Friendship Force of Olympia News September 2014 www.olympiafriendshipforce.org Sharing the World, One Friendship at a Time President s Message The calendar says Autumn begins September 23rd, and I m luxuria ng in these last warm sunny days. As visi ng ambassadors have commented so many mes, we do live in an amazingly beau ful part of the world. Thanks to all who came to the Quarterly mee ng on Saturday the 6th. Vicki Mar n talked about her Iron and Ice cruise on the Explorer, which serves as a floa ng university for many college students, adult learners and a group of Friendship Force members from all over the world. Vicki shared her photos and explained that educa onal seminars and talks were presented before arriving in every port and country. As Vicki described her me on the ship, I thought how truly unique members of Friendship Force are as travelers. Our out-bound ambassadors focus on learning, sharing, listening and understanding the people and places they visit. In-bound ambassadors visi ng Olympia from all over the world come to listen, share, learn and understand us and our area. Friendship Force does foster peace and understanding one friendship at a me. In the September 9 Olympian, John Dodge s ar cle highlighted Rocky and Hilary Perro s lifechanging and unique experiences Gwen Harfst as members of Friendship Force of Olympia and F.F.I.. John Dodge encouraged readers to come hear Rick Steves and to learn more about Friendship Force of Olympia. (See the ar cle at h p://www.theolympian.com/2014/09/08/3307743/ friendship force seeks world peace.html) This is our group s clarion call! Each of YOU, as members of Friendship Force of Olympia, will be the first person from whom many guests will hear about Friendship Force of Olympia. Each of you can speak from your own experiences and share moments when, as a par cipa ng member, you felt touched, inspired, enlightened, changed and enriched through your involvement with our club. Most of us joined and became involved a er hearing other members enthusiasm. The Rick Steves program has an insert, invi ng audience members to a wine and appe zers gathering on Sunday, September 28, at 2:00 p.m. at the Albees Garden Place (those helping with set-up should arrive by 1:00 p.m.). continued, page 2 Don t forget to buy your tickets for Rick Steves! Vicki Martin describes her Iron and Ice cruise on the Explorer Tickets are $10 each with Promo Code FFO at h ps:// cketsales.washingtoncenter.org/ Online/default.asp# Order for yourself and a friend! 1
President s Message, continued This will be the BEST opportunity we have to share with many people what is unique and exci ng about Friendship Force of Olympia. We need F.F.O. members to take RSVP papers from the audience as they leave the theater. A warm smile and I ll see you next week will encourage people to take the next step and come to the Sunday the 28th gathering. Then we need you to come the Albee s event yourself, enjoy the party, welcome and encourage our visitors and share with them personally why you are a member of F.F.O. Fun September Social Opportunities for F.F.O. members Friday, Sept. 19: 6:30 p.m. Members of Central Montana Friendship Force are coming to share and lend a hand for our fun weekend. On Friday, a er our Olympia Day of touring the Capital Building, Farmer s Market, Hands on Children s Museum, we ll gather at 6:30 p.m. to share great conversa ons and food, at the Casa Mia on Plum St. Rumor has it that Joy DiBenedito will arrive on Friday to join in our Oly day tour. Plan on joining us for dinner, and if you have friends coming to Rick Steves, bring them along. Saturday, Sept. 20: 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Washington Center. Exclusive recep on for Friendship Force members with specially invited honored guests, Joy and Rick. Come and rub shoulders with the celebri es before the program. Sunday, Sept. 21: 10:00 a.m. at the Urban Onion on Legion Way (across from Sylvester Park). Join us for brunch with visi ng Friendship Force members from Mid- Willame e F.F., Montana F.F. and others who have come from far and wide. We ll share a meal before everyone heads home a er a weekend filled with friendships both old and new. Sunday, Sept. 28: 2:00 p.m. (1:00 p.m. for set-up) at Albee s Garden Place. As I noted earlier, this is a valuable opportunity for all of you to share with prospec ve members what you love about Friendship Force of Olympia. Wow, what a wonderfully busy month we have planned for Friendship Force of Olympia! Hope to see you at all the events. In Friendship, Gwen Harfst, President FRIENDSHIP FORCE IN TERNA TIONAL FFI, a nonprofit interna onal cultural exchange organiza ion, headquartered in Atlanta, GA, was founded with a single mission to promote peace, under-standing and friendship on a one to-one personal basis around the world. A 1992 nominee for The NOBEL PEACE PRIZE, it has 367clubs ac ve in 55 countries promo ng friendship and goodwill through an extensive pro-gram of home stay exchanges. Supported by membership and exchange fees, dona ons and founda on grants, FFI was founded in 1977 by its first president, Dr. Wayne Smith and was announced on March 1, 1977, by President Jim-my Carter at a White House gathering of state governors. Today s president is Dr. George T. Brown. The Board of Directors for the Olympian chapter meet at 6:30 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of each month except for March, June, September and December when quarterly mee ngs for all the membership are held. The loca on for Board mee ngs is at the Lacey Fire Department mee ng room at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Franz Street. The quarterly mee ngs are held at varying loca ons which are designated prior to each quarterly mee ng. The web site of the Olympia Chapter is www.olympiafriendshipforce.org. Any news ar cles, photos should be submi ed to editor, Cynthia Stewart, stewdahl@comcast.net. (L to R) Bob Freund, Lucy Browder, Joan Boileau and Sharon Ruhl visit over brunch at the Quarterly meeting 2
Social Committee On The Move Earlier this year, the Social Commi ee decided that our main mission was to: Help all members get to know each other and par cipate in meaningful ways Nurture new members, so they are brought into the group in a meaningful way as quickly as they are comfortable. Refocus on ways to retain all members. To do this, we believe that we need at least one considerable event each month. These will likely include: Small dinners (in late October) Pasta potluck Portland via train or bus. Progressive dinners Tacoma s waterfront Cinco de Mayo Picnic on Anderson Island All we need is your par cipa on! We need volunteers to join the Social Commi ee as well as other Olympia Friendship Force func ons, so please help if you can. by Dan Filip Small Dinners for the Week of October 20th We Would Love Your Engagement Small dinners will be held the week of October 20-26, 2014. These small dinners for our members (and poten al members) will be similar to those we usually organize as part of exchanges. They will be an opportunity to get Friendship Force of Olympia members be er acquainted with each other and benefit recruitment and reten on of members and perhaps involve friends who might be interested in Friendship Force. As a small dinner host your main responsibility will be to have adequate space to feed yourself and about 6 to 8 other people. You would provide the main course and guests would bring appe zers, side dishes, dessert and (at your discre- on) wine. So all we need from you via email, phone, etc., is: Would you like to par cipate in small dinners, and Would you be able to convene and host a small dinner? Please email or call Hillary Joseph at rocnhill@q.com or 360 943 4557, with the following informa on: Name Yes, I will be available for dinner the week of October 20 th for dinner. No, sorry, I will not be available that week. Days I will be available for dinner. Mon., 10/20 Tues., 10/21 Wed., 10/22 Thurs., 10/23 Fri., 10/24 Sat., 10/25 Sun., 10/26 I can host ( ) Number of people, in addi on to myself, and willing to convene the group I receive. I can t host, but I am able to par cipate. As noted above, I won t be able to par cipate that week. Send the checklist via email (see above) or snail mail at 1005 Bent Arrow Ln SW, Olympia 98512-8903. If you have any questions, please call or email Hillary (see above) or Dan Filip at 360-459-5728, danfilip@comcast.net. 3
Celebrating 30 Years of Friendship in Olympia Publicity Publicity for the Rick Steves event is in full force and cket sales are progressing nicely. We should have a large enthusias c crowd on Saturday night. What a great ar cle by John Dodge featuring Hillary Joseph and Rocky Perro in the Olympian. As my grandma always said, Many hands make light work. So thanks to all who are helping and a ending this evening. Please wear your membership badges. Reception 5:30 to 6:30 pm for Joy DiBenedetto Fellow Friendship Force members from other clubs in Montana, Oregon and Vancouver, B.C. will join all available Olympia members for a Recep on on the Mezzanine of the Washington Center from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. Joy Di Benede o, our Interna onal President, will be the guest of honor. It is likely that Rick Steves will be able to make an appearance. Sharlon Jacobs is planning and catering this event. So you know it will be elegant. Ushers Thanks to Vicki Mar n for organizing and the members who have volunteered to usher at the Rick Steves program. The latest list includes Susan Berry, Joan Boileau, Marlene Buffington, Renee Corcoran, Dan and Judy Filip, Jane Lieb, Libby Penney, Rocky Perro, Hillary Joseph, Ted Samland and Karen Langlois. All ushers will arrive by 5:30 p.m., though some will be earlier as no fied by Vicki. Doors will open to the public at 6:00 p.m. Sea ng begins at 6:30 p.m. An Evening with Rick Steves, Saturday, September 20 Last Usher (Brush Up) Training on Tuesday, September 16. September 16 at 6:15 p.m. is the last Usher Training at the Washington Center. If you need training or want a brush up before our big event, please arrive by 6:15 p.m., as the doors will be locked during the training. Once you are trained you can volunteer for any Center event. Membership Recruitment Party Sunday, September 28 The Rick Steves event program includes an invita on and reply card to a end a membership recruitment party on Sunday, September 28, at 2:00 p.m., at Albee s Garden Par es, 4127 20th Lane N. W., Olympia. Hopefully we will have a slew of new members to sign up. At the very least, we current members will have a great me. Please let me know if you can a end at judyfilip@comcast.net or call me at 459-5728. by Judy Filip September 6 Quarterly Business Meeting Highlights Congratula ons to the 2015 officers who were unanimously elected at the quarterly mee ng at the First United Methodist Church of Olympia on September 6. President: Gwen Harfst Vice President: Leslie True Secretary: Pat McLaughlin Treasurer: Sharon Ruhl We truly appreciate Gwen and Sharon s willingness to con nue serving and a warm welcome to the Board to Leslie and Pat. A er we enjoyed a light brunch, Vicki Mar n shared a fascina ng presenta on about her Iron and Ice month-long cruise visi ng many countries in northern Europe, with a focus on the Bal c. What an adventurous traveler! We all learned vicariously so much more than we knew before about that area. by Judy Filip 4
Of icers and Committee Chairs President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Exchange Treasurer Past President Membership Newsle er Gwen Harfst Leslie True Pat McLachlan Sharon Ruhl Cherie Perro Rocky Perro Dave & Laura Anderson Cynthia Stewart 360-943-0831 360-754-4556 360-866-7031 360-491-4434 360-273-5380 360-943-4557 360-352-9179 360-413-1210 Sunshine Publicity Social Ac vi es Quarterly Ac vi es Community Events Historian Phone Calling Karen Langlois Vacant Dan Filip, Hillary Joseph, Joan Boileau Alan Jacobs Alan Jacobs Sybil Jones Libby Penney 360-438-3991 360-429-5728 (Dan) 360-866-6842 360-866-6842 360-426-1857 360-438-5070 Calendar of Events Thursday, September 16 Friday, September 19 Saturday, September 20 6:15 pm, Washington Center Main Stage, Usher Training for Rick Steves event 6:30 p.m., Casa Mia, 716 Plum St. SE, Olympia Dinner with Central Montana Friendship Force 5:30 6:30 pm, Recep on 7:00 pm, An Evening with Rick Steves, Washington Center for the Performing Arts Sunday, September 21 10:00 a.m., Urban Onion, 116 Legion Way SE, Olympia Brunch with visi ng Friendship Force members from Mid Willame e, Montana F.F. and others Sunday, September 28 Upcoming Events Week of October 20 26 * Dates to be confirmed by October 10 Tuesday, November 18 January (date TBD) February (date TBD) April (date TBD) May (date TBD) 2:00 pm, Albee s Garden Par es, 4127 20th Ln NW, Olympia Membership Event with prospec ve members Save the Date! 6:00 pm, Small Dinner Par es 6:00 p.m., Pasta Pot Luck and Bunco Night Dinner & Movie @ McMenamins Olympic Club Centralia Small Dinner Par es (Progressive) Tacoma s Waterfront & Museum Local Hike and Mexican dinner at a local restaurant 5