Friendship Force

Travel The World With Friends

PART FIVE: HOW CAN YOU GET INVOLVED?

If you have an interest in travel and interacting and living, for a short period of time, with new found friends from around our nation and world, then Friendship Force may be for you. This is the last of five articles. It tells you how to become involved if you have an interest in Friendship Force.

There are three Friendship Force clubs in Oregon. We will tell you about the Mid-Willamette Valley club in this article. Information about the others – Columbia/Cascade and Southern Oregon - can be found at thefriendshipforce.org FF of the MidWillamette Valley, like most clubs across the US, is comprised mostly of retired people. However, people who are working but have flexibility in use of vacation time should find involvement in FF possible. Our club meets once a month as a whole group or for smaller group activities. There are abiding friendships among those in the group as well as with colleagues around the world. Journey reports as well as journey and other activities planning is the focus of monthly meetings.

FRIENDSHIP FORCE INTERNATIONAL (FFI) IS A NONPROFIT CULTURAL ORGANIZATION FOCUSED ON PROMOTING UNDERSTANDING, CULTURAL EDUCATION AND CITIZEN DIPLOMACY THROUGH HOMESTAY JOURNEYS AND PERSONAL FRIENDSHIPS.

It is based in more than 45 countries and on 6 continents, with 15,000 active members and over 300 journeys taking place each year. Through these exciting personal encounters, strangers become friends. FFI members know that by experiencing different views, you can discover common ground with other people. FFI programs bring diverse people together into each other’s cultures and homes to share one-of-a-kind experiences not available to regular tourists. More information about FFI can be found at: thefriendshipforce.org.

FFI was founded by Presbyterian minister Wayne Smith and then-governor of Georgia Jimmy Carter in 1973. It was formed after an exchange program with Pernambuco, Brazil in which the Brazilians stayed in the Georgia Governor's Mansion. FFI was unveiled on March 1, 1977, by President Jimmy Carter and Smith at a White House gathering of state governors. First Lady Rosalynn Carter served as Honorary Chairperson until 2002. On July 4, 1977, the first “journey” took place. It involved 762 members who did a reciprocal exchange between Atlanta and Newcastle Upon Tyne in England.

As a FF member, you can participate in outbound domestic or international journeys. You have access to the journeys promoted by our local club or can participate in those promoted by other clubs across the nation, if space is available. It is not uncommon to have FF members from elsewhere in the nation participate in our local journeys. Participation involves meeting together to develop travel plans, completing required paperwork, and agreeing to be a good representative of FF wherever you go. You will need to buy airline tickets and pay the fees set by the club that will host you on your journey.

As a local club member, when we are hosting other groups, you can participate in several ways. You can open your home and host incoming travelers. You can drive guests to the various activities involved in their journey. You can serve as the host for a small group dinner. We have club members who are no longer able to travel themselves but are active in hosting others. People who are working and have children and cannot easily participate in outbound journeys could serve as home hosts or small group dinner hosts and enjoy the benefits, for themselves and their children, of engaging interactions with people from other parts of the US and world.