jecklund

Greetings – Western Super-Regional Conference in Sacramento/Elk Grove, California In May, I had the pleasure of attending the first Western Super-Regional Conference hosted by the Sacramento California Friendship Force club. The conference was attended by 122 members from clubs from the Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountain, West Coast and Western Canada Regions including clubs in: Alaska, Alberta, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The conference was kicked off with a “Welcome” from Steve Ly, mayor of Elk Grove. The keynote speaker was Joy Justus, outreach manager of World Relief Sacramento. She has been working with refugees through World Relief since 2012. Her presentation included a panel of refugees who gave firsthand accounts of their story. It was interesting and very “heartfelt”. The conference included workshops on travel insurance, domestic journeys, leadership, recruitment, global journeys, using google docs, and sharing club photography worldwide. There was plenty of time to socialize, take morning walks, enjoy meals together and a fun Cinco De Mayo Gala Dinner! Sacramento FF Club did a wonderful job planning and hosting. I ended my travels with a Mystery Mini Journey in Sacramento. 2019 WORLD CONFERENCE IN BOULDER, COLORADO The World Conference will be held July 23 through 27, 2019, on the CU campus. You might ask “Why CU in Boulder for the 2019 conference? Jeremi’s message: Using an academic backdrop for the venue will communicate our “Mission” and experience a new direction for the 2019 World Conference and future World Conferences. The goal is to train members and leaders and have a general feeling to inspire and excite attendees toward our mission. The conference agenda will include 2 days of education/sharing, general business; and 2 days of activities, socializing events. At a president’s meeting in April we discussed the details of the conference. Ideas and activities were suggested. Presidents will ask for volunteers from each club to serve on the planning committee. Coordinating pre- and post- conference homestays in the region was also discussed. Stayed tuned for more on the 2019 World Conference. In Friendship, Sue Palmer, Rocky Mountain Regional Field Rep  

Please send this out to all your members. Brazil canceled out on a journey to Sherbrooke, Quebec, scheduled for August 2nd through 8th, so they are looking for Friendship Force members to fill the vacancy. Fees are $315 total ($150 to Sherbrooke and $165 to Atlanta). We have been able to get 7 people to commit to a new journey, same dates. Sherbrooke will take no less than 10 and no more than 15 ambassadors. If anyone is interested, we need to know quickly so Sherbrooke can plan on hosting. Please call or email me ASAP so I can let the coordinators know. Thank you. Judi Smith, Field Rep from the Pacific North West