LAMPHUN, THAILAND INBOUND EXCHANGE April 10-17 2008 28 ambassaadors including 15 teachers and 5 high school age students will visit Kern County from April 10 to the 17th. They will help us celebrate our 20th year anniversary as well as visit schools and sites in the county.  We will welcome them as part of the 20th year celebration and they will do a dance for us.  Tuesday we will have our Government day and plant a tree with our usual pomp and circumstance. The Farewell Dinner will be a potluck at the home of Geovana and Jess Karr. A more complete schedule will be available at the March 26th meeting. Lamphun is coming here after a week in Memphis, Tenneessee. Lamphun is a small province to Northern Thailand. It is 30 miles from Chiangmai. Lamphun has an older history but Chaingmai is the "big" city. We look fodrrward to learning more about Lamphun and Thailand and making new friends.

NEW ZEALAND OUTBOUND EXCHANGE Oct. 8-30, 2008 New Zealand The New Zealand exchange will take place beginning Oct. 8th. That’s when we leave LAX to go to Auckland. Once there we will be met by members of the Western Walkato Friendship Force Chapter located in Hamilton, NZ. We will be in the Hamilton area for one week and then we head south by train. We will be met in Wellington by one of the FF chapters who will host us for one night. The next morning we head by ferry to the south island where we will be met by the Friendship Force group in Blenheim who will host us for six days. On the 24th we will begin our tour of the south island. It looks like a super exchange with a chance to see much of New Zealand and to see where the film Lord of the Rings was filmed using the natural wonders of the south island for most of the movie set. We return home on Oct. 30 and will arrive back in Los Angeles on the same date. Interested? Want more information? Contact the Exchange Director, Bob Laramee at 588-1463 or via email at bookworm@lightspeed.net.

HOKKAIDO, JAPAN SEPT. 19-29 2008

Discover the Japan you haven’t seen yet! Travel to Hokkaido, an FF International Exchange exploring the northernmost Island of Japan September 19-29, 2008. Hokkaido is Japan’s northernmost and second largest island. It remains largely undiscovered despite its lush mountain scenery and incredible natural hot springs. The exchange begins when we meet the Sapporo Club members in the afternoon on the 19th, and ends when we return by bus late afternoon on the 29th to the airport.  We will enjoy a seven night homestay with the Friendship Force Club of Sapporo and  a three night bus tour visiting national parks at the northern end of Hokkaido.  We may see the start of fall colors at the higher elevations! For sure we’ll see the Hokkaido Brown Bear and other wildlife along the way as well. ESTIMATED COST: $1000 includes 7 nights home hosting and 3 nights travel including motor coach transportation and guide, accommodations, breakfasts and dinners, park entrance fees, tax and service fee. On May 1, roundtrip airfare was available on United from LAX (or from Bakersfield!) to Sapporo for $1149 so move fast to take advantage of this before a price increase!   Updated May 29,2008   CONTACT: Sandra Larson, 661-746-6056, SLWorksCO@hotmail.com. I’m looking forward to hearing from you! Sandra Larson

LOOKING FOR THE EXCHANGE DIRECTORS?
	If you are interested in contacting one of our Exchange Directors, look for names on the "contact us" page on this website. Just click on the button at the left of the screen and go directly there.

History of International Exchanges for The Friendship Force of Kern County  YEAR  INBOUND EXCHANGE  EXCHANGE DIRECTOR 1988  WALES  (assisting San Diego Club)  Dut Dauwalder (Host) 1988 GERMANY  (West Germany)  Sally Rockholt 1989 GERMANY (Wolfsburg)  Judith Serna  1990  ENGLAND  (Hampshire)   Inez Don Carlos 1991  BRAZIL  (Sao Paulo)  Gene Ballow 1992 EAST GERMANY (Jena)   Fred James 1993   AUSTRALIA (Green House Mtn)  Jim Mueller 1994  INDONESIA  Joan Pracy  1994  ENGLAND (Derbyshire)  Nedra Gilfillan  1995  WEST GERMANY (Herna)  Hildie Elges  1996  EGYPT (Cairo)  Melanie Barton  1996  AUSTRALIA (Central Coast)  Jean Mitchell/Sonja Wolsey  1997  BRAZIL (San Jose do Rio Preto)  Pat and Bruce McNichols  1997  JAPAN  (Ehime)  Sandra Larson  1999  NEW ZEALAND (unofficial)  John and Joan Witt  2000  GERMANY (Berlin-Brandenburg)  Hildie Elges  2000  AUSTRALIA  (Tweed Valley)  Carol Davis 2001  HOSTING AFTER LA CONFERENCE  Nedra Gilfillan  2002  CANADA  (Sherbrooke)  Sandra Larson  2002  JAPAN  (Tokyo)  Jody Miller/Mayrene Edmiaston  2003  GERMANY/JAPAN  Goossens/Himes  2004  HOSTING AFTER LA CONFERENCE  Mayrene Edmiaston  2005  MEXICO  (Tuxtla/Gutierrez)  Hildie Elges  2005  OPEN WOLRD  (Russia)  Sandra Larson  2006  NEW ZEALAND (Western Waikato)  Caroline West  2007  BRAZIL  (Curitiba)  Charles Switzer  2007  OPEN WORLD (Russia)  Pauline Larwood  2008  THAILAND  (Teachers Exchange)  Ben Goossen  2008  CANADA  (Capital Region)  Claudia Keith  2009  GERMANY             OUTBOUND EXCHANGES  EXCHANGE DIRECTOR   1991 BELGIUM  (Oudenard)    1994  NEW ZEALAND  (Howick & Blenheim)  Bruce and Pat McNichols  1995  EGYPT  (Cairo)  Melanie Barton  1996  BRAZIL  (Porto Alegre & Riebiero Preto)  Dut Dauwalder  1997  ENGLAND  (Derbyshire)  Pauline Larwood  1998  JAPAN  (Tokyo & Mei)  Jamie Blair  1999  AUSTRALIA  (Central Coast & Casterton)  Sandra Larson  2000  GERMANY  (Herne & Cottbus)  Sandra Larson  2001  COSTA RICA  (Turrialba)  Hildie Elges  2002  NEW ZEALAND (Western Bay of Plenty & Wairarapa & Bundaberg) George Larson 2004  CANADA  (Sherbrooke)  Bob and Kate Himes  2005  RUSSIA  (Novgorod & Moscow)  Pauline Larwood  2006  ENGLAND  (Derbyshire)  Ben Goossen  2006  SOUTH AFRICA (Cape Town)  Bob Himes  2007  JAPAN (Saitama)  Marie Krause  2008  NEW ZEALAND  (Walkata & Blenheim) Bob Laramee  2008 JAPAN  (Hokkaido) Sandra Larson