WELCOME

Friendship Force of the San Francisco Bay Area (FFSFBA) is an organization that participates in one week home stay journeys (once called exchanges) both at home and abroad. Our purpose is to experience countries and cultures different from ours, to promote understanding between each other, and to cultivate friendships. We are a member club of Friendship Force International.

Here are a few pictures from our recent visit to the 9th District Courthouse and Salesforce Gardens. 

This years regular meetings and events with their dates are shown below. Please register your planned attendance when they appear to the left as UPCOMING EVENTS. Look for the emails to announce that registration is open. 

1. Our meeting for World Friendship Day is set for Saturday March 8th, 2025. This event is still in planning. We usually plan an excursion of some kind. Last year we toured the Google Visitors Center and had lunch nearby

2. May 3rd is our birthday. We usually hold a meeting around this time. Look for further information here. 

3. We will hold our Annual Summer Picnic and BBQ on Sunday July 13th, 2025 in one of our backyards or at a local park.  Last year's picnic was around the pool in Eric and Suzan Miller's yard in Woodside.  

4. We hold our Annual Meeting with Journeys in Photos on Saturday September 6th, 2025.  We do some club business and elect officers for 2026.  The primary purpose though is to recap past journeys and plan for 2026 and express our wishes for 2027.  Guests and visitors are welcome! This is the time to learn what our club is about. Last year we met at the Santa Clara Library. 

5. Just before Christmas we meet for our Annual Holiday Luncheon on Saturday December 11th, 2025. For the past few years we have held our luncheon at Michaels at Shoreline in Mountain View. We eat and are entertained by the Mountain View Madrigal Singers. Most likely we will continue the tradition this year. 

Upcoming Journeys for 2025

1. Our first Inbound Journey will be from 12 ambassadors of San Jose, Costa Rica, on August 16th to the 23rd. A postponement was necessary because of Visa problems. Our Rose Marie Everett is the Journey Coordinator and planning is underway but suspended until the visa's are confirmed. 

2. Our first Outbound Journey is domestic with the Western Kentucky Club on May 7th to 13th, 2025. We are now looking for members to confirm your interest in the trip.  Take note of the the Event Notice to the left. You can confirm your interest with the registration button or contact Dave Rice at daver273@gmail.com. We will make a final decision, whether we have enough ambassadors to journey, on January 31st. 

3. Our International Journey will be in October of this year, potentially two home-stays in Mexico, in Chiapas (Tuxtla Gutierrez) and Veracruz (Coatepec). Let us know your interest now! That helps in the planning (daver273@gmail.com). We need a Journey Coordinator for this Journey. 

4. At this time our assigned Domestic Inbound is from Ontario Canada in November. So far they have not committed to the journey. 

Lets Eat Out (LEO's) for 2025

Look to the left in UPCOMING EVENTS to see the schedule of LEO's, Let's Eat Out. LEOS are open to guests and members. If you are new to us you can register on our Meet-up page, or just show up - you will be welcome! For a LEO we all meet a a designated restaurant for drinks and/or dinner and possibly share an excursion. 

LEO's in planning for this year are:

-January 16, 1 pm – Burma Bay Café, 47966 Warms Springs Blvd, Fremont. Host: Judy Walter

-February 11, 11:30 – Donald Hicks, Campbell. After lunch we will visit the nearby Campbell Museum. Host: Helga Campbell

-March 13, 11:30 – El Patio Mexican Restaurant, 37311 Fremont Blvd, Fremont. Host: Martha LeRoy

-April 9, 11:30 – Eataly, Westfield Mall, 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd, Santa Clara. Host: Linda Guyer

-June 20, 11:30 – Ginger Café, 398 W. El Camino Real #114, Sunnyvale. Host: Shirley Foreman

Local Events

We hold regular meetings including a World Friendship Day celebration, an annual picnic, and a holiday luncheon. We also schedule events with speakers and local tours. In preparation for our journeys, we hold meetings exploring their cultures.