we need you...

We have begun planning a community shopping night at Just Creations. This fair-trade store offers local shoppers products from artists around the developing world, including a few products from Ethiopia. All sales help provide a fair wage for the artisans. I can personally testify that many of the products available make wonderful Christmas gifts.

FACE2FACE will sponsor the 12/02/09 community shopping night from 6 PM to close. Just Creations will donate 15% of all sales made during this time to Arise for Children in support of Ethiopian projects. (More to come about which project(s) we will be supporting specifically.)

So what can you do? Contact me for print materials promoting this event. We would like to have each member of FACE2FACE to announce this event in their places of worship, work places, and to as many friends and family members we can contact between now and then. The idea is to get as many shoppers as possible out to the store this evening. Also, we will have an informational table at the event about FACE2FACE and Arise for Children. Please let me know if you are interested in making refreshments for the table, or in dedicating a portion of your evening to working the table.

October 10th Gallrein Farm gathering...

Please join us for our October event at Gallrein Farms Saturday, October 10th at 1:00 pm. There is a petting zoo and a corn maze. There will be food for purchase, live music, and a horsedrawn wagon to take us to the pumkin field. The group rate is $6, and this includes the cost of your pumkin--whatever size you can carry home! Please feel free to invite grandparents too.

Gallrein farms is located in Shelbyville, KY at 1029 Vigo Road. Please visit their web page at http://www.gallreinfarms.com/ for directions.

We look forward to seeing you there!

New Year's celebration a success

Thanks to everyone who attended the New Years party this past Monday. We had over 70 people help us celebrate Ethiopian culture, food, and of course New Year’s traditions.

Please join our new Yahoo group

Please join our new yahoo group for the latest information regarding FACE2FACE, our outings, and our plans for the future. Simply go to Yahoo groups, face2face_ky and request group membership. This BLOG will continue to be updated as well, and you can find a link to this blog from the Yahoo group. The group site, however, will allow all members to post and participate actively in our online community.

Our main goal continues to be to create face-to-face, in-person community for our children and our families. However, we have started the yahoo group as part of our recognition that in today's society online community is a vital component to many social groups. Please consider joining today.

New Year's celebration to begin at 5, not 5:30

Thanks to everyone who RSVP'd for the Ethiopian New Year's Celebration. We are going to have a very full house! Salem has asked that we begin at 5 rather than 5:30 to better accommodate everyone given the activities planned.

Also, please be sure you have some change in your pocket. This will be needed to complete an Ethiopian New Year's tradition. (This will all become very clear the night of the party, and your children will be very pleased!)

Looking forward to seeing you all there.

August play-date was a hit!

Thanks to everyone who attended our August play-date. A BIG special thanks to Amy and her family for hosting us. The kids had so much fun playing, and it was also a great chance for the adults to come together in community.

Melkam Addis Amet

Ethiopian New Year Celebration, September 14th

We welcome you to celebrate Ethiopian New Year with us, September 14th at The Queen of Sheba. Doors will open at 5:00, and dinner will be served buffet style. Salem, our wonderful hostess, will have traditional Ethiopian games for the older children and traditional music for the enjoyment of all. We encourage those with traditional Ethiopian attire to come dressed their best!

If you and your family are interested in attending, please contact me, Melissa Patrick, at 502-592-3246 before August 28th so that I can confirm our final headcount and instruct you on how to purchase admission. Please note, the restaurant is open only to Face2Face families for this event.

We hope to see you there!

*** August playdate Saturday the 29th from 12-3:00 ***

Special thanks to Amy Marcum for opening her home to us for our August playdate!

The kids can swim, play on the swing set or go for a "hike in the woods". If you think older kids would like to go hiking Amy suggests bringing a long pair of light pants or jeans so they don't get too itchy. Please bring your own lunch, sunscreen, towels, and bug spray for a fun filled afternoon.

If it rains you are welcome to still come, have lunch, and the kids can play in the basement/playroom.

Directions can be found on the Yahoo group or you may contact Melissa Patrick at 502-592-3246 for additional information. All Face2Face families are welcome, whether your Ethiopian children are home yet or not. We realize community is important at every step in your adoption journey.

What an evening!

Thanks to all our families who attended the Ethiopian Event this evening. The photos were amazing! It was so nice to see positive images of Ethiopia on display and with such a talented artist behind the lens. Also the coffee, art work, and company were all superb. I heard great things about the lecture, although I must admit a very vocal 21-month-old kept my family from sitting through the entire talk. (I assume my son chiming in with "No Momma, No" and "Me sit, no" is not appreciated commentary!)

It is such a pleasure to come together in community and to see our families at each step along our adoption journeys. Our stories are all so alike yet so unique at once. Some families in attendance had their Ethiopian children with them, and it was wonderful to see the kids in their traditional Ethiopian-wear. (My daughter personally could not wait to wear her Ethiopian dress!) Some families at the event are currently waiting for their court dates, and how nice to see those proud pictures of referrals displayed! There were also new faces and families interested in our little community. We welcome you all.

We are all still welcome Friday

It appears the dinner tickets for this Friday's event are sold out. For those of us who were unable to purchase dinner tickets in time, please know you are still welcome to attend the art show and other festivities. We hope to see you there!

Ethiopian Event * Friday July 31st, 6-10 * the 930

Please join us at the opening of Sojourn Church's Ethiopian Art Exhibit. There will be Ethiopian Photography by Jason Crigler, a film by Drew Layman, Ethiopian Art, an Ethiopian Cultural Studies talk, and a concert--all free! For more information on the event, please follow the link at the bottom of the page.

There is also an Ethiopian Dinner from Queen of Sheba for $7.00 and a traditional Ethiopian Coffee ceremony. (For those of you who have not yet experienced Queen of Sheba's cuisine, you are in for a treat!) Children are welcome to attend the dinner, but no highchairs nor boosters will be available. If you are interested in attending the dinner, you must register in advance. (Please follow the link at the bottom of the page, then select REGISTER HERE FOR THE DINNER to purchase your tickets.)

This is a family friendly event and we are welcome to attend as a group. I believe this event is a wonderful way for all of us to learn more about our children's heritage and share with one-another our stories.

I realize this is not much notice but if you can attend we would love to see you there! I can be reached through the yahoo group mail or by phone at 502-592-3246.

http://www.the930.org/2009/06/26/ethiopia/

A New Season

As we celebrate more and more children coming home we further recognize the need for Face2Face! We anticipate that we will soon have over 20 children in our Louisville area that have joined their families through Arise. Many of them already know one another and look forward to reunions with friends. We long to have social events for these children and other families on a regular basis. Please stay tuned for our next upcoming event.

We invite all members (and potential members) to join us for our first ever Face2Face outing! We will be attending a Louisville Bats baseball game on Saturday May 9th at 6:15. For those of you who have not yet attended a ballgame at this park, you are in for a real treat. The facilities are clean, family-friendly, and the food and drink cost is very affordable compared to other ballparks.

Group tickets are $6.00 for adults and children over the age of 3. All children 3 and under receive free admission. We have tables reserved in the picnic area, but are looking for a final headcount to make sure we have room to accommodate everyone. Please contact me, Melissa Patrick, if you and your family will be able to attend at 502-592-3246.

As with all our events, we welcome all families with Ethiopian children regardless of race, religion, or adoption agency choice. We also welcome families regardless of adoption status. Whether your children are in Ethiopia or already home, please feel welcome to attend. We recognize for waiting families also the importance of celebration and community.

Please feel free to extend your invites to those in your family who have helped you along your adoption journey, whether they are part of your individual household or not. We know family goes beyond mom, dad, and children for many of us. (We also know how much fun Grandparents can be at a ballpark!)

Welcome!!!

Face2Face is a social group to support Families in Kentucky & Southern Indiana whom have adopted children from Ethiopia. It is our goal to gather together so that we might celebrate adoption, educate our community, and maintain the cultural heritage of our children. We welcome families with Ethiopian children regardless of race, religion, or adoption agency choice. Stay tuned for events and opportunities to gather together!

Face2Face