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| HISTORY OF FRIENDSHIP FORCE |
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The Friendship Force was founded by Wayne Smith and was introduced on March 1, 1977, by President Jimmy Carter at a White House gathering of state governors. At that time, President Carter asked the governors to return to their states and identify a volunteer leader who would serve as State Director for the Friendship Force in their state. Rosalyn Carter served as Honorary Chairperson until 2002.
FF originally involved groups ranging from 150 to 400 private citizens, known as the friendship ambassadors, traveling via chartered aircraft to the partner city where a group of the same size boarded to return to the original city. Hence the term 'Exchange', a word we still use today to refer to our travel programs. The visiting ambassadors were hosted in the homes of volunteer host families for a week, sharing everyday experiences and getting to know each other on a personal basis. The first FF experience involved 762 Ambassadors in a simultaneous exchange between Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England and Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
During its first five years, a few large two-way exchanges were conducted each year. In 1982, Friendship Force travel arrangements changed from charters to one-way 'exchanges' on regularly scheduled airlines, allowing greater flexibility and a reduction of group size—first to 40 to 80 and later to 20 to 50. The change in format permitted a great expansion of the program worldwide. Instead of a few large exchanges each year, there are now 250-300 smaller exchanges.
While the size and number of exchanges has changed dramatically since 1977, the basic Friendship Force formula is the same, where visiting ambassadors spend a week at the home of a host family. While each exchange is now in just one direction, the participating ambassadors and hosts develop a shared understanding of each others’ culture so that a true cultural exchange takes place. In many cases, the friendships established during an exchange continue for many years, with follow-up visits through later Friendship Force exchanges or through private visits.
Mr. Ryoichi Sasakawa, President of The Japan Shipbuilding Industry Foundation, played an important role in the organization’s history. After being introduced to the Friendship Force, Mr. Sasakawa became convinced of the worthy goals of the program. Thanks to Mr. Sasakawa’s financial gifts in the mid 1980s, The Friendship Force was able to grow into a global network of independent chapters, which are called Friendship Force clubs. The clubs are organized and led by volunteers in more than 350 communities on six continents.
As a result of its initiatives between the United States and the Soviet Union, the Friendship Force was nominated for The Nobel Peace Prize in 1992.
In addition to its annual series of exchanges between established Friendship Force clubs, Friendship Force International (FFI) conducts a variety of specialized programs. These include the 'Discover' series designed to introduce Friendship Force members to new countries and cultures, humanitarian and educational exchanges, and Friendship Festivals that include participants from many countries.
Since its founding in 1977, The Friendship Force has brought together millions of people. Today we are active in more than 50 countries, promoting friendship and goodwill through an extensive program of home hosting, or exchanges. In 2007 alone, 5763 friendship ambassadors traveled between 58 countries, with thousands more serving as hosts.
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