By Dale
This year at our Annual Membership Meeting, we will honor the International Day Committee for their hard work in organizing our fantastic monthly meetings. We appreciate their creativity, dedication, generosity and commitment to International Neighbors. The committee members decide on the monthly themes. They plan all the details for each event, from decorations and materials to setting up for the potluck and monitoring the food service line. Ah, there is always cleaning up, too!
For many years, Dilek was the liaison between the committee and the Board. Currently, Mojgan is the liaison; she attends the monthly board meetings.
To introduce the members of the committee, we gathered a few group photos, and information about a few of the Committee members. Unfortunately, not all members are featured, but there will be other occasions to feature them. I think you will enjoy learning more about them.
From left: Nagwa, Pen Pen, Keiko, Pushpa, Barbara, Diane, DeGloria,
Kamlesh, Anna, Mojgan, Adrienne and Anita
Mojgan: I joined International Neighbors in 2015. This was the second year that I coordinated the International Day committee. I am social, creative and kind. I enjoy spending time with my family, friends, learning about different cultures, and traveling to new places .
Adrienne: In 1965, after spending my first 23 years in Brooklyn, NY, I accepted an elementary teaching position in Adana, Turkey. Adana was an adventure that led me to a lovely man named Dan Burroughs, who I'd be married to for 57 years. After a year in Turkey, we moved to Japan before returning to the US and settling in Ann Arbor. Three daughters and eight grandchildren later, I'm still enjoying life in Ann Arbor. My interest in travel has continued, along with interests in cooking, watercolor painting, International Neighbors, and getting together with friends and family.
Pen Pen: Hello my IN friends, I am Pen Pen and I am from Bangkok, Thailand - the land of smiles. I love Ann Arbor and International Neighbors very much. They have been part of my life for more than 15 years. Outside of work, I teach dance, yoga, pilates, weight training and other fitness programs as my beloved hobby. My goal in life is to keep people healthy both in body and mind for optimal disease prevention. So grateful that you all allow me to dance with you all these years.
Kamlesh: I joined IN in 2005. I feel blessed to be a part of this organization. For ten years I was a member of the hiking group, a Tea Group with mother’s of small children, a Discussion group, and my most favorite, the International Neighbors Day committee.
I traveled for 16 years, one trip every summer to: China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Russia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Peru, Canada, Alaska.
My hobbies are knitting baby blankets; I have donated at least 50 of them. I love to garden.
I am the proud mother of 3 daughters and grandmother of 5 grandchildren.
Veena: I am from North India. My hometown is Ludhiana in the State of Punjab.
I have two kids who live in Ann Arbor. My husband works at U of M.
I came to the USA in January, 1967 and lived in Berkeley, California for 7 years. After that, we moved to New Jersey to Illinois and then to Michigan in 1986. I love being a part of International Neighbors.
Keiko: Keiko is very friendly and always has a warm smile for everyone. She is originally from Japan, but has been in the US for an extended period, or more precisely, this is the second time Keiko and her husband have made Ann Arbor their home. This time, she has been here since 2018. In total she has been in the US for close to 12 years. It is no wonder she is so good at understanding the needs of her fellow Japanese IN members, as she performs her other duty as the IN Japanese Ambassador. One of her hidden talents is making a killer Caramel Flan which you might be lucky to get a taste of at a future IN Day.
Barbara: I met my husband and married him in Taiwan. We lived there 5 years teaching for the Department of Defense School System. After leaving Taiwan, we taught in the UK for 5 years before returning home to work on our PhD’s at U of M. We collected Chinese antiques in both Taiwan and UK and after leaving the university, we started doing antique fairs all over this country and in HK selling Chinese and Japanese antiques.
From left: Adrienne, Kamlesh, Diane, Barbara, Pen Pen, Nagwa and Ikuko
Ikuko: Ikuko, also from Japan, went back home last year. Although she is not a part of the IN Day Committee any longer, we would like to add her name here to thank her for all her help during her stay in the US. Ikuko is a wonderful musician who plays the piano beautifully, and who, with her music, enriched several of the IN Days, making them more welcoming.
Not featured in this article, but still very important members of the group: Ana, Angel, Anita, Barbara, Daryl, DeGloria, Diane, Maria, Nagwa, Nori and Pushpa,
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