FRIENDSHIP FORCE OF DAYTON

Transcription

1 FRIENDSHIP FORCE OF DAYTON November 14, 2017 Issue 8 DAYTON OFFICERS Julie Vann, President vannjulie@att.net Bambi Saxe, Vice-President jonandbambi@gmail.com Susan Brenner, Secretary slb.brenner@gmail.com Joe Scullion, Treasurer jscullion@woh.rr.com DAYTON DIRECTORS Emmanuel Asinjo easinjo@hotmail.com Art Barnes artbarnes64@gmail.com Cathy Barnes 57cathyb@gmail.com Sue Cramer suencramer@aol.com James Dillon llamajed@gmail.com Bobi McDermott bmcdermott504@gmail.com Dick Graf, Past President graf7000@woh.rr.com Joan Lambert, Past President joan.lambert@frontier.com Gary Mitchner, Past President gary.mitchner@gmail.com Jeanne Comer, Founding Director (Deceased) Tom Graham, Editor tpgraham1@gmail.com ON THE WEB (Dayton FF web site) (FFI web site) NEWSLETTER Dear FF Dayton Members, October 22nd Meeting THANKS I want to extend a shout of appreciation to Bambi Saxe for organizing the general membership event held at Presidential Banquet on October 22nd. There were 64 people in attendance. The summary of completed 2017 journeys was well received. It is a pleasure to have engaged members and many club activities. Thanks to all who helped make the event a success. December 3rd Holiday Party Please RSVP at your earliest convenience for the Holiday Party to be held at Hope Hotel on Sunday, December 3rd. Your check will be for either $27 or $35/person, depending on your entree. Please mail it to Cathy Barnes, Eilerman Road, Minster, OH 45865, at your earliest convenience. FF Friendship Day LEO March 1, 2018 We are looking for a volunteer to be the event organizer. The board suggests that we celebrate the 2018 Friendship Day with a Let s Eat Out dinner party at El Meson. Save the date. Let Julie Vann know if you would like to be the event coordinator Journey to Egypt FF Dayton will travel to Egypt in March Together Gary Mitchner and Joan Lambert are Ambassador Co-Coordinators. The itinerary looks very interesting and exciting. Not only will there be a week homestay March 17th-24th, but there is also an option for an add-on trip for another 12 days. It sounds like a great adventure. I am confident there will be a lot of history, famous landmarks, and valued new friendships to experience. The capacity is 20 ambassadors. Contact Joan Lambert at joanlambert937@gmail.com, if you are interested in this journey April Inbound prior to FFI Regional Conference Jan Vivanco and Bambi Saxe are planning the itinerary for the inbound prior to the Regional Conference to be held April The tentative plan is to have a welcome event on the evening of Monday, April 16. Tuesday and Wednesday would be organized group touring. Thursday would be an unscheduled day, so the host can plan something special or a tour that would meet the interests of their guests. Then Friday the inbound ambassadors will head to Cincinnati for the Regional Conference. Many of our members will likely go as well!! I am hoping we can provide beds for nearly 30 guests. Please save the dates on your calendar. Experience different views. Discover common ground.

2 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 2 Regional Conference Cincinnati April Domestic Outbound to Colorado Bobi McDermott is the Journey Ambassador Coordinator. She anticipates that it will be a 10 day journey visiting FF Denver and another club each for 5 days. Tentative dates are the last half of July Inbound: English as a 2nd Language for Japanese ambassadors FF Dayton has been invited to host a new type of exchange and the Board approved accepting the invite. A group will be coming in late summer 2019 from Japan to learn English as a 2nd Language. The activities and tours will be planned to promote that goal of teaching/learning of English. If you would like to serve on a planning committee for this inbound, please contact Julie Vann & 2020 Outbound: The Journey to China has been postponed The outbound to China has been postponed for at least one year. New dates will be defined next spring. The home-hosting was problematic in 2019, so they asked if we could postpone to either fall 2020 or spring Your input for outbounds in 2019 & 2020 were submitted to FFI Planning. They will announce the 2019 match-ups in January. That is also the month that we hope to hear about 2018 Open World opportunities or other international inbound groups. FF Dayton Facebook Thanks to Gary Mitchner, our club has a Facebook account. At the World Meeting, we learned that many clubs look to Facebook to learn about clubs around the world. Several asked if Dayton would be posting photos from the Conference and from out 2017 journeys. The board approved the appointment of Jan Vivanco to be the Facebook administrator/coordinator. She will strive to post something about our club at least 8 times each year. Joe Scullion asked that her photos also be shared with him to be posted on the website. Incentive to be Outbound Ambassador Coordinator FFI has changed the rule for how much financial benefit an international journey Ambassador Coordinator will receive. The new rule: The Coordinator will receive a pro-rated discount of the FFI Fee, if 75% or more of the hosting capacity is achieved. The fee for an International Club-to-Club Journey is $165 per week for clubs from the USA. Therefore, during this year s weeklong outbound to Romania, Jim Dillion earned the discount of $165 AND for the outbound to Moldova, Nancy Nerny earned the same fee. According to FFI rules, the discount of the FFI Fee is only payable if 75% or more of the hosting capacity has been reached, and if the Coordinator is in compliance with the Fill-the-Seat Policy that requires that if an International Journey is not filled, it must be advertised on the FFI Catalog at least 100 days before departure. For a domestic journey/exchange, the Ambassador Coordinator could earn the $10/night fee, if the group size is at hosting capacity. For both international and domestic outbounds, the fee is pro-rated if the group size is between 75% and 100% of capacity. (See the Policies and Guidelines for Clubs and Programs as approved by the FFI Board of Directors October 2016 for more information...page 5.) I hope each of you will enjoy Thanksgiving, as well as Christmas, Hanukkah, and/or Kwanzaa! I enjoy sending and receiving holiday greetings. Because of this successful year, I have several new friends on my mailing list this year. It is a good time to be thankful and to cherish the opportunity we FF members have to make new friendships! With holiday cheer & friendship, Julie Vann

3 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 3 S EE THE LAND OF HATSHEPSUT AND NEFERTARI Plans are starting to form for the Egyptian Journey, March 17-31, 2018 Our homestay will be in Cairo. Our hosts have put together a very interesting program. Activities will be seeing the pyramids, The Egyptian Museum, the Citadel and traveling to Alexandria to visit the Library of Alexandria in Egypt's second largest city which overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. We must not forget; we will visit Khan El Khalili (the bazaar.) There will be plenty of time to form friendships with our hosts. Goddess Hathor giving an Ankh to Nefertari Following a week full of activities with our hosts, we will fly to Luxor to board our ship for a 5 day Nile Cruise. On the cruise we will go to the Valley of Kings and Queens and the Temple of Hatshepsut. We will go through Esna to Edfu where we will visit Edfu Temple and then sail to Kom Ombo where we will visit the Kom Ombo Temple. Next we will sail to Aswan and see the High Dam, the Temple of Philae and the unfinished Obelisk. We will also visit Abu Simbel. We are thinking about an add on to Petra, Jordan and the Red Sea.. as well. We have not been able to finalize those details at this time. Temple of Hatshepsut We have had an informational meeting, but will also plan to have a sign up meeting between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Contact Joan Lambert at joanlambert937@gmail.com, if you are interested in joining us for this amazing Journey. View along the Nile H ELP US WELCOME OUR GUESTS FROM MILWAUKEE AND BEYOND IN APRIL Planning has begun for our inbound journey on April 16-20, The Milwaukee friends we visited in June 2017 will be invited, with any remaining spaces offered to other regional Friendship Force members. We will begin the journey with a welcome reception/light dinner on Monday evening. Group activities will be planned for Tuesday and Wednesday. Thursday will be a follow your passion day. Ambassadors and hosts will be given a pamphlet of area attractions beforehand and each ambassador will be able to choose the sites he/she wishes to visit. After Friday morning breakfast at hosts homes, our visiting ambassadors will travel to Cincinnati to participate in the regional Friendship Force conference Friday through Sunday. Please express your interest in being a home host, day host or dinner host by contacting Bambi Saxe at jonandbambi@gmail.com or Jan Vivanco at janvivanco@yahoo.com. There will also be a sign-up sheet at the holiday party on December 3.

4 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 4 I nternational Holiday Party Welcome one and all on December 3 to the Wright-Patterson Hope Hotel. Our holiday party starts at 4:00 with a social hour including munchies, interactive entertainment and a cash bar. Dinner will be served at 5:00. Plans are continuing and the menu has been selected for our international holiday dinner. Offered to choose from are four special entrees with all the fixings. They are Ham croquettes with Dill Cream Sauce, Honey Ginger Chicken with Apple- Cranberry Chutney or NY Strip Loin with Wild Mushroom Demi-Glace. Also there is a Vegetarian Pasta in Olive Oil. The Ham, Chicken or Vegetable selection will be $27 and the Steak entree will be $35. As in the past there will be a cash bar. Keeping with the International theme we would like you to bring a souvenir item from one of your Journey s for our own Show and Tell. If you have a native outfit to wear it will add to the festivities. Please let us know what you would like to display when you make your reservation. To make a reservation select your entree and make out a check to Friendship Force Dayton for the amount of your entree. Send it to Cathy Barnes, Eilerman Rd., Minster, OH Include the entree picked and souvenir you want to display. Deadline for dinner reservations is November 27. International Holiday Party December 3, 4 p.m. Three Meal choices served with House Salad with Choice of Dressing Chef s Choice of Vegetables Rolls & Butter Chef s Choice of Assorted Desserts Coffee, Decaf, Iced Tea, Water Ham Croquettes with Dill Cream Sauce Macaroni an Cheese $27 Honey-Ginger Chicken with Apple-Cranberry Chutney Long Grain & Wild Rice Pilaf $27 New York Strip Loin with Wild Mushroom Demi-Glace Sour Cream Redskin Potatoes $35 Vegetarian Pasta in Olive Oil $27 RSVP to Cathy Barnes (937) Your reservation is confirmed when mailed to Eilerman Road, Minster OH 45865

5 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 5 D istribution Lists When you join the Friendship Force of Dayton you will automatically be included in the FFDayton distribution list for s and the newsletter. As a FFDayton member you also become a member of Friendship Force International (FFI). You are not, however, added to the FFI distribution list for s unless you subscribe and add your own address. It is optional, but recommended, so you can receive updates from the parent organization as well as new listings for outbound journeys in which you can participate. To do this, go to the website, and at the bottom of the home page enter your address and hit subscribe. ** Please remember to send any address updates to Bill Meers at meersworldbill@gmail.com or Tom Graham at tpgraham1@gmail.com. A mbassador Reunion The Dayton ambassadors to Moldova and Romania held a follow-up reunion on Saturday, November 11 to share trip photos and reminisce about the good times. Congratulations to Nancy Nerny, Journey Coordinator for Moldova and Jim Dillon, Journey Coordinator for Romania, for a job well done! T he 40th Anniversary Celebration at the Presidential was characterized by good food, fellowship and lively discussion. The formal program consisted of presentations describing recent Journeys as described here with the presenters: 40th Anniversary FFI World Conference in Manchester, England Susan Brenner Moldova/Romania Outbound Journey Nancy Nerny Trip to Serbia to visit with 2014 Open World delegates Bambi Saxe FF Service trip to Africa Jan Vivanco and Jane Rahn Tour to England Chris Pomfret Outbound to Milwaukee/Quad Cities Art Barnes, Bill & Mary Lou Meers In the photo below left, Art Barnes and Mary Lou and Bill Meers present the highlights of their very successful Journey to Milwaukee and the Quad Cities in June as a part of the program of Journey presentations. On the right below, you can see many of the 64 in attendance paying close attention to one of the speakers. The event was ably emceed by Joe Scullion and organized by Bambi Saxe.

6 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 6 Dayton Friendship Force 2018 Membership Renewal It s that time of year again, members, when we are asked to renew our commitment to the Friendship Force of Dayton club. Membership dues that our club pays to Friendship Force International have changed this year, and so your dues to the club have also been adjusted. FFI no longer offers a family membership, and so neither will we. Everyone will now pay $25 for a membership in the Friendship Force of Dayton club. The club is obliged to remit our 2018 dues to Friendship Force International by January 15. At that time we will remit $15 for each membership to International. You may ask, What does the club do with the $10 dollars we keep? This money goes for administrative expenses such as the cost of maintaining the web site, including the annual cost for registering the domain name friendshipforcedayton.com, (the alternate domain name daytonfriendshipforce.com is supported by a donation by one of our members at no cost to the club), annual cost of the PO Box, and costs of producing and mailing the monthly newsletter that gets mailed to those members who do not have Internet access. The club subsidizes the costs of the annual meeting and the holiday party and other events that are only partially covered by your kind donations. The Volunteer Party, held last year in November, is fully supported from your dues and is open to all members. Additionally, the President s travel to International Conferences is supported in part by the club. Finally, we make a small donation to the Dayton International Peace Museum, and provide small gifts to clubs that we visit as a token of appreciation. All of our Inbound and Outbound expenses are covered by the charges made to either incoming Ambassadors or to our outgoing Ambassadors. Please do your best to remit your 2018 membership dues to the Treasurer by January 15, The Dayton Friendship Force Club is known by the International organization as one of the most active and well run clubs in the universe of approximately 350 clubs around the world, and we are often identified by International as a club that inbound Ambassadors should make an effort to visit. Your membership dues will keep us active and help us demonstrate to the world the values our country cherishes. Thank you. Mail your check to: Joseph Scullion, Treasurer Friendship Force of Dayton 157 Wynstone Court Xenia, Ohio Or call Or jfscullion@gmail.com

7 F R I E N D S H I P F O R C E O F D A Y T O N N E W S L E T T E R p a g e 7 40th Anniversary Campaign Goals Friendship Force International has a new fund raising campaign. There are three goals: EXPAND OUR CORE by strengthening worldwide membership and building new clubs. Some clubs have had a hard time reinvigorating their membership with passion and engaged involvement. Many have lost members who were active 20 years ago, and have failed to have leadership transition plans in place. At the World Conference there was a special session to help European clubs do some strategic planning. There are USA clubs that are struggling as well. ENGAGE FUTURE LEADERS by providing new programs for youth and families. One of the board members planned and implemented a successful youth exchange. They hope to repeat that success. ACTIVATE a NEW SOCIALLY-RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL NETWORK. I believe they are hoping to offer a few mission trips each year. This will allow Ambassadors to explore a new culture, but also help with a donation to a philanthropic cause or help strengthening language skills or help with a project. Our FF Dayton Club sent $1,000 toward that campaign. Individual members can also contribute. Payments can be made on-line on the Friendship Force International website. You can make a one time contribution. You can also choose to make monthly payments. Friendship Force International s mission is to promote global understanding across the barriers that separate people. Whether those barriers are cultural, racial, or religious, the Friendship Force has worked to surmount stereotypes and uproot the seeds of prejudice, bigotry, and hatred. They hope to raise $1,000,000. To reach that goal, they need about $67 from each member! Consider adding a donation to your check when you renew your membership. Click above for Journeys B irthdays! Bill Blaine 11/2 Chris Dull 11/17 Warkoneta Tucker 11/17 Cathy Barnes 11/18 Melisse Grace Bretz 11/22 Amea Cristine Bretz 11/24 Joan Lambert 11/29 Send your birth date to Julie to be included in our monthly birthday recognition

8 P.O. Box Dayton, Ohio FIRST CLASS UPCOMING EVENTS DECEMBER 3, 2017 MARCH 1, 2018 MARCH 17-31, 2018 APRIL 16-19, 2018 APRIL 20-22, 2018 JULY 2018 SEPT , 2019 SUMMER OR 2021 CHINA HOLIDAY PARTY, HOPE HOTEL 4 PM LEO EL MESON OUTBOUND TO CAIRO, EGYPT G. MITCHNER, J. LAMBERT, JC S INBOUND, MILWAUKEE ET AL JAN VIVANCO, JC REGIONAL CONFERENCE, CINCINNATI DENVER, BOBI MCDERMOTT, JC WORLD CONFERENCE, PUERTO RICO ESL, INBOUND FROM JAPAN Experience different views. Discover common ground.