By Chuck Johnson, President
By the time you receive this issue of The Ambassador, we will have completed our tripartite inbound exchange with San Diego and Calgary. This is by far the most ambitious exchange we have ever attempted and I am sure it will have been a great success thanks to the efforts of almost every member of Friendship Force of Charlottesville. Special thanks are due to Exchange Directors Rita Stoll and Arlene Bandy and all of you who took responsibility for individual parts of the program.
We all lament the passing of Olive Kasinoff in March. The Club contributed $50 in her memory to Grace Episcopal Church. Ken Smith is scheduled to have surgery later this month for an abdominal tumor. We wish him the best of success and good luck. Finally, Ann Farwell is making good progress in her recovery from knee replacement surgery.
I want to thank all of you who contributed money and books to Reverend Ghartey's library fund for Winaba, Ghana. The Board of Directors voted to send $100 from the club's scholarship fund to support the library project. I have heard that books have been coming at a great rate from all over Central Virginia and that ground has been acquired in Winaba for the new library.
Our guest speaker at the March meeting was Carolyn Laquatra of the International Studies Office at UVA. She described their International Community Host program in which members of the Charlottesville community help acclimate international students to life in the community outside of the University. She suggested that this would be an ideal activity for members of Friendship Force. I have brochures and application forms or you can write to International Host programs, P.O. Box 4915, Charlottesville, VA 22905.
We welcome several new members who have joined since the meeting in March including Ted and Ginny Mullinnix, Kit and Rick Walz, and Patricia Martin, all of Lake Monticello. We still need more new members if we are to keep our roster at the strength of past years. I encourage each of you to bring member prospects to a future general meeting of the Club.
Our next fundraising activity will be the Fridays-After-Five events on the Charlottesville Downtown Mall. As in past years we will be selling soft drinks. This has proven to be a good source of funds for the Club and a lot of fun for the sellers. Also it is good exposure for the Club. We have not yet been assigned our dates but as soon as they are received, Ann Farwell will be signing up members to staff the booths.
The dates and locations of the social events for 2004 are now firm. The annual picnic will be held on Sunday, July 18 at the estate of LeRoy and Helen Ida Moyer. The mystery dinners will be on Sunday, October 24. The Christmas party will be on Tuesday, December 7 at the Holiday Inn on Route 29 near Hydraulic Road.
There is still no word on our exchange matches for 2005. Our top choices were Norway, Sweden, Cyprus and The Netherlands in Western Europe followed by Chile and Peru in South America and Austria and Russia in Eastern and Central Europe.
Finally, the next general meeting of FFC will be at the Ponderosa on Tuesday, May 4. The meeting will start at 6:30 preceded by dinner for those wishing to eat at the restaurant. Because of the interest in an exchange to Russia sometime in the future, we have incited Alexander Melnikov, a UVA student from Russia, to be our speaker. I hope to see you all there.
The Friendship Force of Charlottesville held it's meeting on March 9th at the JAG School. The meeting was called to order by Chuck Johnson, President at 6:45 PM. Guests and new members were welcomed. They were: Ken and Nancy Quantokk, Jenny and Ted Mullinax, Pat Martin, Sam Forrest, and Phyllis and Jim Stuart.
Minutes of the last meeting were approved as written.
Chuck Johnson introduced the guest speaker, Carolyn Laquatra, Office Manager, International Studies Office at UVA. Ms. Laquatra spoke about the programs run by the International Center and their application and opportunities for students.
Sue Corney, Treasurer, presented the current financial report. As of March 9th, Receivables totaled $256.09, Expenses totaled $691.47, and Balance on Hand was $6,469.01.
Chuck Johnson announced the death of Olive Kasinoff, a FF member.
Incoming Exchanges: Arlene Bandy reported that 35 ambassadors are expected to come in April from the San Diego and Calgary clubs. Home Host lists were distributed to those members hosting guests.
Outgoing Exchange: John Webster announced that 21 members have signed up for the exchange to Costa Rica, September 13th to 27th.
Social - Joan Avers presented the following social events to take place this year: July 18th - picnic at the Moyer's home; December 7th - Holiday Party at the Holiday Inn; October - Mystery Dinner sometime in October, exact date to be determined; it will take place before the daylight savings time change occurs.
Cheryl Kasper announced that books are being collected to donate to a library being built in Winneba, Ghana. Books should be taken to the Christ Church, 100 W. Jefferson ST., Charlottesville, VA. Donations for shipping and for the building itself are also being collected.
Lynda Johnson, in the second of the series of talks regarding exchanges, provided information about the duties and obligations of a home host.
Bob Schwagerl revealed that there were 250 applicants for the job of Director of FFI. A selection for a new Director has been made and will be announced March 23rd. He reported that the financial situation has been reversed under the directorship of Suzie Smith - good news for the fiscal year.
2005 Outbound Exchange Requests - First choice of the members was W. Europe; second choice was S. America; third choice was E. Europe.
5050 - Donite Ahearn won $30.50, one-half of the sum collected.
The next meeting will be held on May 4th at the Ponderosa Steak House.
Respectfully submitted,
Ann Bearden
Secretary
Balance on Hand, $6469.01
Receivables:
Dues $27.00
Cookbooks (4) 36.00
VA Books (3) 6.00
50/50 29.00
FFC Pins (16) 32.00
Bank interest .53
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Total Received: $180.53 $6649.54
Expenses:
Dues to FFI $25.00
Badges + S&H 19.50
Inbound Exchange 1,000.00
Newsletter 27.97
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Total Expenses $1,072.00
Current Balance on Hand: $5,577.54
by Cheryl Kasper
Many thanks to all our FFC members who participated in the "Help Winneba Read" library building project in Ghana. Our FFC Board has given a donation of $100.00 and individual members donated $75.00. Also a great number of books were donated by our members. If you still wish to send a check, please make it out to VOP-Help Winneba Read and mail it to VOP, 703 Concord Ave., Charlottesville, VA 22901.
When you see Rita and Arlene be sure to thank them for all of the hard work that they did in making another successful exchange. The club should also congratulate its self for taking on such a large group. Look forward to the next newsletter for an extensive report.
The Ambassador Friendship Force of Charlottesville, Virginia Kenneth G. Smith, Editor 9 Leisure Court Lake Monticello, VA 22963