Sue_Heily@hotmail.com 

The Arkansas-East Bolivia partnership was well represented. Those attending included Steven and Jeanine Neuse, Bettie Lu Lancaster, Jack Springborn, George Vena, Wayne Swegle, Thecia Taylor, and Bob Frans. (Renee Power, Thecia’s daughter, though not a member of our partnership, also attended, representing Florida).

“On the Washington D.C. level of Partners, Thecia has served for 2 years on the National Nominating Committee, the By Laws committee at the national level and is currently co-chair for the 2005 International Convention Committee. Her love of Partners is evident and keen.”

Congratulations, Thecia!

In addition to the main conference, Steven Neuse also attended the pre-conference leadership training meeting. Steven, or course, is our Vice President and will become President after the current year. As a result of his attendance at the leadership meeting, he was able to proceed on to East Bolivia, with Jeanine. Wayne Swegle and Bob Frans decided to tag along, although they had to pay their own way!

For the record, my companions during this trip included my wife Jeanine and long-partners veterans from Arkansas, Robert Frans and Wayne Swegle.

One or more of these “compañeros” was with me during most of the activities, meetings, and events. —I believe that the overall trip was as much a team effort as it was mine.

-- The main purpose of this trip was to apply new insights from the international conference and to share them with our partners in Bolivia. This was expedited by the common experience in Guatemala shared by my counterpart and fellow vice-president from East Bolivia, Jorge Ibarnegaray. The insights I speak of were intended specifically to reinvigorate relationships and communication between committees and individuals North and South with specific attention to the development of new efforts in medicine, agriculture, and
archaeology and the continuation of ongoing projects in education and culture.

Early discussions in Santa Cruz were with Dr. Mario Paz, Professor of Medicine, Catholic University and new chair of Partners Health Committee, and with Father Mauricio Barcadit, Jesuit Priest in charge of Santa Cruz Social Action program, about democratic initiatives project, and with Dr. Rolando Suarez and Lic. Gustavo Crespo about drug education projects and assistance in developing Chagas research program.

Bob Frans
My report? I was along “for the ride” - that was
two-fold: visit my late wife’s native city of La Paz
and then to visit Santa Cruz, site of our many Partner
activities both past and present. I think we
accomplished both nicely. By “we” I mean Steven,
Jeanine, and Wayne. In La Paz, we were able to do
a little sight-seeing, taking in the ruins of Tiawanaku
on the Altiplano, as well as Lake Titicaca. We were
quite impressed by the progress the Government of
Bolivia has made in preserving the Tiawanaku ruins
and providing increased museum opportunities for
understanding the ancient civilization that gave rise
to this site. Lake Titicaca, as always, was quite
beautiful, and my companions particularly enjoyed
learning of the reed boat technology, made famous
by the adventures of Thor Hyerdahl.

All-in-all, a good and satisfying trip!

Two ladies from our partnership traveled to East
Bolivia recently, Caroline Kinsey and Jo Ann
Kaminsky. We excerpted Caroline’s trip report in
an earlier report, but haven’t reported on Jo Ann’s
most recent trip (this is her second).

The Santa Cruz newspaper, El Deber, reported on
their activities through its magazine section,  Ellas.  We
thought it  might be of interest to see how their trips
were viewed from a Bolivian perspective. Here is a
combined report from that newspaper, graciously
translated by Sue Heily, and in the form of
interviews from the Ellas article:

The program of cultural exchange Companions of
the Americas, created to promote and to execute the
social, business, technical, scientific, academic,
sports, and artistic exchange between people and
institutions of the world, brought to Santa Cruz,
Caroline Kinsey and Jo Ann Kaminsky. Both are of
American nationality. Caroline is a young musical
talent and she gave courses of music in Fine Arts
utilizing the horn, an instrument seemingly sounding
like an oboe. Jo Ann is a painter, sociologist and
culturalist, who dictated a workshop on the creation
of mural paintings, to teachers and students of 40
fiscal establishments.

Ellas: “What form does your dedication to this
instrument take? Is the first time that you have come
to Bolivia?”

Caroline: “I am one of the 65 people that are a part
of the symphonic orchestra of Arkansas. In my city
I give classes on this instrument, but this is the first
time that I have taught in another country to people
of a different nationality to mine. Here I am
attempting to interpret the capabilities of the horn.

I came with that specific mission, that is to say, to
inform the students of Fine Arts about the horn,
transmitting them the techniques necessary to play
this musical instrument.”

Ellas:“In your opinion how do the Bolivian
musicians you have encountered measure up to your
experience?”

Caroline: “I have only had contact
with the students and musicians that study and teach
in Fine Arts. I am surprised by the level and the
discipline that they have. I an pleasantly surprised
to find that Santa Cruz has produced professional
musicians of this quality.”

Ellas: “What are your future goals?”

Caroline: “I am returning to my country, but
perhaps in some other time I can contribute with my
knowledge so that young children and adults of
other parts of the world may be able to learn the
double horn at a professional level.”

Caroline returned to the United States with the
satisfaction of having experienced a deep feeling of
vocation of service developed through Partners of
the Americas. Caroline related that Partners is a
network of voluntary citizens of Latin America, the
Caribbean and the United States, that work to
improve the quality of life of the people by means
of activities, not politics, based on support to the
community. Besides providing technical aid and
training the volunteers promote contributions in
economic and social development through working
with professionals and institutions of the hemisphere.

The same institution and a similar mission
brought Jo Ann Kaminsky to Santa Cruz, with a
particular goal: an ability to express oneself through
the arts. She is able to
do this because of her
knowledge of psychology and training with a masters degree in education in the arts. Quite simply, this project has depths that cannot be measured in economic terms.

She related that the unique thing that this project
provides is the satisfaction that comes in response
to the gratitude of the students. That was precisely
the motivation that caused her to return so
quickly to this country.

Ellas: “What facets are present in the expression
and practice of the arts in your country?”

Jo Ann: “Not only is there delight in the painting,
but art can have educational and therapeutic ends,
for example in the creation of masks and gigantic
puppets, by way of strategy for dialogue on
attitudes, virtues and democratic values, and as
therapeutic means with adults, young people and
children in risk.”

Ellas: “Can you give examples of such
experiences in this field?”

Jo Ann: “Well I have participated in numerous
projects that encourage communities to work as a
group to recover their histories and in this manner to
reinforce their identity, expressing it through art.
Earlier this year, I began work coordinating three
institutions, Programs of Youthful Leadership of the
University Nur, Institute of Fine Arts, and partners
of the Americas. I was in Santa Cruz in 2003
beginning that work of orientation and training.

In this visit the training was on the creation of
mural paintings for the advancement of values in
reproductive and sexual health, "to express what we
feel". The workshop participants included some 65
people, both professors and students, from schools of
the urban area and surroundings of Santa Cruz. The
mural painted during Youth Fest, a festival
promoted by the Youth Program Leadership on
reproductive and sexual health, and by the
Departmental Service of Education, was carried out
in the Plaza 24 of September. Before ending, artists
and teachers expressed the hope that the participants
of the workshops continue applying these
techniques in their areas of work, “to promote
diverse themes through artistic expressions”

Adventurous readers may enjoy sampling El Deber's ParaEllas online. Santa Cruz Partners member Carmiña Fernández is editor.  Here is a link to a February 2005 article: www.eldeber.com.bo/paraellas/948/paraellas.html.
Or Google for others.