Dear
Friends,
Summer has arrived along with hot weather. People are moving around more
and getting out after fifteen months of “hibernation”. Travel is on the
minds of many and it is happening. Friendship Force Dallas is finally
having an Inbound Journey October 14th – 21st.
Clearwater, Fl. (Suncoast FF Club) will be our guests. Carolyn McMurray
is the Journey Coordinator and will be looking for volunteers. This is
an excellent way to participate in our mission – “Building world
understanding through personal friendships”. More Journeys are planned
for 2022. Stay tuned and involved. . I look forward to seeing you on
Zoom at our next meeting
Isabella Iverson, President
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Meetings coordinator – Paula Rose
paularose2000@hotmail.com
Members will receive a Zoom link 2 weeks
and 1 week prior to each meeting and the day of the meeting.
Guests, for the link, please contact edward perez at
erperez54@gmail.org
No reservation is needed. For information contact Paula Rose at
paularose2000@hotmail.com
A full calendar of the meeting schedule for 2021 can
be seen on the
Meetings.page.
July
Meeting
Felicity Sentence will present a program on the Stove building
project in Guatemala.
Date/time: Saturday, July 10th 3 – 5pm
Location: Zoom online
FFD members will receive several invitations to the meeting.
Guests are very welcome – please contact
edward perez at
erperez54@gmail.com for an invitation.
No reservation needed.
Info: Paula Rose at
paularose2000@hotmail.com
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Special
Presentation
Composition to Improve Travel Photography
Mark your calendar for this special program by Sharon Swallwood
who is a member of FF Sunshine
Coast and award-winning photographer whose website is
https://worldreflections.pixels.com/
Date/time: Saturday, July 24th at 3pm
Location: Zoom online
FFD members will receive several invitations to the meeting.
Guests are very welcome – please contact edward perez at
erperez54@gmail.com for
an invitation.
No reservation needed.
Info: Paula Rose at
paularose2000@hotmail.com
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August
Meeting
Date/Time: Saturday August 14, 3-5 pm
Location: Zoom online
Program: Gems of Central Europe
Presenter: Mary Williams
Visit some off-the-beaten track sites in Europe that are well
worth seeing - the beautiful Baroque architecture of Budapest,
Lake Bled and Lublyana in Slovenia, Mostar Bosnia, Kotor Bay
Montenegro, the waterfalls of the Plitvice Lake in Croatia and a
Windmill park and a medieval city in Germany.
Members will receive a meeting flyer and Zoom link in their
email.
Guests: please contact edward perez to be invited to join this meeting.
No reservation needed.
Info: Paula Rose - paularose2000@hotmail.com
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There will also be Member Connections get-togethers on Third
Thursday and Book Club on Fourth Tuesday of each month. See
Member Connections.
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International Journey information – coordinator Sandy Kaiser:
coachsandykaiser@gmail.com
Domestic Journey Information - Coordinator Julia Cooper:
acjc1804@hotmail.com
FINALLY – A JOURNEY!
During the week of October 14th – 21st, the
Clearwater
Florida (Sunshine Coast Club) will visit us.
Carolyn McMurray has been appointed Journey
Coordinator for this inbound group and will need our
help. Presently, she’s seeking a volunteer to be the day host
coordinator and members to be day hosts.
For those of you who are new members, day hosts transport and
accompany our visitors on the daily
outings. You can volunteer to host one or more of the days. During
this time you get to know the visitors
and some parts of this area with which you might not have been
familiar. Carolyn can be reached at
cmcmurray322@gmail.com
.
In addition, these Journeys are in the works:
Madison, WI inbound - confirmed for spring 2022 -
dates TBD
Cedar Rapids WI inbound (not yet confirmed)
Santo Angelo and Florianopolis, Brazil - 2022 outbound
(we have accepted this Journey assignment and await
acceptance from these clubs)
Don’t forget to check the FFI website for other possible adventures
for 2021 as travel begins to open up
https://www.friendshipforce.org/journeys/.
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On a travel note, this is a sobering article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/06/us/politics/older-americans-drug-trafficking.html?referringSource=articleShare
Also check the FFI website for Virtual Experiences now and other possible adventures
for 2021 as travel begins to open up
https://www.friendshipforce.org/journeys/
UPDATE: See COVID regulations on the
Journeys page.
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FFI – Virtual Journeys
And if actually traveling is still in the future for you, try a
Virtual Experience – a class, a part of the world, a lecture. Here’s
a direct link to the Virtual Experiences page:
https://blog.friendshipforce.org/virtual-experiences/
Virtual Experiences
Here are a few available soon. To make sure you have the correct
starting time for your time zone, it's easiest to visit our FF
Virtual Experience Page. You can see a time zone converter under
each event. Just click on it and it'll show you the starting time in
your time zone automatically.
Time Zone converter:
https://blog.friendshipforce.org/virtual-experiences/
Here's a direct link to the FFI Blog which has links to the
Friendship Connection newsletters.
https://blog.friendshipforce.org/ . Here are a few:
Trivia Quiz
Monday, July 12, 2021, 1:30 p.m. CDT
Host: Kerstin Hogan, FFI Staff
Friendship Force members around the world are invited to join this
entertaining trivia quiz with a new set of questions every month!
After a short introduction to meet you all, we will put you in
virtual rooms in small teams for four rounds of questions. There
will also be plenty of time for chit-chat. You’ll need a separate
mobile phone to take pictures during the quiz. REGISTER on the blog
page
Faces & Places:
Baltic Cruise Part 1
Thursday, July 29, 2021, 1:00 pm CDT
Hosts: Anna & Peter Guthrie, FF Eastern Washington and Northern
Idaho
Experience a virtual cruise of the Baltic region. We’ll take you on
a visual journey of the Friendship Force Enrichment Voyage of 2014,
organized in partnership with the Semester at Sea program. Starting
in Hamburg, Germany, we passed through the Kiel Canal and along the
southern coast of the Baltic Sea stopping in Germany, Poland,
Lithuania, and Estonia, on our way to St. Petersburg, Russia. After
three days in St. Petersburg, we headed back west to Helsinki,
Finland, and then Stockholm, Sweden, our point of disembarkation.
150 of the 700 passengers on board were members of Friendship Force.
REGISTER on the Blog page
Faces & Places:
Baltic Cruise Part 2
Thursday, August 5, 2021, 1:00 pm. CDT
Hosts: Anna & Peter Guthrie, FF Eastern Washington and Northern
Idaho
Experience a virtual cruise of the Baltic region.We’ll take you on a
visual journey of the Friendship Force Enrichment Voyage of 2014,
organized in partnership with the Semester at Sea program. Starting
in Hamburg, Germany, we passed through the Kiel Canal and along the
southern coast of the Baltic Sea stopping in Germany, Poland,
Lithuania, and Estonia, on our way to St. Petersburg, Russia. After
three days in St. Petersburg, we headed back west to Helsinki,
Finland, and then Stockholm, Sweden, our point of disembarkation.
150 of the 700 passengers on board were members of Friendship Force.
REGISTER on the Blog page
Friendship Force Virtual Experience Recordings:
Including Virtual Travel Experiences in many countries, cooking,
Zoom training, languages, crafts, photography and more.
Access Virtual Experiences Catalog Here!
https://blog.friendshipforce.org/virtual-experiences/
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The Travel Book Club
Chair: Barbara Taylor -
be_taylor@verizon.net
Our June selection was Mud and Stars by Sara Wheeler. It follows Sara
through Russia visiting many of the sites associated with the great
Russian literary giants. You get a taste for the scenery, food and
various Russian personalities as she travels across Russia and cross
continent. And we learned 200% more than most of us ever knew about the
Russian authors. Several found it wasn't an easy read but enjoyed
interesting insights into both 19th century and modern-day Russia.
July Book Club (on July 27, 2 pm) takes us along the beautiful
Appalachian Trail, this time with an intrepid and humorous man in A Walk
in the Woods by Bill Bryson. I hear it is extremely funny - great way to
end our first year!
If you haven’t joined us before, send an email to be_taylor@verizon.net
I will send you the Zoom link. You do not have to read the book to join
us; come and listen, or better yet, share any trips you have made on the
Appalachian Trail or a beautiful drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Friends from other FFI organizations are welcome, too!
August is our 1st Anniversary! August will be one year since we started
FFD Book Club, and we are making some changes to the structure and
process. The August meeting will be a planning meeting where we will
select the books for the coming year and the discussion leaders for each
month. We also will decide which months we will have in-person meetings.
So come join us and have your thoughts and opinions make a difference
for our second year! If there is a book you believe would be a good fit
for the club, please send the title and author to Barb before the
meeting for inclusion in the list of nominees.
Thanks, Barb Taylor
Speaking of books, Mary Williams has a spare copy of
All the Light We
Cannot See, the wonderful book set in France and Germany during WW
II by Anthony Doerr, if anyone wants it.
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Jim Bourn
On Saturday July 10th from 2:00 – 4:00PM there will be a ‘Celebration of
Life’ Gathering held for Jim Bourn who was a very active FFD member for
many years. It will be held in the Fellowship Hall of the Unity Church
at 6525Forest Lane (between Hillcrest and Preston).
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Shuttle Rides
Shuttle Coordinator Aurora Madrigal -
aurora487@sbcglobal.net
For those of you still doing some traveling, or for running errands,
remember, use our volunteer shuttle service (see page 45 in your
yearbook). Make a new friend or learn about a friend's journey/trip
during that ride to/from the airport. Send an email to
ffdallas-shuttle@googlegroups.com with info on date, time, and place
for pickup and/or drop-off. Want to become a shuttle driver? Send an
email to Aurora Madrigal
aurora487@sbcglobal.net for more info.
Business Cards
Remember - you can order your own FFD business cards from Mary Williams.
Give them to people who ask about Friendship Force. This service is
free.
Facebook
You can also let your friends and family know about Friendship Force by
sharing yours experiences on your social media account(s). Invite them
to attend an upcoming monthly meeting, an event or an inbound or
outbound journey. FF of Dallas has a Facebook page that you can like and
follow as well as share with your other FB friends.
https://www.facebook.com/FriendshipForceDallas/.
Board
Board meetings are being held via Zoom. All members are welcome to
attend. Please contact our president, Isabella Iverson (
Iiverson12@sbcglobal.net )
for dates, times and a link to Zoom if you wish to attend. In July the
Board meets on July 12 at 1:30 pm.
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Newsletter Apprentice Wanted
WOULD YOU LIKE TO HELP FRIENDSHIP FORCE DALLAS AND LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR
CLUB FROM YOUR HOME?
DO YOU HAVE WRITING, COMPUTER AND ORGANISATIONAL SKILLS?
Then you might like to apprentice with Felicity as editor of this
newsletter sent to members every other month. The role of editor
involves:
- Attend the board meeting each month via Zoom
- Keep up to date with club activities
- Obtain email updates for the upcoming newsletter
- Transfer this information to the newsletter template
If you’re interested in learning more please contact Felicity Sentance at
fsentance@gmail.com.
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by Vice-President Membership - edward perez,
erperez54@gmail.com
Membership
News and Updates
Summertime 2021 is here with sun, heat and fun. Oh wait,
it's more like rain, heat, and fun :^) Regardless of the weather, we've
had lots of great FFD meetings & events! If you have ideas for
Membership Connections topics and/or locations, or if you'd like to
volunteer to organize and/or host any sort of gathering, field trip,
picnic, tasting, etc., then please let me or any board member know!!
Wishing you a safe and healthy summer!
edward perez, Vice President Membership
erperez54@gmail.com
New Members
No recent new members. Current numbers are 68 members (including
1 Emeritus) in 53 households. Back in May, I emailed a yearbook update.
If you didn't receive it or couldn't open it, let me know and I'll get
you a copy. If you have any updates to your contact info, let me know so
I can include it in the next newsletter.
Membership Connections
On June 17, we met at Aboca's Italian Grill for "3rd Thursday"
- lots of conversations, sharing experiences, and great Italian food.
Then, on Sat Jun 19, thanks to Julia Cooper for suggesting and to Patty
Niemeyer for locating the farm, 12 FFD members drove up near Gainesville
TX to visit the Lavender Ridge Farms and have lunch at their Cafe. Great
lavender plants, gardens, and flowers, great weather, great food
(especially the Lavender Lemonade and Desserts), and great friends and
conversation.
The next "3rd Thursdays" will be on July 15th and August 19th. Look for
announcements in your email. Know of a great restaurant for lunch? Know
of a great place we can visit? Want to host a gathering at your home? If
so, let me know so we can plan a Membership Connections event.
Membership Anniversaries
The following members are celebrating a membership anniversary this
year. Next time you see them,
congratulate them on their anniversary - and ask them about some of
their FF experiences.
25 yrs
1996 Ray Enstam
1996 Mary Williams
20 yrs
2001 edward perez
2001 Paula Rose
2001 Mary Suther
15 yrs
2006 Patricia Andeweg
10 yrs
2011 Art Cooper
2011 Julia Cooper
2011 Patti Pierce
5 yrs
2016 Marcia Walker
More Membership Connections
Recently, Jackie Wald who moved with her husband, Michael, to
Albuquerque NM, attended a meeting of
FF Albuquerque and bumped into Joan Mirabal and Cheryl Lehmbert who had
been members of FFD
before moving to NM. Small world! Here are some pics:
Cheryl Lehmbert
Joan & Al Mirabal
Jackie Wald & Joan
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Let People Know About FFDallas!
THANKS to those members who have invited your friends, family,
and members of other clubs to our meetings and events. Word of mouth is
one of our best ways to attract new members! So, invite folks to attend
an upcoming monthly meeting, an event, or an inbound or outbound
journey. Just forward our emails to them about the event and/or our
newsletters.
And if you know of a group that might be interested in learning about
FF, please contact me. Or share your experiences on your social media
account(s). FF of Dallas has a Facebook page that you can like and
follow as well as share with your other FB friends.
https://www.facebook.com/FriendshipForceDallas/
Changes and Updates
If you move or change your contact information (phone number, email
address(es), etc.), let eward perez know.
Replacement Badges
Need to replace a lost or damaged badge? Need a replacement magnet? If
so, please contact
edward perez who
will order a new one. Replacement badges are $14 (mailed to your home)
or $11 (pickup in Richardson). Magnets are free.
edward perez vice president, membership:
erperez54@gmail.com
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Zoom
I've helped several members get Zoom installed on their computer, get
Zoom running, and learn how to share their desktop or a program. If you
would like some assistance in anything Zoom, please contact me. I hope
that everyone is staying healthy, safe, and upbeat in your physical
distancing! It’s been good seeing folks during our online meetings.
edward perez
Don’t forget you can keep up with what’s going on at FFI by clicking on
the link below. FRIENDSHIP CONNECTION - if you’re are not receiving it
or other emails from FFI, you can go to the FFI home page
https://www.thefriendshipforce.org/ then go to the bottom, put your
email address in the "email address" box under "Newsletter", then click
Subscribe.
Check the FFI website for other possible adventures for 2021 as travel
begins to open up. Go to the FFI home page
https://www.thefriendshipforce.org/ and click on "News & Updates"
for the Blog page and "Virtual Experiences" for the Virtual Experiences
page.
Here's a direct link to the FFI Blog which has links to the Friendship
Connection newsletters.
https://blog.friendshipforce.org/.
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June
Meeting
Festival
at Sea Cruise: Northern Europe