Regional Conference

The Friendship Force Southeastern Regional Conference was held in Sevierville, Tennessee, April 22 through 24, 2008. One of the highlights was a talk by George Brown (shown at left), Chief Executive Officer of Friendship Force International. George gave a presentation on the strategic plan recently adopted by the board of directors. It contains the following elements:

1. To attract a new generation of FF participants, each exchange will be identified with a theme of global importance.
2. FFI will reintroduce itself to the world with a bold new look and message, linking clubs to their local communities.
3. FFI will create a sustainable club model that will result in greatly expanded club membership.
4. FFI will maximize its organizational effectiveness.

The first major step in implementing the new plan will be the introduction of a major re-branding initiative, with new logo, revised mission statement, and new slogans that will help gain the world's attention.

There were sessions on how to be a good outgoing exchange director, how to be a good incoming exchange director, and how to create a club web site, among other subjects.

Forty participants attended the conference, representing ten different Friendship Force clubs throughout the Southeast region.