| A Fond Farewell |
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FRONTPAGE_NO_TRANSLATION_AVAILABLE  On October 29th BuildaBridge gave a fond farewell to one of its newest and highly regarded friends. After a two month residence at BuildaBridge, it was time for Zheng Ye to return to his home in China. In collaboration with the American Baptist Church which sponsored Zheng Ye’s visit to the United States, BuildaBridge provided ESL tutoring and a learning agenda. A social worker from the Amity Foundation, Ye wanted to learn about American culture and the operational structure of non-profits in the US. Ye garnered a lot of useful information during his stay that he hopes will benefit future programs at the Amity Foundation.Ye’s stay at BuildaBridge became more than just an educational and cultural exchange; it became the groundwork for mutual friendship. While living at the BuildaBridge House, Ye assisted other volunteers in sanding and painting the façade of the antiquated mansion, and in the backyard he planted a peach tree appropriately named “Ye”. He also participated as a teacher’s assistant at one of BuildaBridge’s program sites. With his unwavering smile, friendliness, and good humor he quickly went from being a guest to becoming family. In honor of Zheng Ye BuildaBridge hosted a farewell party. A gathering of well-wishers attended the event, and three volunteers shared their culinary talents by baking desserts. One of our charitable bakers was even generous enough to decorate the dessert table with a bouquet of homegrown white dahlias. Whether the choice of flower was intentional or not, the white dahlias were the perfect embellishment for Zheng Ye’s going away party. The white dahlia is said to express feelings of respect, dignity, love, and appreciation; sentiments that echo BuildaBridge’s principles. These sentiments were present at Ye’s farewell celebration and certainly throughout his visit. We wish Ye all the best. If you enjoy meeting new people and learning about different cultures please contact our project assistant at Esta dirección de correo electrónico está protegida contra los robots de spam, necesitas tener Javascript activado para poder verla to find out how you can help us provide our international guests with an enjoyable and valuable cross-cultural experience. |