The most popular thing in our fair was a box of green vegetables. These vegetables will come from Kenji and Tsuguyo yard in April.

All of us enjoyed the fair very much and we became more friendly through the fair.

Sincerely yours,

Yukiko Takagaki

The Friendship Force of Seoul, Korea

2006-03-07T09:56:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of Seoul celebrated the 2006 World Friendship Day at noon on March 1 at a Chinese restaurant south of Seoul. About 20 members gathered to observe the second WFD, pledging their continued commitment to the noble cause of The Friendship Force.

The ceremony was followed by a Chinese luncheon, in which those attending toasted to world peace as well as club vice president Kun-Koo Lee, who came to an official club function for the first time after his succcessful stomach cancer surgery.

Following the lunch, the meeting proceeded to another club function, the March board meeting, and then to a meeting to discuss the club's 2006 outbound exchange with Izmir, Turkey.

In friendship,
K.C. Hwang

The Friendship Force of St. Petersburg, Russia

2006-03-06T11:47:00.000-05:00

On March 1st the Friendship Force of St. Petersburg, Russian will celebrate World Friendship Day at Smolny Cathedral, one of the biggest and most beautiful cathedrals in St.Petersburg. It was built in the 18th century and is located in Rastrelli square, which attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world who are interested in Russian History and Culture. The Cathedral has a wonderful choir known in many countries.

This day we will tell the citizens of St.Petersburg that 2006 is an important year for our Club- we will celebrate the 15th anniversary, we will remember the contribution of Dr.Wayne Smith in the creation of Russian Friendship Force Clubs, we will shake our hands to say in unison: * A World of Friends is a World of peace*.

We have invited students and teachers, doctors and nurses, lawyers and retired people. We distributed 1000 tickets for WFD. We arranged a great exhibition: * The Friendship Force of St. Petersburg: distance for teenager* In the photos everyone can see the true friendship among the people of different cultures, ages, religion and views. 100 big colour pictures show our friends all over the world.

The concert by the Smolny choir will wrap up our celebration. The participants of WFD will listen to the music of the famous Russian and foreign composers.

The Friendship Force of Recife, Brazil

2006-03-02T12:37:00.000-05:00

Recife is the city of the Multicultural Carnival . Here we got place for frevo, the beauty of the maracatu, the joy of the Caboclinhos, the energy of the samba, the irreverence of the manguebeat. There is happiness everywhere and for all ages. Our carnival is marked by the diversity that begins in the Saturday with the parade of the Galo da Madrugada ( the biggest carnival group/party of the world – from the Guiness Book ) and finishes in the Wednesday of ashes with the Bacalhau do Batata and others more. It is the epoch that we can easily find kings, queens, fairies, elves, orks, other stories figures, nuns, priests, demons, super heroes and who else more want be represented dancing in the streets. Brincantes are transformed and live their fantasies in days of glory here. In Recife, land of the Frevo and of the Maracatu, there’s no other way to celebrate the World Friendship Day without a lot of frevo, and that’s why we decided to put our Block party on the street, with the Wolrd Friendship Day banner, a lot of colorful t-shirts, and partners united in dancing the frevo without stop, divulging the institution, and inviting more friends to be part of our Block. We record some moments that we want to share with you, so like this you can check the joy of our Club, and see the best carnival of the world.

PLEASE LOOK AT OUR PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT HERE!

In friendship,

Edna Pimentel

The Friendship Force of Nepal

2006-03-02T12:25:00.000-05:00

Hi, this message is send to you from world top highest Mount Everest and birth peace of peace god lord Buddha's Nepal. We are very pleasing to share World friendship Day on 1 march 2006 .

First of all president of the friendship force of Nepal advocate Mr. Shiva Shrestha welcomed all the new and old 22 members. During his welcomed speech, he highlighted to need of friendship force for the solidarity, peace and development individual as well as nation. At the same time secretary general of friendship force of Nepal Mr. Himmat Singh "Lekali" start the introduction to each new and old member and highlighted the objective and vision of FFI. The interaction gathering was very innovative and interesting in different prospective.

On the other hand create "PEACE INITIATION OPPORTUNITY FUND" also generate by the members. This brought a lot of alternative for sustainability of peace and solidarity through friendship force movement. At the end of assembly Secretary General Mr. Himmat Singh "Lekali" give a lot of thanks to the all respective representative members for giving their valuable time for World Friendship Force Day and taking part in dinner party.

Finally whole day is very memorable and successful event for us and salute for all over the world friendship force international members for joining World Friendship Force Day from Nepali friends.

Yours Sincerely

Himmat Singh "Lekali"
Secretary General
The Friendship Force of Nepal

The Friendship Force of Yamaguchi

2006-03-01T15:31:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of Yamaguchi of Japan celebrated WORLD FRIENDSHIP DAY 2006 as you can see the picture!

On the same day we had a matching meeting. Our club is eager to welcome 21 ambassadors from North Carolina, USA in May. Since one of our members made a cake for each of us, we enjoyed having it with some drinks and talking about "A World Peace," which we would like to seek for it forever!

The Friendship Force of St. Louis

2006-03-01T15:06:00.000-05:00

The St. Louis, MO Club celebrated World Friendship Day on February 27 with a potluck dinner, celebrating the birthday of Friendship Force International, welcoming the new club in Slovenia, and retelling stories from the many exchanges experienced by our club in our 27 years of existence. 66 members and guests gathered for dinner around eight tables decorated to represent ten of the countries which we have visited or hosted. Many experiences were shared during dinner at each table, and each table shared one story with the whole group for the program as the microphone was passed from table to table. It was a wonderful affirmation of the good times and multi-cultural experiences we have had. Besides the fun of remembering events of the past , it was a great introduction for our newest members and guests to the happy memories and lasting world friendships made during our Friendship Force exchanges.

Happy Birthday Friendship Force International, World Friendship Day Pot Luck, 2006

Events chairmen Emmett and Martha Kaelble (r), Mary Widmer, Pres., and Roy Ferro welcome guests

T

Closing with "Let There Be Peace On Earth" around the 8 tables, each decorated for a different country

WFD - The Friendship Force of St. Petersburg, Russia

2006-02-28T17:35:00.000-05:00

On March 1st the Friendship Force of St. Petersburg, Russia will celebrate World Friendship Day at Smolny Cathedral, one of the biggest and most beautiful cathedrals in St.Petersburg. It was built in the 18th century and is located in Rastrelli square, which attracts thousands of tourists from all over the world who are interested in Russian History and Culture. The Cathedral has a wonderful choir known in many countries.

This day we will tell the citizens of St.Petersburg that 2006 is an important year for our Club- we will celebrate the 15th anniversary, we will remember the contribution of Dr.Wayne Smith in the creation of Russian Friendship Force Clubs, we will shake our hands to say in unison: * A World of Friends is a World of peace*.

We have invited students and teachers, doctors and nurses, lawyers and retired people. We distributed 1000 tickets for WFD. We arranged a great exhibition: * The Friendship Force of St. Petersburg: distance for teenager* In the photos everyone can see the true friendship among the people of different cultures, ages, religion and views. 100 big colour pictures show our friends all over the world.

The concert by the Smolny choir will wrap up our celebration. The participants of WFD will listen to the music of the famous Russian and foreign composers.

WFD - The Friendship Force of Montgomery, AL, USA

2006-02-28T11:40:00.000-05:00

Montgomery Friendship Force chapter will celebrate World Friendship Day Thursday, March 16th from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. at Memorial Presbyterian Church located at 2130 Bell Road. The evening will celebrate our entire international community, and Montgomery Korean neighbors and friends will be spotlighted. There will be international refreshments, Korean entertainment and an auction of treasures collected from members on their travels with Friendship Force around the world. Attendees are invited to bring an international neighbor. The world-wide theme of this year's World Friendship Day is, "Welcome to Our World!"

Friendship Force internationally President and CEO, George T. Brown, Jr., will be a guest at this casual event. Presently living in Atlanta, Mr. Brown is the son of missionary parents who grew up in Korea. He developed an interest in international friendships at a very young age.

Montgomery's Friendship Force International is one of 347 clubs in 58 countries around the world. Members are dedicated to the principle that each person can make a contribution to global goodwill. This year the Montgomery chapter wishes to spotlight the Korean friends and neighbors now residing in the River Region. The goal is the eventual establishment of a partner city connection with Montgomery and a similar Korean community. The second annual World Friendship Day event is being held on the eve of St. Patrick's Day, which is appropriate since the international conference of Friendship Force will be in Dublin this year.

World Friendship Day is a worldwide Friendship Force event. Founded in 1977 by Wayne Smith with the support of President and Mrs. Jimmy Carter, Friendship Force endeavors to provide "the world's strangers some time at one another's table." Friendship Force International considers each member a citizen "Ambassador" committed to improving international relations through people-to-people diplomacy. During World Friendship Day, the Montgomery chapter look forward to sharing an evening with all our international citizens, friends and neighbors now living in or visiting the Montgomery area.

Friendship Force of Montgomery has traveled to Korea as well as 21 other countries over it's 20 year history. The Montgomery chapter is currently helping to establish a Friendship Force program in Slovenia. The inaugural exchange to that country will be May 18-28, A recent exchange to Vietnam was featured in New York's Newsday newspaper. Articles about that exchange and the outreach to Slovenia can be found online at www.friendshipforce.org.

Incoming groups from Russia and other countries will be hosted by Montgomery Friendship Force members this year. Montgomery's World Friendship Day event is free, with an option of $1. 00 donation being accepted at the door. All contributions are to be made to the Legacy Fund used to expand the Friendship Force Organization. Friendship Force is an organization pledged to overcoming differences between people and nations.

WFD - The Friendship Force of Brasilia

2006-02-22T17:28:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of Brasilia will celebrate World Friendship Day on the 11th of March at a Farm of one our members with a big Brazilian Barbecue and after that we will have Bingo in ordet to collect some money to help open new Friendship Force Clubs around the world.
We hope to have an attendance of more than 50 persons, members and non-members of our club.

We will have bush walking, bathing in the waterfalls, games and of course music and dance.

We hope to have a lot of fun.

2006-02-22T17:21:00.000-05:00

WFD - The Friendship Force of the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

With many of our club members planning to be away on 1st March to attend the 16th Australian Conference it was decided to hold our “Welcome to our World” get-together a little early.

Following our monthly club meeting, a number of us gathered to share an afternoon of fellowship in one of the many lush beachside parks.

Some tasty nibbles, a game of boules, lots of chatter and a convivial ale or two were followed by a community ‘Pizza in the Park’ dinner. Made welcome on this occasion were two members of New Zealand's Western Bay of Plenty club - a couple who had been hosts when our club visited them in Oct/Nov. 2003.

Once again Friendship Force of the Gold Coast celebrated World Friendship Day with lots of FRIENDSHIP......

For a look at some more photos of our World Friendship Day get-together go to World Friendship Day 2006

16th AUSTRALIAN CONFERENCE
Soon after these photos were taken a large contingent of our members began the long trek to Mt Gambier in South Australia for the 16th Australian Conference, which is to be held from 10th to 12th March, 2006.

This is quite a trip - approximately 2,200 kilometres with driving time of around 30 hours! And that's just one way........!

The Australian Conference is held each year in a different part of our vast country - and with many people from clubs all over the continent attending, it's a great way of meeting new people and continuing previous friendships.

Following the Conference, a summary of events, and photos will be uploaded to our website. Visit us again soon.

Friendship Force of the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

WFD - The Friendship Force of Tbilisi, Georgia

2006-02-16T16:40:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of the TBILISI Georgia club is taking the theme of "Welcome to My World" and planning a World Friendship Day celebration. The celebration will be held at Restaurant “PARADISE LOST” from March 1st 2006 19: 00—21: 00 and from on March 17th 18: 00 gala concert at hotel “SHERATON METECHI PALACE”

The members will host dinner parties and other gatherings’’ aiming to mediate between people of Georgia and of Azerbaijan and the outer world. In order to support Friendship among the peoples of the world the celebrities of the Georgian pop music, various artistic creative groups and among them teenagers decided to show their good will and represent their art today, and we are please to introduce them to you.

Friendship among peoples has momentous power, and is a source of life, that is enriched with warmth of sunshine and affection, and full of amazing colors of rainbow.Music is that sole and the most articulate language in friendship that has no age barriers and each of us have at least once in our lives had a desire to appear in this fancy world.Anyway, once again we extend our warmest greetings to you full of love and compassion from our beautiful country, Georgia, and have a pleasure to announce the concert dedicated to the 1st of March, the Day of Friendship.

WFD -The Friendship Force of Knoxville, USA

2006-02-16T15:19:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of Knoxville, TN club will celebrate World Friendship Day on Tuesday, March 7th, with an international dinner at 6:30 p.m. at Second Presbyterian Church in Knoxville. Everyone is to wear attire from another country and to bring an international dish to share with others. Guests are invited.

Special guests will include 9 delegates from Chelm, Poland, the Sister City of Knoxville, who are visiting our city for one week. Community members who participate in hosting Sister Cities have also been invited. This is especially exciting for our club, since our outgoing exchange for September 2006 includes a FFI home stay in Olsztyn, Poland, followed by a week's visit to the FF club in Chemnitz, Germany. While in Poland, we will also visit Warsaw for a special reception with the U. S. Ambassador to Poland, Victor Ashe, whom many of us know as the former Mayor of Knoxville, TN.

One of our members, skilled in cake baking, has offered to make a cake highlighting the country of Poland. We will, of course, introduce our guests, and we have arranged for a translator to be present.

The DVD "A World of Friends" will be shown.

A good time will be had by all!!

The Friendship Force of Kapiti Coast, New Zealand

2006-02-14T16:23:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force members in Kapiti Coast will take a trip on the Ferry across Wellington Harbour to Eastbourne to celebrate World Friendship Day.

WFD - The Friendship Force of Salisbury and Northern Districts, Australia

2006-02-14T16:11:00.000-05:00

The Salisbury club is having an afternoon celebration on the 1st of March at a club member's home. Members have been encouraged to bring a friend who is not a member with the
view to gaining more members.

We will commence at 2.00pm with friendship and afternoon tea followed by evening dinner (pot-luck). There will be a raffle, with prizes donated by our members.

If this day is anything like Friendship Day 2005 it will be very successful and a wonderful day.

2006-02-14T15:47:00.000-05:00

WFD/Fat Tuesday with The Friendship Force of Quad City

Horns, hand-held masks with feather plumes and other Mardi gras surprises will greet members, former members and their guests upon arriving at Lavender Crest Winery, Colona, Il, on Fat Tuesday, February 28, to celebrate the Quad City club's 25 years of being an active part of the world's largest cultural exchange program, Friendship Force International.

The evening's activities will begin at 6:30pm, pausing mid-evening to allow guests the opportunity to Create-Your-Own-Meal, choosing from an array of domestic and international meats, breads and spreads, choice of hearty and clear soups, with a surprise dessert to follow.

This celebration carries on the tradition begun in 2005 when all 366 clubs in 57 countries chose a common date to observe World Friendship Day.

The Friendship Force is a non-profit organization dedicated to global goodwill where homestays, the heart of the program, allow participants to enrich each others' lives with mutual understanding and appreciation. Their motto, 'A world of friends is a world of peace,' is the on-going goal of the organization.

2006-02-13T10:46:00.000-05:00

WFD - The Friendship Force of Minnesota/Twin Cities

The Friendship Force of Minnesota/Twin Cities club will be holding their World Friendship Day on Friday, March 10, 2006. They are holding this in conjunction with a presentation by two of their members who just returned from Turkmenistan where they served as Peace Corps Volunteers. They will be speaking of their experience in Turkmenistan where they worked on creating the first Turkmen-English-Russian Medical Dictionary.

2006-02-09T17:23:00.000-05:00

World Friendship Day - The Friendship Force of South Taranaki

We have six Marlborough Club members (including Shirley and Doug Dean) staying two nights in South Taranaki en route south. We have arranged a casual programme for one day plus a social gathering of Club members on Tuesday, 28th February. I have requested Doug to address our gathering.

We are combining their visit with celebrating World Friendship Day - quite appropriate and apt I think.

Submitted by Jocelyn Terry
South Taranaki, President

The Friendship Force of Greater Atlanta and FFI Staff Connect to the Community this World Friendship Day

2006-02-09T16:04:00.000-05:00

35 volunteers from The Friendship Force of Greater Atlanta and the FFI Staff will celebrate world friendship through service on March 4, 2006. The volunteers will work for three hours at MedShare International preparing unused medical equipment to be delivered to countries where the need for clean, safe medical supplies is great.

Following the volunteer project, the entire club and staff will gather together for an afternoon barbecue and silent auction. It should be a time to remember!

2006-02-09T15:36:00.000-05:00

WFD - The Friendship Force of the Canadian Capital Region

The Friendship Force of the Canadian Capital Region is taking the theme of "Welcome to My World" and planning a Sugaring-Off Party. This is a traditional Harvest celebration - in this case celebrating the end of a good harvesting of maple syrup. The members will gather at the country home of one of our members for an afternoon of skiing, snow-shoeing, and taking a drive through the woods in a horse-drawn sleigh. We will top off the day with a typical French-Canadian meal of ragout of meat balls, baked beans, vegetable casseroles , maple-syrup flavored cakes etc..and we will finish off the event with a singalong around the piano- singing typical folksongs of yesteryear.

2006-02-08T11:00:00.000-05:00

World Friendship Day -Friendship Force of Dayton, Ohio, USA
Thursday March 2, 2006 12 noon
Engineers Club of Dayton, 110 Monument Avenue, Dayton, Ohio

Presentations include
Julie Vann - Perspectives on Bosnia
Bill & Mary Lou Meers - What we learned from the Ottawa Exchange
Carmine Straley – Attending International Convention

This year Friendship Force seeks to reach out into the community and get more people informed of what and who we are as a world wide organization and as a local club. New members attending the luncheon will receive a welcoming gift.

Everyone attending will receive a daffodil commemorating the Welsh Saint David’s Day.
Gwnewch y pethau bychain - Do the Little things

2006-02-07T12:11:00.000-05:00

World Friendship Day - Friendship Force of Newcastle, Australia

The Newcastle club is having a Champagne Brunch on the 3rd of March at the Newcastle Foreshore. Its a great venue, lots of people use the Foreshore all the time.

We will commence at 10am with fresh fruit platters, wine , juice, water, coffee or tea. Then a cooked breakfast of, sausages, bacon, eggs, baked beans and toast. Finish with damper bread butter and Golden Syrup.

There will be entertainment by some members and we are raising money by selling tickets in a raffle, with lots of prizes donated by our members.

It should be a wonderful day, everyone is welcome.

2006-01-30T11:00:00.000-05:00

WORLD FRIENDSHIP DAY (WFD)
Florida Region - Planned Club Activity*

Celebration:
Date: March 1
Activity: Regular Meeting Day & Inviting
international students/workers from Disney pavilions to
participate

Central:
Date: TBA
Activity:Invite international students from local
schools to meet with FF club to share food,
customs and culture... it worked well last year

East Central
Date: March 14
Activity: Dinner with international students & their families
Program included and encourage all to "bring a friend"

Florida Suncoast:
Date: March 18
Activity: Regular Meeting Day with "Service Auction"

Greater Orlando
Date: March 12
Activity: "Service Auction" and otherwise along with a
Wine/Cheese Tasting

Lee County
Date: March 8
Activity: Potluck Dinner with dishes from around the world

Sarasota
Date: March 2
Activity: Party & International Potluck Dinner
June 17-18 Participating in Community Activity:
"Cultural Connections Festival" (our participation
grew out of hosting '05 Russian Leadership Prog)

Spring Hill
Date: March 11
Activity: In connection with Farewell Party for Inter-Club
Visit with Northern Colorado

*Any funds raised for Legacy Fund will be welcomed by FFI but fund-raising is
not the priority this year as in 2005. This year's priority is to reach out into the
community and get more people informed of what and who we are as a world-
wide organization and as a local club. Work with local media!

2006-01-30T10:23:00.000-05:00

WFD - Central Coast, NSW, Australia

The Friendship Force of the Central Coast, NSW, Australia are planning a dinner at a member's home incorporating a Silent Auction into the evening. We did the same thing for last year and it was a huge success so all members wished to repeat it. Each member brings one desirable, quality item or offers a service, e.g. a man might make himself available for half a day's work in someone's home; a couple might host a dinner party for another couple with all the trimmings; someone might take a party out for a day on their boat, lunch supplied, etc. etc. These are then auctioned on paper, with obviously the highest bidder taking the prize.

During this evening we are being treated to an informal talk from Friendship Force members from Connecticut, USA, Blake and Helen Bidwell, who will be staying with one of our members at this time. They will be telling our members of their FF experiences over the years and what FF has done in their lives. They are, from all accounts, very prominent personalities in their club with many interesting experiences to retell.

2006-01-30T10:11:00.000-05:00

WFD-St. Louis, Missouri, USA

The Friendship Force Club of Missouri (St. Louis) will celebrate World Friendship Day 2006 with a Pot Luck Dinner on Monday, February 27. We hope members will bring guests to learn about Friendship Force as we celebrate the many countries our club has visited and hosted from around the world. We will carry out the theme of "Welcome to Our World" in our decorations and program. Members have been asked to "adopt a table" and to decorate it with a centerpiece of souvenirs from one of the specific countries we have had exchanges with. We are encouraging our members to wear native dress obtained during an exchange in a foreign country, or received as a gift from a visiting club. During the meal, we will ask diners around each table to take a turn to tell one funny story or meaningful thing that happened to them when involved in a Friendship Force Exchange. Then we will ask each table to chose one person to represent them during the evening's main program. Later these story tellers will be limited to 2-3 minutes each to tell their stories at the microphone, sharing it with the whole audience. At the conclusion of the pot luck supper, we will have a large birthday cake celebrating the birthday of Friendship Force International, and recognizing its development of new clubs in Slovenia and around the world.

Martha and Emmett Kaelble, Second Vice-Presidents, Program Chairmen

2006-01-30T10:02:00.000-05:00

WFD-Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA

The Friendship Force of Lancaster, Pennsylvania prepares to celebrate World Friendship Day March 2, 2006. This "Welcome to Our World" party will be held at Lancaster Bible College (LBC) campus in Lancaster. Club members will be joined by invited guests from the LBC International Students' Fellowship, members from The Brightside Baptist Church congregation, members of the Central Pennsylvania Chinese Association and visitors from the local community. Club member Chris Smith will share his skill as he caters the meal that includes Mexican style Chili Con Carne and corn bread for everyone with assistance from our club's board members. Karen Overly Smith, 2005 FFI Annual Conference Service Award Recipient, will give the keynote address. A presentation by a Chinese traditional dance ensemble will compliment an invitation to the celebrants to join the club's outbound exchange to China in October 2006. Donations collected will benefit the FFI Legacy Campaign Fund.
________
Submitted by Karen Overly SmithThe Friendship Force of Lancaster: csmith9061@aol.com

World Friendship Day 2006 in Ottawa

2006-01-27T13:44:00.000-05:00

The Friendship Force of Ottawa WFD planning committee had a wonderful luncheon meeting at the Hazel Baskin's home today. We are planning a terrific winter wonderland party at a heritage log farm in the heart of Ottawa complete with a traditional winter hay ride and bonfire. We hope to have a great Canadian military peacekeeper as our guest speaker. We think the WDF 2006 logo is fabulous and are going to use it in our promotional material.

Looking forward to another great WFD!!!

Kathryn Williams, FF of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

World Frienship Day 2006 in Alabama, USA

2006-01-27T13:37:00.000-05:00

Everyone loves a party and the Birmingham, AL Friendship Force is no exception. Our World Friendship Day Celebration has been scheduled for Sunday, April 2, 2006, at Southminster Presbyterian Church, 5:30 P.M. This will be a joint Farewell Dinner/World Friendship Day Celebration with The Friendship Force of Great Falls, Montana. They will be arriving in Birmingham March 27th and are due to depart April 3rd. Since our club visited Great Falls in 2005, this will be a renewal of some great friendships. Members from both clubs are being advised to either dress in native attire or bring an artifact from one of their travels. We will have lots of food, fellowship and sharing. Donations will again be accepted for the FF Legacy Fund.

In friendship,
Charlotte Laggy, President
Birmingham, AL FF

WFD Communications Kit

2005-12-19T13:54:00.000-05:00

Your club will soon be receiving a packet of information concerning the celebration of World Friendship Day 2006. This packet will include promotional materials for your club to use for advertising your WFD parties and gatherings. If you want to get a head start and take a look at those materials before they arrive, we have posted them on the website and they are available for download and printing at any time. Click the link below and take a look, we think you will really enjoy the items that we have put together for you!

World Friendship Day 2006 Communications Kit

Please let us know what you think and feel free to drop us a line by submitting a comment to this blog!

a look back at WFD 2005

2005-12-09T13:50:00.000-05:00

As FFI looks forward to all of the preparations and celebrations for World Friendship Day 2006, we thought we would just take a quick look back and reminisce about the friends made all over the world on this special day. Here's to making many of the same memories in 2006!!

Friends come together for an evening party in Burundi

Members of FF Canadian Capital Region in front of Eternal Flame, Parliament Buildings, and the Peace Tower

FF Kauai celebrates WFD 2005 with their Mayor

Please feel free to submit any pictures that you have from WFD 2005 and, as you proceed with your planning, pictures from WFD 2006, as well!!

all photos can be submitted to ltepley@friendshipforce.org

World Friendship Day 2006 Ideas

2005-12-07T10:44:00.000-05:00

This year World Friendship Day is about celebrating friendships that cross international and cultural barriers in your community! Friendship Force International is one of many organizations that focus on international peace and improved world relations. We will post a regularly updated list of ideas to help get your club started. Please feel free to add your ideas in the comment box below and we will update the list with your ideas! This World Friendship Day let your community join your celebration and shout out to your community how they can connect to a world of friends through one of the following events:

Mayor Declares World Friendship Day – Don’t forget to ask your mayor to declare World Friendship Day in your town! This is a straight-forward process with usually a one-page request that can be filled out through your city council office. The Mayor will usually read out the declaration at the City Council meeting. Call your city council office today. If you are in a capitol city, contact the Governor's office for declarations as well.

Invite international students studying at local universities to join your party and make it a REALLY international affair.

Bring photos from all your past inbound and outbound exchanges to share.

Every person prepares a dish form a different country but doesn’t identify it other than by a number on the table. Everyone has a pen and paper with the numbers listed and after tasting each dish must guess the country of origin. The correct answers (and a recipe) are given at the end of the event and the person with the most correct answers wins a prize.
(You can do the same type of game as above, but with excerpts from world music instead. Everyone has to guess which country the music comes from.)

Have a raffle and the money raised goes to sponsor someone from a developing country to attend the next international conference. FFI can help you identify a club in Southeast Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe etc. who would like to send a delegate to share and learn at the conference, but may not be able to afford the airfare. You can even correspond with your sponsored person ahead of time and have photographs and a letter from him/her to read at your event.

Partner with a club in another country and have a celebration using their country as the theme. For example, if you are from Smithville, Arkansas email the President of Arriba, Spain and conduct a joint party. The Spanish members eat, play music and dance American traditional and the members from Arkansas do the same but with Spanish food, song and dance.

Have a party where guests arrive in international dress honoring friends who’ve presented you with national clothing.

Send the Press Release to all of the newspapers in town inviting them to the celebration. Have a press conference before the event.

Place an Ad announcing World Friendship Day in the paper – make it an invitation open to the whole community. Make sure to run it three times and have contact information included.

Have a children’s world friendship celebration. Send an invitation to all of the different international organizations in your city inviting parents and children to a World Friendship celebration. Have children decorate bags to be used as luminaries, the children are given maps of the world and asked to see how many people they can find who have been to as many different countries. (This can also, of course be done for adults as well).

Volunteer! Ask all of your members to volunteer for a group project in your city. Make sure to send an invitation to your local media letting them know that you are volunteering in the name of World Peace! Ask other organizations in your community who have an international focus to join your club.

An “Around the world” dinner party. Members in your club go from house to house for a seven-course food celebration. For example, house 1 serves Brie and French wine, House 2 serves Borsht (Russian soup), House 3 serves sushi, House 4 serves Tiki Masala (Indian), etc…

Welcome to FFI's World Friendship Day 2006 Blog!

2005-12-05T15:30:00.000-05:00

World Friendship Day is set aside each year as the day to celebrate the anniversary of the founding of the Friendship Force. March 1, 2006 will be our 29th anniversary. We recognize that March 1, 2006 is also Ash Wednesday, celebrated by many Christian denominations as the first day of Lent, the season that leads to Easter. Therefore, if March 1, 2006 is not seen as a suitable day for celebration, we are encouraging clubs to select a day close to March 1st that is best for their community. This might be February 27 or 28, or March 2 or 3.
The theme for the 2006 World Friendship Day is: Welcome to Our World. As part of this theme, we will be welcoming new Friendship Force programs in Slovenia and other areas that are being developed through the Legacy Campaign. We encourage all clubs to use this theme as the basis for their local celebration.
The results from the first World Friendship Day demonstrate that celebrations on this day can be very beneficial to clubs. It is an excellent way to introduce prospective members in their community to The Friendship Force, as well as to attract publicity from local media. While clubs may use the day to continue their financial support for the Legacy Campaign, this is not required.
To support local club efforts, FFI will be preparing a press release that will be sent to all clubs in January 2006. This release will highlight the international mission and achievements of the organization and can be customized to reflect the activities of the local club. This year we will not have a global Internet connection during the day, but we encourage clubs to find other ways to connect with their friends around the world, including using this blog. If you have suggestions or plans to share with your colleagues around the world, please contact Lauren Tepley at ltepley@friendshipforce.org.