Fall 2014 Federation Focus

Federation Focus
NEWSLETTER FOR MEMBERS OF THE FEDERATION OF ALLIANCES FRANÇAISES USA|FALL 2014
Federation AF USA
Board of Directors
President
Carole CROSBY
AF Chicago
Welcome to the Fall 2014 issue of Federation
Focus, the quarterly online newsletter from
the Federation des Alliances Françaises USA
designed to help you stay current on what’s
happening in AF chapters throughout the US.
Vice President
David THOMS
AF Grosse Pointe
Vice President
Renée KETCHAM
AF Greenwich
C’est la rentrée!
Our mission to promote la langue française est
une priorité absolue (is an absolute priority) at
this time of year. Several AF chapters share their
educational initiatives in this issue which include
programs for children, teens, and adults. Read
about their creative ways of reaching out to their
communities through innovative programming
and giving their existing classes a new lease on life.
Meanwhile, we’ve had an overwhelming
response to our request for photos of your
Bastille Day events. Celebrations of le 14 Juillet
abound throughout the US! Merci to all who
sent us images of La Fête Nationale Française!
Secretary
Josette MARSH
AF Hawaii/
San Francisco
Treasurer
Matthew WYATT
AF Nashville
Marie-Laure ARNAUD
AF Charleston
2014 Convention and Annual Meeting | October 23-25, Washington, DC
Paul AZZARA
AF Milwaukee
DANIELLE BADLER
AF Denver
photo courtesy of atelierceramics.com
Suki de BRAGANÇA
AF Boston
Katharine BRANNING
French Institute
Alliance Française
New York
Join us at our annual meeting at the Washington Hilton for two days of
workshops designed to offer you guidance on creating programs and
events, fundraising, and more.
Register by
October 11.
Eileen BRAU
AF Puerto Rico
AF colleagues from across the US will gather to share their passion for
promoting french language and culture.
See page 8
for details.
Dominique GREGOIRE
AF Providence
Marie-France HILGAR
AF Southern Nevada
Pascal C. LEDERMAN
AF San Francisco
Alwyn ROUGIERCHAPMAN
AF Grand Rapids
Cynthia RUOFF
AF Kalamazoo
Barbara TUCKER
AF Pittsburgh
Federation Volunteer of the Year
This year for the first time the Federation asked
each member chapter to nominate a person from
its ranks as the Volunteer of the Year for the entire
Federation. The Volunteer of the Year candidate
is one who promotes the Federation’s Mission “by
supporting and encouraging the member chapter in
its promotion of the language and culture of Frenchspeaking peoples.” Both the volunteer and the
member chapter are recognized in this award. The
award in the amount of $500 will be split between
the chapter and the individual winner.
This year’s winner is Martha A. Bills (left) of the
Alliance Française de Chicago. Félicitations!
I m a g e co u r te s y o f Al l i a n ce
Apéritif
time
with
champagne (AF Hawaii)
WOW!...Le bleu, blanc, rouge! (AF Hawaii)
Honorary French Consul Patricia Lee addresses guests
(AF Hawaii)
Governor
Neil
Abercrombie addresses
our guests (AF Hawaii)
The Royal Hawaiian Band, the last municipal band in
the US, is playing the three National Anthems, French,
American, and Hawaiian! (AF Hawaii)
Alliance Francaise invited First Selectman Peter Tesei
to welcome the French community at the ceremony
at Town Hall. The Consul general of France in New
York, Yann Yochum, also participated along with
Jean Lachaud, the President of the Souvenir Francais.
(AF Greenwich)
From left to right: Gabrielle Goujon, Rosine Van Oss, AFB president Evelyne Harris in
the center, Marianne Vallet-Sandre, and Katharina DeVos (AF Buffalo)
Marie Antoinette greets
subjects upon arrival
(AF Minneapolis/St. Paul)
her
Children joined in the fun
with a reenactment of
storming the Bastille
(AF Minneapolis/St. Paul)
Participants were also treated to rides in vintage cars courtesy of the
Citroën Club of Minnesota. (AF Minneapolis/St. Paul)
Alliance
Française
teachers Aaron Sewall
and Linda Fuchs, with
Alliance member
Dr.
Richard
Lazere
(center)
(AF Portland)
Françoise Hibbs mène la danse, au son de l’accordéon.
(AF Salt Lake City)
A l’atelier d’art, JoAnn Oliver, Paula Collmar et Laura
Lair-Mawdsley (animatrices du camp d’été) aident les
enfants à faire des décalcomanies des monuments de
Paris. (AF Salt Lake City)
The ceremony was dedicated in honor of William M.
Frick, a WWII veteran and Legion d’Honneur recipient,
Dominick Cogliandro, and Charles W. Livingston.
(AF Greenwich)
Beachside barbeque in East Haven (AF New Haven, CT)
Thomas Geulin was one
of the contestants in the
Portland Waiters
Race held during the
12th Annual
Bastille
Festival at Director Park.
The festival drew 7,000
attendees and is the
largest such festival on
the West Coast.
(AF Portland)
On behalf of the French government, Pascal Goachet
(center), Honorary French Consul in Detroit, presented
the decoration of “Chevalier dans l’Ordre du Mérite”
to our member, Robert Weyhing (left), in recognition
of his 15 years of service as Honorary French Consul in
Detroit. Congratulations Robert! They are joined by
David Thoms (right). (AF Grosse Point, Michigan)
Masters of ceremonies Nell Nolan and Mark Romig
(AF New Orleans)
Event Banner
(AF Cincinnati)
Tangi Colombel takes the stage in Sarasota. He
performed at Bastille Day events in Sarasota and the
Twin Cities.
Consul General Jean
Claude- Brunet
(AF New Orleans)
Spectators (AF New Orleans)
Roland Durette with Florence Depont (AF Sarasota)
French Dog Contest
(AF New Orleans)
Members Marie-Françoise Poux, Florence Depont and
Michele Berenzon (AF Sarasota)
A delectable celebration
(AF Las Vegas)
More than 40 members and their guests came together
in the early evening for a buffet supper, boules, and
other AFM Bastille Day picnic “traditions” (AF Memphis)
Other musicians (AF Sarasota)
AF Memphis’ annual
trivia quiz on current &
historical events from
around la Francophonie
© Russ Mezikofsky Photography
AF Cincinnati President
Tracy sporting some face
painting offered at the
event
© Russ Mezikofsky Photography
Catheline van den Branden, President, Executive
Director of the French Cultural Center and Secretary
of the Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge and
Fabien Fieschi, Consul General of France in Boston
H’SAO performing at the French Cultural Center/
Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge’s 39th annual
Bastille Day event
© Russ Mezikofsky Photography
© Russ Mezikofsky Photography
Joe Driscoll & Sekou Kouyate perform to a 2,000-person sold-out crowd!
(French Cultural Center/Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge)
Members shared a meal together at Montgomery,
Swain Park (AF Cincinnati)
Our wonderful helping
ladies for the ‘”check in
stand”
with Jennifer
Sauers, AF Cincinnati
vice-president in front
Philip Burne and Elaine Hepworth, Alliance Française
de Boston et Cambridge Vice President (French Cultural
Center/Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge)
Left to right: Eloïse Fisher, Annabelle Pacouloute, RayAnne Pacouloute, and Juliette Fisher (AF Buffalo)
© Paul Pasquarello
Bastille Day Celebration at Elliot Creek Park (AF Buffalo)
Good Reads
4 juillet 2014
2015 One Book, One Federation Selection
The Fédération des
Alliances Françaises
USA is pleased to
announce the 2015
“One Book, One
Federation Program”
selection: Le Collier
Rouge by JeanChristophe Rufin
In a small town in
the Berry in 1919, a
judge investigates a
World War I war “crime” perpetrated by a farmer
from the region, while a dog constantly howls
outside his jail cell. Little by little the story of the
crime unfolds. What is seemingly a simple story of a
man and his dog becomes a study of the absurdity
of war and the role of fidelity on many levels.
Consistently among the top ten books on the
best-seller lists since its publication five months
ago, Le Collier Rouge is a “Coup de Coeur” of
booksellers and readers alike, and has received
much favorable attention in the press.
As this summer marks the 100th anniversary of the
beginning of the First World War, we collectively
turn our thoughts to the events of the War to
End All Wars. This book can be used in a book
club setting or as the basis for a course around
this era and its literature. Suitable for B1 and B2
language students, the book was selected for its
simple style, straightforward vocabulary and plot
line, and will, as such, reach a wide audience of
Alliance Française members.
Please visit the One Book One Federation
Facebook page for study materials for the book: a
complete Reader’s Guide (synopsis, biographical
material, discussion questions, vocabulary lists, as
well as some material for the creation of a course
around the book and World War I), as well as a
bibliography of novels set in WWI, a WWI resource
guide, and a complete bibliography of the works
of Jean-Christophe Rufin.
Acclaimed author, Academy Française member,
activist doctor, and ambassador Jean-Christophe
Rufin is the winner of the Prix Goncourt in 2001
Rouge Brésil and the winner of the Prix Goncourt.
Order Le Collier Rouge for a special price of $19.50
plus shipping from
http://www.schoenhofs.com/Le-CollierRouge_p_95449.html
Twilight of the Belle Epoque: The Paris of Picasso,
Stravinsky, Proust, Renault, Marie Curie, Gertrude
Stein, and Their Friends through the Great War
By Mary McAuliffe
In Twilight of the Belle
Epoque, Mary McAuliffe
portrays Paris in full
bloom at the turn
of the twentieth
century, where creative
dynamos such as
Picasso, Matisse,
Stravinsky, Debussy,
Ravel, Proust, Marie
Curie, Gertrude Stein,
Jean Cocteau, and
Isadora Duncan set their respective circles on fire
with their revolutionary visions and discoveries.
But all was not well in this world, remembered in
hindsight as a golden age. Wrenching struggles
between Church and State as well as between
haves and have-nots shadowed these years,
as Paris marched relentlessly into and through
the Great War—a cataclysm that would brutally
bring the Belle Epoque to its close. Through rich
illustrations and evocative narrative, McAuliffe
brings this remarkable era from 1900 through
World War I to vibrant life.
“In Twilight of the Belle Epoque this brilliant
social historian applies her novelistic approach...
to the early 20th century, interweaving a multitude
of stories to create — through skillfully chosen
glimpses into the lives of its most talented
inhabitants — an unforgettable portrait of Paris....
She blends each ingredient of an incredible époque
into a vivid and hugely enjoyable narrative of
extraordinary times.”
- Miranda Seymour, New York Times
“This is a work of serious history, but has some of the
easy charms of the coffee-table book... The divisions
of French society are always just below the surface....
All of Ms. McAuliffe’s Belle Epoque moments, bright
and foreboding, build to the horrors and glories of
the war of 1914-18.”
- Allan Massie, Wall Street Journal
Ms. McAuliffe will be available will be available
as of January 2015 via her contact information on
the AFUSA website.
Présence de l’Alliance
Française de Charleston à Flers sur Orne
en memoire de l’aide
apportée par Charleston à Flers après les
bombardements qui
ont suivi le DDay...
Marie Arnaud et Bill
McSweeney devoilant
la plaque commémorative qui sera sur
la place Charleston.
Les élèves venus de
Versailles (Le Potager
du Roy) à Magnolia
Garden en programme
d’échange.
Tasting France Through Five Signature Dishes
The following are excerpts from New York Times columnist Ann Mah’s
exploration of French cuisine in the provinces that made them famous:
Brittany: Galettes and Crêpes
Brittany draws a sharp distinction between savory galettes — made of
wholesome, nutty buckwheat flour — and sweet, tender dessert crêpes
of beau blé, or white flour. Brittany, which covers a vast expanse, seems to
have a crêperie in nearly every village, and it’s hard to find a bad one. But
the far western region of Finistère (“land’s end”) is particularly famous for its
galettes, notable for their spongy centers and crispy edges. And its capital,
Quimper, is home to the cradle of fine crêpe eateries, Place au Beurre.
Lyon: Quenelle de Brochet
Lyon’s classic dining places, bouchons, have existed for centuries. Their
most famous menu item is the quenelle de brochet, a football-shaped
dumpling, similar to an oversize gnocchi, traditionally served in a coralpink puddle of the shellfish-infused sauce called nantua. The dumplings,
made of a soft, eggy, buttery choux dough that’s been beaten with
puréed pike fish, must be poached in advance and puffed in the oven
at the last minute. Quenelle quality varies widely: inferior versions tend
to be overly dense, while the very finest feature a cloudlike texture.
Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées: Cassoulet
Perhaps no French dish has achieved greater mythical status than cassoulet,
a hearty concoction of sausages, confit (typically duck), pork, and white
beans, cooked for hours. Today, purists distinguish authentic cassoulet
as much by its recipe as its cassole, the earthenware cooking vessel that
gives the dish its name. The best versions are cooked and cooled —
preferably overnight — at least three times, a slow process that yields beans
redolent with the deep flavors of the confit and pork sausage, topped by
a thin layer of the dish’s natural juice and starches sealed in the oven.
Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence: Bouillabaisse
“The name comes from two words, ‘bouille’ — to boil — and ‘baisse’
— to lower — which refers to the broth as it boiled and reduced,” said
Doudou Daoudi, a waiter who has served the dish at various Cassis fish
restaurants since 1964. In 1980, a group of restaurateurs created the
Charter of Bouillabaisse to protect the integrity of the dish. The document
prescribes the types of fish used — among them rockfish, red mullet,
St-Pierre, monkfish and conger eel — as well as the ritual of serving it.
The best bouillabaisse combines sparkling fresh fish, a rich, red soup
vibrant with echoes of the sea, and the dish’s elegant ceremony.
Alsace: Choucroute Garnie
The dish is farm fare, honest and satisfying: an array of cured
pork — plump sausages, ham, slab bacon, knacks, and more —
accompanied by a tangy pile of slow-cooked sauerkraut, boiled
potatoes, and a dab of mustard. Where to go depends on whether
you are more interested in the sauerkraut or its meaty garnishes.
© chez mimi
Gésier de volaille confit, magret de canard fumé,
mesclum, pignons de pin et crème balsamique maison.
© francois_barbieux
Quenelle from Café des
Fédérations
© foodandthefabulous.com
Le Colombier cassoulet
dish containing haricot
beans, lardons, sausage,
and confit goose leg.
© France Keyser for The New York Times
Bouillabaisse at Chez Fonfon in Marseille and boats in
Cassis.
I sat for a while after this lavish meal — the final one of my tour —
attempting to digest both the food and experience. I had thought of
French food as a singular cuisine, but had come to understand that
it was actually a broad spectrum of dishes, each one representing
a region. Each place was fiercely proud of its local history, culture
and accent — and united by the determination to preserve it.
The article appeared in print on May 25, 2014, on page TR1 of
the New York edition with the headline: The Roots of French
Cuisine. It can be read in its entirety online here.
© Pascal Bastien for The New York Times
Choucroute garnie at Le Marronnier.
antique se profile à l’horizon. Le sentiment
unique d’un lien entre Philadelphie et Paris
redouble d’intensité lorsque votre regard est
interpellé par deux façades néo-classiques
larges et majestueuses qui abritent l’une la Cour
municipale et l’autre la Bibliothèque. Du Louvre,
vous êtes arrivé Place de La Concorde et voyez
surgir l’Hôtel de la Marine et l’hôtel Crillon.
En haut des marches
Rome autrefois a vu de ces émotions
Corneille
De là où je suis, s’élève un monde à la fois étrange et familier. Un parisien
n’en reviendrait pas. Il n’est pas de point de vue plus étonnant que celui que
l’on a en haut des marches du Musée d’Art de Philadelphie. Paris s’offre à
vous, Paris tel que les siècles passés l’ont façonné. Pour que Paris surgisse
comme aucune reconstitution ne saurait y parvenir, il aura fallu marcher
longtemps à travers les rues de Philadelphie.
De tout cela, on ne voit rien encore lorsque le regard est saisi à la descente
du train par l’étendue du paysage : Philadelphie s’impose à nous non pas
comme les pièces d’un immense puzzle à reconstituer mais comme le
cheminement complexe de la pensée humaine : la gare est un palais de
style art déco qui s’élève dans les vestiges d’un décor industrieux parsemé
aujourd’hui de tours de verres aux parois tranchantes. La ville ne livrera rien
de son mystère au premier venu qui se retient de partir à l’aventure et choisit
la piste historique pour rejoindre la ville ancienne sur les traces de Benjamin
Franklin. L’histoire des relations entre la France est les Etats-Unis est au cœur
de ce périple mais de façon intermittente tant la ville renvoie d’images
diverses : au-delà des toits de la vieille ville, les entrepôts rappellent son
expansion industrielle tandis que des façades entières, près du quartier
chinois, revêtues de fresques géantes, parlent de cultures urbaines et
conduisent jusqu’à la sculpture Love de Robert Indiana.
Le mystère reste entier : l’architecture de la ville semble être en conflit
permanent avec le plan géométrique qui la délimite. A Contempler la carte,
on se méprend… Situé au centre de la cité, dans un rectangle parfait entre
deux cours d’eau, l’Hôtel de ville, dont la statue monumentale de William
Penn domine les toits, procure au piéton son premier choc : le bâtiment
de style Second Empire rappelle l’Hôtel de Ville de Paris jusque dans les
couleurs de la pierre et du zinc qui se mêlent pour recréer les nuances des
ciels parisiens.
En approchant de la façade qui longe la troisième rue en venant de l’est, un
passage couvert vous invite à entrer à l’intérieur du building et vous rappelle
d’autres souvenirs : les Guichets du Louvre vous reviennent en mémoire, et
Napoléon III s’écarte pour faire place au carrosse de Louis XIII qui s’engouffre
dans le palais pour ressortir Quai des Tuileries. Quant à la cour intérieure de
l’Hôtel de ville, elle possède le charme des cours du Marais : l’estrade qui
trône en son sein semble dressée pour une représentation des comédiens
de l’Hôtel de Bourgogne.
C’est en direction du nord que s’amorce la prochaine étape de ce voyage
dans le temps qu’est la ville de Philadelphie. En passant devant la sculpture
d’Alexandre Calder (Three discs one lacking) qui vécut en France, un temple
Passé Logan Square, l’avenue prend le nom de «
Benjamin Franklin Parkway », s’élargit et se dote
de contre-allées que vous n’avez vues nulle part
ailleurs aux Etats-Unis mais qui vous rappellent
les Champs-Elysées tandis que le feuillage des
arbres laisse filtrer une lumière changeante qui se
joue de l’écorce des platanes. Cette promenade
aux accents proustiens vous mène vers un
écrin de pierre blanche, précédé de la statue du
Penseur, qui abrite la collection du Musée Rodin
de Philadelphie où de nombreuses oeuvres du
sculpteur sont présentées. Parmi celles-ci, la
figure de Balzac emplit de son génie une salle
d’angle qui met en scène le grand écrivain à
travers plusieurs études de la célèbre sculpture du
Boulevard Raspail à Paris.
Durant ce voyage esthétique dont vous ne
soupçonniez rien, l’un des chocs sera la visite
de la Fondation Barnes dont les collections
et les «ensembles » imaginés et conçus par le
Dr Albert C. Barnes vous offrent de partir à la
rencontre de Renoir, de Matisse, de Cézanne,
d’Utrillo, de Seurat… L’histoire de la peinture
postimpressionniste et des prémisses du
modernisme devient par la juxtaposition de
tableaux et d’objets insolites le récit palpitant
d’un moment de l’histoire de l’art raconté par
un esprit sans cesse en mouvement et curieux
de tout, à l’image de ce rapprochement entre un
tableau d’Auguste Renoir et un vase en céramique
réalisé par Jean Renoir, son fils, avant que ce
dernier ne devienne cinéaste. La visite de la
Fondation Barnes se confond alors avec le tableau
de Claude Monet intitulé Le Bateau atelier et nous
emmène dans un voyage au fil de l’histoire de la
peinture…
Après avoir aperçu la statue équestre de Jeanne
d’Arc qui prolonge notre voyage imaginaire à
travers des avenues de verdure qui semblent
mener au Bois de Boulogne, il ne reste plus
qu’à monter les marches du Musée, encadré
de murailles ornées de chapiteaux ioniques et
baignées par la lumière d’un soir d’été, pour
contempler, assis sur la pierre chaude, l’hommage
de Philadelphie à Paris et songer aux romans
parisiens de Zola pour tenter de décrire la beauté
du spectacle.
Jean-François HANS
CEO of the French Alliance Foundation
Educational Initiatives
Classes for homeschoolers
Alliance Française Minneapolis/St Paul has
partnered with two local homeschool networks to
offer French classes for children. Often, families
who choose to homeschool their children seek
educational opportunities for their children in a
small-group setting such as our cultural center.
The one-on-one attention AF classes provide,
as well as the high quality instruction, greatly
interest these families. The daytime availability
of homeschooled children make these classes
easy to schedule and convenient for instructors.
Field trips
In 2013, Alliance Française Minneapolis/St Paul
began welcoming middle and high school French
classes for school field trips. This program offers
students a three-hour experience in the cultural
center and consists of three different language
and culture-centered workshops with our native
French-speaking instructors, as well as a delicious
French boxed lunch.
expressions and quantities, shopping terminology, express likes and dislikes,
and organize activities for a weekend or vacation.
Click here to read about AF NewOrleans’s language center.
Leisure Track
Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge’s Department of Education
is pleased to introduce a new series of language and theme classes. The
language courses are designed for absolute beginners who want to gain
exposure to French in a relaxed and casual atmosphere. Theme courses
target intermediate to advanced students who want to maintain their skills
without the commitment of homework. Classes include a wide variety of
topics such as arts, current events, idioms and music.
In order to maintain high standards of education, we are changing our
textbooks for the beginner and intermediate levels. Saison (Editions Didier)
offers a wide variety of real life and interactive activities that will fully
integrate the use of our newly acquired smart board and other technologies,
as well as a digital component for student at-home use.
Tout Petit
Alliance Française de Boston et Cambridge has also created a program
for babies ages 6 to 9 months old. Tout Petit provides a first experience to
French through nursery rhymes, gentle yoga, sound and image recognition,
all in a soothing but stimulating environment.
Prior to the visit, teachers from each school
select the workshop topics from a broad range
including: la chanson française, cuisine, French
history, les régions de la France, idiomatic
expressions, French film, la Francophonie, among
others.
Click here to learn more about AF Minneapolis/St
Paul language programs.
French for Parents
The Alliance Française de la Nouvelle-Orléans
continues to develop and expand its French for
Parents educational offerings in partnership with
three French immersion schools in New Orleans.
Parents are excited to enroll in French class in
the evenings in order to keep up with their
kids. Level 1 classes teach parents to introduce
themselves, ask and give personal information,
introduce someone, talk about family members,
understand and talk about daily routine activities,
and use time expressions. Level 2 picks up where
Level 1 leaves off and teaches parents to talk
about routine activities with their kids, use time
Click here to see AF Boston and Cambridge’s language offerings.
La Petite Ecole de l’Alliance Française de Charleston
Sunday School of the French Protestant Huguenot Church
Pour sa troisième année la Petite Ecole rouvre ses portes sous la direction de
Sandrine Wathey.
Click here to visit AF Charleston’s language center.
French for Francophone Children
AF Sarasota in Florida is now offering French for Francophone children in
response to more and more French nationals moving to the Sarasota area
who have young children who already speak French at home and would like
to learn how to read and write French.
2014 Convention and
Annual Meeting
SCHEDULE
Thursday, October 23rd
Activities will be planned by the Fondation for
their Etats Généraux on Thursday and continuing
until Friday 11 am. Contact the Delegation for
further information at professionnalisation@
fondation-alliancefr.org.
Friday, October 24th
12:00 pm Federation’s Opening Ceremony – Prix
Charbonnier Luncheon honoring Justice Stephen
Breyer
2:30 pm – 5:30 pm Federation Workshops at the
Hilton
Saturday, October 25th
9:00 am – 5:00 pm Federation Workshops at the
Hilton
7:00 pm – 8:00 pm Closing Reception
J’aime les Croissants
J’aime les croissants au beurre
Qui me transportent le cœur
Dans un monde meilleur
Me dévoilant toute sa saveur
J’aime les croissants au beurre
Dont l’odeur
Me fend le cœur
Faisant l’effet d’apesanteur
Et quand vient l’heure
Revient la peur
Qu’il n’y ait plus de beurre
WORKSHOPS
Please see the annual convention page on our
website for the latest schedule.
Dans mon croissant au beurre
Ô, les croissants !
R E G I S T R AT I O N
Deadline to register for the Federation of
Alliances Françaises, USA Convention and
Annual Meeting is October 11, 2014.
We are offering a free standard registration to the
2nd attendee per member chapter. If you are the
2nd person to register from your chapter, please
let us know. There will be workshops on Friday
afternoon and Saturday - you may register with
the form or online.
Email or mail
Download the Word document registration form
to complete and send to the office. (Addresses are
on the form.)
Online
Or you may register online either as Standard or
Patron and you will have the option to add the
Prix Charbonnier luncheon:
• STANDARD - FAF 2014 Convention & Annual
Meeting Washington DC – STANDARD ($125)
• PATRON - FAF 2014 Convention & Annual
Meeting Washington DC – PATRON ($150)
Si croustillants et bouleversants !
Si émouvants et dérangeants !
Et finalement,
Si scintillants et appétissants !
Ô, les croissants au beurre !
Faisant battre mon cœur
Me demandant à chaque heure
Si leur montant de beurre
Sera assez pour combler mon cœur de bonheur.
Written by Noah Conklin, Matthew Galloway,
Zoe Garderet, Sophia Herro, Mia Kotelec,
and Gwyneth Rider
Professeur: Sylvie HORNING
Ecole: All Saints’ Day School
Images courtesy of
http://the-wandering-girl.blogspot.com/
Educational Initiatives
(continued)
Thematic Classes for Adults
For the adult community, AF Sarasota has begun
offering enrichment classes in addition to their
regular French language classes. These are called
our thematic classes. Some of the enrichment
subjects include “A brief history of France through
French film,” “Comprendre Haiti à Travers son
Histoire et sa Culture,” “Lebanon, A Francophone
country,” and “Une promenade à…..”.
Click here to visit AF Sarasota’s language center.
David McCullough, Légion d’Honneur
On September, 8,
the Consul General
Mr. Fabien Fieschi
of Boston bestowed
the rank of Officer
of the Légion
d’Honneur (Legion
of Honor), France’s
highest civil and
military distinction,
upon the renowned
American author
and historian, Mr.
David McCullough, whose books led a renaissance of interest in American
history and often highlighted the important role of France in it. Among
other awards, McCullough was the recipient of two Pulitzer Prizes and two
National Book Awards. His works have been published in ten languages,
over nine million copies have been printed, and all of his books are still in
print. The beautiful ceremony, organized by Suki de Bragança, was held at
the French Cultural Center of Boston, and Mr. Mc Cullough delivered a very
moving speech, recalling the profound link between French and American
history.
Hermione
For October, we are going back to France where history is again in the
making with the life- size replica of the Hermione, the French navy frigate
made famous when it arrived in Boston to help fight in the American War of
Independence. She will embark on her maiden voyage from Rochefort after
years of restoration that recreated the three- masted vessel. The restoration
project used only eighteenth - century shipbuilding techniques and cost
25 million euros ($32 million). No one has navigated a ship like this in two
centuries. Once the sea trials for the 12-pounder Concorde class frigate of
the French Navy are over, the Hermione will set sail for the United States in
April 2015 following the route that the Marquis de Lafayette took aboard
the original Hermione in 1780 to bolster the American Revolution. Yann
Cariou, an ex-naval officer, will captain the ship for its voyage to Boston. The
original Hermione took Lafayette 38 days to cross the Atlantic, a voyage that
confirmed his renown as a military mastermind. She fought in several battles
against the Royal Navy in the Americas before returning home to Rochefort.
Her service came to an end in 1793 when she ran aground off the French
coast and was subsequently wrecked by heavy seas.
Hermione US Tour 2015
6 to 15 June
Saturday 6 June & Sunday 7 June – Yorktown, VA.
Arrival of the Hermione. “Hermione” days.
Hotel Duke of York – 2 nights
Duke of York Hotel – breakfast & dinner
Monday 8 June – Georgetown, Washington, DC
Afternoon departure by private bus to
Washington, DC.
Holiday Inn Hotel in Georgetown, on Wisconsin
Avenue, NW, 8 nights.
Breakfast & dinner
Tuesday 9 June – Georgetown, Washington, DC
Excursion to Mount Vernon where the Hermione
will stop. Guided tour to the residence of General
Washington.
Holiday Inn Georgetown – breakfast & dinner
Wednesday 10 June & Thursday 11 June –
Georgetown, Washington, DC
“Hermione” days in Alexandria by bus. Optional trip
to Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s plantation.
Holiday Inn Georgetown – breakfast & dinner
Thursday 12 June & Friday 13 June –
Georgetown, Washington, DC
Guided bus tour of the different museums and
galleries in Washington, DC: National Gallery of
Art, National Air & Space Museum, Smithsonian
Institution, and National Mall.
Holiday Inn Georgetown – breakfast & dinner
Saturday 14 & Sunday15 June – Georgetown,
Washington, DC
Hermione to Annapolis, the Naval Academy. Guided
tour. “Farewell Hermione” party organized by the
Friends of Hermione.
Holiday Inn Georgetown – breakfast
& dinner (Saturday night only)
Price per person: $2,840/person based on double
room; $3,750/person in single room
Contact: [email protected]
The quotation is based on 50 persons for 10 nights following the
French program and the Hermione schedule. Included in the
price: hotels mentioned in the program; dinner with water only,
no alcohol; transportation in private bus with limited hours and
mileage; and private guided tours mentioned in the program.
Not included in the price: international or domestic flights &
transfers from or to the airports; personal insurance; coffees, teas,
juices, alcoholic beverages; personal expenses; or tips to the
guide and the driver. It is possible to modify the number of nights
and the number of participants. The price will change upon the
modification. The agency is not responsible for any change in the
schedule due to the Hermione crossing the Atlantic.