Altho we traveled as a family to Disneyland in CA, the World’s Fair in New York, the Hemisfair in San Antonio, TX and places of historical interest in Washington D.C., we didn’t consider travel overseas until we learned about Friendship Force. We’d had a taste of foreign culture while hosting Carola from Germany and Jan from Sweden for 1 year each sponsored by Rotary Club and Youth for Understanding.
The Friendship Force seeks to provide, largely through volunteer efforts, a means by which people can cross international boundaries to meet and share life styles. Participants in the program believe that the knowledge, understanding and friendships developed through these personal contacts will promote the cause of world peace. The vision of such a program began with Rev. Wayne Smith of Atlanta, Georgia who presented the idea to Jimmie Carter as governor. Robert Ray, governor of Iowa ensured that Des Moines, IA became the second city in the U.S. to have an exchange in November, 1977.
Our first Friendship Force experience in April 1978 was hosting 2 men from Maricaibo, Venezuela; one was named Gus, a violinist with the Maricaibo Symphony and the other answered to Ramon, a City Water Department Employee who was awarded the trip for outstanding service and did not read or speak English. They did not know each other and came from totally different backgrounds but Gus was a patient and willing interpreter when our communication in mime didn’t work. They stayed with us one week and accompanied us on our daily work routines, Indianola friends, Jim & Maxine Weinmann who also hosted guests, Levi a weight lifter and Bono who teamed with us to attend some community activities. Gus carried his violin with him and often advertised our presence with impromptu music, making it a fun week.
Continue reading "Favorite Thinds To Do - Traveling
November, 1979 we found ourselves in New Castle, England as guests in the home of a solicitor (lawyer) and his wife, David and Barbara Houseman. They had no children but were world travelers and firm believers in the Goals of F.F. They also laid out plans for a most interesting site seeing trip for a one week drive to Scotland with 4 Indianola friends, Delbert & JoAnn Spear and Jim & Maxine Weinman. The Houseman’s visited in our home several times later and we corresponded many years until both died.
A year later in November ,1980 the Des Moines F.F. Committee had an incoming group from Seoul, Korea and we signed up to be hosts. Our guests were the Kims, a medical doctor and his wife who helped him operate a small hospital in the same building as their home. Dr. Y. T. Kim understood English and spoke a little but Soo Kim brought only her sizeable bag of ground red pepper which she added to food I prepared for them and made their traditional Kim-Chee for us, a cabbage salad with lots of red pepper! It was a delightful week and they left us with an invitation to visit them which we did later.
