Outgoing International Exchange
Bundaberg, Australia August 25 - 31, 2016
Karen Vingiello was the Exchange Director.
This picture shows the 15 Baton Rouge ambassadors with the Bundaberg ED Don McKewen
on Lady Musgrove Island on the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef.
Baton Rouge Friendship Force Exchange #12709 to
Bundaberg and Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
August 25 2016 to September 8, 2016
The Baton Rouge Club of Friendship Force International traveled to Bundaberg and Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, during August and September, 2016, for an exciting exchange with clubs from those cities. Karen Vingiello served as outgoing Exchange Director. The ambassadors from Baton Rouge were Lin Ashton, Morena Cazedessus, Thornton Cofield, Keith Corkern, LaDeta Crawley, Mary Doerner, Thelma Herthum, Trudy Ivy, Sheila & John Melancon, Karen Pharis, Vera Ricard, Karen & Art Vingiello, and Barbara Wittkopf. Prior to traveling, the group met four times to discuss Australian customs and culture, travel plans, logistics, expectations and emergency information. In mid-August, several of the ambassadors flew into Brisbane where they were greeted by Marlene and Roy Fennel, FF members in that city, who had visited Louisiana in the spring of 2016 on a FF Global Exchange. Roy and Marlene were exuberant tour guides and showed off the best of their beautiful city.
August 25 – August 31, 2016
The exchange home stays began on August 25 with a week in Bundaberg where the hosts treated the ambassadors to a full schedule of activities. Bundaberg Exchange Director, Don McKewen, and his club members had thoughtfully planned over a dozen fun and informative activities, including a trip to the Great Barrier Reef, a visit to the Bundaberg Rum factory, a concert by the Bundaberg Municipal Band, a cruise on the Burnett River, a presentation on indigenous culture and a tour of agriculture and aquaculture facilities.
During the week, the members of the Bundaberg FF Club provided the BR ambassadors with several small dinners where typical and delicious Australian fare was introduced to the appreciative travelers. Among the unique foods were Pavlova, passion fruit, barramundi, prawns, Anzac biscuits, lamingtons, and Tim Tams. The ambassadors had become familiar with Vegemite during their BR meetings and were able to politely decline the “treat.” The Bundaberg hosts also provided a delicious brekkie on beach barbies (breakfasts cooked on beach barbeque grills) at the spectacular Bargara coast.
The Host Club memorialized the BRFF Exchange with the designation of a beautiful Moreton Bay Chestnut tree in the Friendship Grove of the Arboretum in Bundaberg.
Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey hosted a mayoral reception and afternoon tea for the BR ambassadors where he expressed his deep connection with them in two tragic areas. Bundaberg had suffered devastating flooding in January, 2013 similar to that of the August, 2016, South Louisiana flood. Two of the Baton Rouge ambassadors suffered severe property losses but were still able to make the trip. Four others were prevented from making their planned trips due to their losses in the Baton Rouge area.
The second connection was the recent, tragic loss of law enforcement officers lives in both Baton Rouge and Bundaberg. Mayor Dempsey gave the Queensland Police Service Memorial Tie to the ED Karen Vingiello for presentation to the Mayor of Baton Rouge, Kip Holden. The Memorial Tie was created by the Queensland Police Service to honor the memory of Senior Constable Damian Leeding who was shot and killed while responding to an emergency call involving an armed robbery in 2011 in Queensland. The Mayor has treasured the tie as a tangible reminder of a brave police officer and the uncertainty officers face every time they engaged in their roles of community service. He said that he would like the tie to be a symbol of empathy and friendship between the cities of Bundaberg and Baton Rouge. On their return to Baton Rouge, Karen and a group of ambassadors presented the Memorial Tie to Mayor Holden who gratefully received it.
After a farewell dinner hosted by the Bundaberg club and the presentation of the BR gift to Bundaberg, the BR ambassadors entertained the crowd with a “second line,” introducing a joyous aspect of Louisiana culture to their hosts Down Under.
September 1 - September 8, 2016
The group then traveled by train to the Gold Coast area where they were hosted by ED, Dennis O’Neil, and his Gold Coast FF club. The BR group enjoyed fellowship and well planned, wondrous days with two more brekkies on beautiful beaches. The theme of the Gold Coast exchange was “The Green Behind the Gold,” indicating that the natural beauty of the Gold Coast hinterland was as important as the commercialized cities in the Gold Coast region. Months of planning by the Gold Coast club resulted in the BR ambassadors getting to experience the best of the area.
The exchange participated in a canal cruise around the waterways of Surfers Paradise and the Broadwater. The high-rises of Surfers were seen from many different perspectives during the cruise. After the cruise, the ambassadors explored Surfers until it was time to meet at the Q1 building where they rode to the top of the 77 story building. The views of the Pacific coast, canals, and city lights at sunset were breathtaking.
Planned activities included hiking to waterfalls in the rainforest and a visit to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. Gold Coast FF member, Lance Munday, kindly served as a knowledgeable guide full of information and good-humored disinformation, such as the location of “dog trees” and “giant frogs.” The ambassadors experienced petting kangaroos, cuddling with koalas, hand-feeding kookaburras and lorikeets and seeing crocodiles, dingoes, tree kangaroos, wombats, emus, Tassie devils and many more animals found only in Australia. The Sanctuary visit included a raptor show and a sheep shearing exhibition in which Past President of BR Friendship Force, Keith Corkern, gamely participated. The visit concluded with a performance of Aboriginal dancing and didgeridoo playing.
Other activities included a scenic bus ride to the Northern Rivers Art Gallery in Murwillumbah, New South Wales. The gallery held a comprehensive art collection with a special display featuring famed Australian artist Margaret Olley. The views of rivers and mountains from the gallery provided may photo opportunities. The bus, driven expertly through the mountains, by ED Dennis, continued on to Buck’s Farm at Chillingham where the ambassadors learned of the “Bush Tucker” produced on the extensive property and exported to restaurants around the world. Among the exotic produce introduced to the ambassadors were finger limes, Buddha’s hand, lemon myrtle, and yuzu fruit. The bus trip back to the Gold Coast area resulted in a circuit of the beautiful Springbrook National Park.
The ambassadors visited the Gold Coast Hinterland & Heritage Museum of Mudgeeraba on another picture-perfect Queensland day. There they enjoyed a diverse collection of early Gold Coast buildings and household and commercial items used by early settlers of the area. After lunch at Saltwater Creek Tavern, the group went to “King Opal” for viewing of raw, polished and carved opals. Several of the ambassadors then went to Coombabah Lakelands Conservation Area where they saw mobs of kangaroos in the wild, up close and personal.
A full day at Springbrook included four impressive lookouts: Best of All, Purling Brook, Canyon and Goomoolahra. Each was different, but spectacular in its own way. Some even provided a view of the high-rises of Surfers Paradise. Afterwards, various members of Gold Coast FF hosted evening meals for the BR travelers in relaxed home settings.
The Gold Coast club held a farewell dinner at the Broadbeach Bowls Club, a site which exemplified the relaxed, good-spirited Aussie friendship the ambassadors received during these exchanges. The FFBR monetary gift was presented and the Gold Coast group matched the amount and a donation was made to the local Women’s Shelter.
The long journey resulted in memories of a lifetime as we reflect fondly and thankfully on our hosts in friendship and understanding, with the intention of promoting peace around the world, the mission of Friendship Force.
Submitted by: Art Vingiello, Co-ED with Karen Vingiello #12709 11/12/16
Bundaberg and Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
August 25 2016 to September 8, 2016
The Baton Rouge Club of Friendship Force International traveled to Bundaberg and Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, during August and September, 2016, for an exciting exchange with clubs from those cities. Karen Vingiello served as outgoing Exchange Director. The ambassadors from Baton Rouge were Lin Ashton, Morena Cazedessus, Thornton Cofield, Keith Corkern, LaDeta Crawley, Mary Doerner, Thelma Herthum, Trudy Ivy, Sheila & John Melancon, Karen Pharis, Vera Ricard, Karen & Art Vingiello, and Barbara Wittkopf. Prior to traveling, the group met four times to discuss Australian customs and culture, travel plans, logistics, expectations and emergency information. In mid-August, several of the ambassadors flew into Brisbane where they were greeted by Marlene and Roy Fennel, FF members in that city, who had visited Louisiana in the spring of 2016 on a FF Global Exchange. Roy and Marlene were exuberant tour guides and showed off the best of their beautiful city.
August 25 – August 31, 2016
The exchange home stays began on August 25 with a week in Bundaberg where the hosts treated the ambassadors to a full schedule of activities. Bundaberg Exchange Director, Don McKewen, and his club members had thoughtfully planned over a dozen fun and informative activities, including a trip to the Great Barrier Reef, a visit to the Bundaberg Rum factory, a concert by the Bundaberg Municipal Band, a cruise on the Burnett River, a presentation on indigenous culture and a tour of agriculture and aquaculture facilities.
During the week, the members of the Bundaberg FF Club provided the BR ambassadors with several small dinners where typical and delicious Australian fare was introduced to the appreciative travelers. Among the unique foods were Pavlova, passion fruit, barramundi, prawns, Anzac biscuits, lamingtons, and Tim Tams. The ambassadors had become familiar with Vegemite during their BR meetings and were able to politely decline the “treat.” The Bundaberg hosts also provided a delicious brekkie on beach barbies (breakfasts cooked on beach barbeque grills) at the spectacular Bargara coast.
The Host Club memorialized the BRFF Exchange with the designation of a beautiful Moreton Bay Chestnut tree in the Friendship Grove of the Arboretum in Bundaberg.
Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey hosted a mayoral reception and afternoon tea for the BR ambassadors where he expressed his deep connection with them in two tragic areas. Bundaberg had suffered devastating flooding in January, 2013 similar to that of the August, 2016, South Louisiana flood. Two of the Baton Rouge ambassadors suffered severe property losses but were still able to make the trip. Four others were prevented from making their planned trips due to their losses in the Baton Rouge area.
The second connection was the recent, tragic loss of law enforcement officers lives in both Baton Rouge and Bundaberg. Mayor Dempsey gave the Queensland Police Service Memorial Tie to the ED Karen Vingiello for presentation to the Mayor of Baton Rouge, Kip Holden. The Memorial Tie was created by the Queensland Police Service to honor the memory of Senior Constable Damian Leeding who was shot and killed while responding to an emergency call involving an armed robbery in 2011 in Queensland. The Mayor has treasured the tie as a tangible reminder of a brave police officer and the uncertainty officers face every time they engaged in their roles of community service. He said that he would like the tie to be a symbol of empathy and friendship between the cities of Bundaberg and Baton Rouge. On their return to Baton Rouge, Karen and a group of ambassadors presented the Memorial Tie to Mayor Holden who gratefully received it.
After a farewell dinner hosted by the Bundaberg club and the presentation of the BR gift to Bundaberg, the BR ambassadors entertained the crowd with a “second line,” introducing a joyous aspect of Louisiana culture to their hosts Down Under.
September 1 - September 8, 2016
The group then traveled by train to the Gold Coast area where they were hosted by ED, Dennis O’Neil, and his Gold Coast FF club. The BR group enjoyed fellowship and well planned, wondrous days with two more brekkies on beautiful beaches. The theme of the Gold Coast exchange was “The Green Behind the Gold,” indicating that the natural beauty of the Gold Coast hinterland was as important as the commercialized cities in the Gold Coast region. Months of planning by the Gold Coast club resulted in the BR ambassadors getting to experience the best of the area.
The exchange participated in a canal cruise around the waterways of Surfers Paradise and the Broadwater. The high-rises of Surfers were seen from many different perspectives during the cruise. After the cruise, the ambassadors explored Surfers until it was time to meet at the Q1 building where they rode to the top of the 77 story building. The views of the Pacific coast, canals, and city lights at sunset were breathtaking.
Planned activities included hiking to waterfalls in the rainforest and a visit to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. Gold Coast FF member, Lance Munday, kindly served as a knowledgeable guide full of information and good-humored disinformation, such as the location of “dog trees” and “giant frogs.” The ambassadors experienced petting kangaroos, cuddling with koalas, hand-feeding kookaburras and lorikeets and seeing crocodiles, dingoes, tree kangaroos, wombats, emus, Tassie devils and many more animals found only in Australia. The Sanctuary visit included a raptor show and a sheep shearing exhibition in which Past President of BR Friendship Force, Keith Corkern, gamely participated. The visit concluded with a performance of Aboriginal dancing and didgeridoo playing.
Other activities included a scenic bus ride to the Northern Rivers Art Gallery in Murwillumbah, New South Wales. The gallery held a comprehensive art collection with a special display featuring famed Australian artist Margaret Olley. The views of rivers and mountains from the gallery provided may photo opportunities. The bus, driven expertly through the mountains, by ED Dennis, continued on to Buck’s Farm at Chillingham where the ambassadors learned of the “Bush Tucker” produced on the extensive property and exported to restaurants around the world. Among the exotic produce introduced to the ambassadors were finger limes, Buddha’s hand, lemon myrtle, and yuzu fruit. The bus trip back to the Gold Coast area resulted in a circuit of the beautiful Springbrook National Park.
The ambassadors visited the Gold Coast Hinterland & Heritage Museum of Mudgeeraba on another picture-perfect Queensland day. There they enjoyed a diverse collection of early Gold Coast buildings and household and commercial items used by early settlers of the area. After lunch at Saltwater Creek Tavern, the group went to “King Opal” for viewing of raw, polished and carved opals. Several of the ambassadors then went to Coombabah Lakelands Conservation Area where they saw mobs of kangaroos in the wild, up close and personal.
A full day at Springbrook included four impressive lookouts: Best of All, Purling Brook, Canyon and Goomoolahra. Each was different, but spectacular in its own way. Some even provided a view of the high-rises of Surfers Paradise. Afterwards, various members of Gold Coast FF hosted evening meals for the BR travelers in relaxed home settings.
The Gold Coast club held a farewell dinner at the Broadbeach Bowls Club, a site which exemplified the relaxed, good-spirited Aussie friendship the ambassadors received during these exchanges. The FFBR monetary gift was presented and the Gold Coast group matched the amount and a donation was made to the local Women’s Shelter.
The long journey resulted in memories of a lifetime as we reflect fondly and thankfully on our hosts in friendship and understanding, with the intention of promoting peace around the world, the mission of Friendship Force.
Submitted by: Art Vingiello, Co-ED with Karen Vingiello #12709 11/12/16
Gold Coast, Australia September 1 - 8, 2016
Fifteen ambassadors from Baton Rouge visited the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary
with Gold Coast ED Dennis O'Neil and hosts Terry and Coral Gearing.
