SI NEWS 2005 en Editorial
From SI Exco News
Thank yous
A big thank you to Sharon and Eve who have put in so much of their time over the last 6 years to produce an excellent SI News. I know that it will be a hard job to be able to keep up the standards they have set.
A thank you to all those in Barcelona who voted in the, to many, unknown person who offered to take over SI News. In Stockholm a Barcelona participant returns and greets me with, 'I know you don't I? You were elected as SI News editor'.
As to be expected there are changes in the layout and style of contents. A thank you to all those who have wanted to share their experiences, hopes and fears about Servas with the members. Many people have sent in items, some of them quite long. My aim was to include as many as possible. Unfortunately this means articles have been shortened. I do not want people to lose out on some of the excellent material provided. To cover this I am working with the ICT team to provide part of the web for news items, especially the longer ones. Hopefully when you get this you will be able to go on to www.servas.org and find the News section to see the articles in full.
A wide range of issues have been covered in this issue: find out about what happened at the General Assembly; look at the views of the Youth; share the difficulties of setting Servas up from new; enjoy the events in different countries along with people's travels. Decide what you would like to offer next year.
Communication
Communication is vitally important in our lives. It is essential that the communication is understood otherwise it can generate problems. This was seen at the International General Assembly in Barcelona where the message getting to people was not always what was intended by those who gave it.
Similarly at the local level communications must be understood. There have been many slight mis-understandings between hosts and travellers due to imperfect communication. We all must make the effort remembering we may not be using the first language of the recipient. In 1988 the editor of SI News considered the use of a variety of languages. Now we have it translated into 2 other languages. But the main communication is between members.
Methods of communication are multiple. If I wrote: EGSS 120950Z 120716 34015G25 9999 CAVOK. it could mean something to a few members. When I tried my little Amharic in southern Ethiopia it was not understood but signing was. Speech, music, pictures, writing, body language, clothing are all ways of communication. Lets use them as a way of promoting peaceful communications.
Tsunami
Dear Servas Friends around the world, Many of us have already donated money to the victims of tsunami, but are wondering if there is more we can do in the name of Servas. In the coming months and years that part of the world will need much more assistance. Perhaps the national secretaries and area coordinators in these areas could tell individuals, small or large groups, and national Servas organizations what projects are most needed. Such as: sending material for a school or a (youth) club, donating books for a library, or many other things. We can talk about this in our national newsletters and at meetings. This is just one idea. I am sure there are many more. yours in Servas,
Sharon Belden, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
In Requiem ..
On Saturday May 22, 2004 Jerzy Krasicki - founder of Servas in Krakow, Poland died of cancer. Before Servas Poland had been found Jerzy was one of the few on the List of Friends of Servas in Poland. He travelled as a Servas traveller all over the Globe including India, the US, Israel. He and his wife, Ewa's, home was always open for all travellers. He showed us real openess and tolerance to mankind. Jerzy was also an actor and writer, more he was a lecturer showing his slides and sharing love to people everywhere. We'll miss him. R.I.P.
Grzegorz Tusiewicz - Servas interviewer - Krakow,Poland
