Visit a Smithie

"Perhaps travel cannot prevent bigotry, but by demonstrating that all peoples cry, laugh, eat, worry, and die, it can introduce the idea that if we try and understand each other, we may even become friends" - Maya Angelou

Hello all,

In 1908 a residence hall was built at the University of New Hampshire. It was the first residence hall on the campus of UNH, and was built with the express purpose of providing housing for female students. Since 1908, it has undergone several renovations and additions. In 1983 it became the home of UNH's international student community. In 2008 we celebrated 100 years of Smith Hall. Residents of Smith Hall refer to themselves as Smithies and have adopted the phrase: Once a Smithie, Always a Smithie... As of today there are over 100 years of alumni of Smith Hall - all over the world.
In the fall semester of 2009 the hall director of Smith Hall, put into action a plan to begin organized student trips to visit Smithies all over the world. The hope is that these trips will educate through service and interaction with new cultures and natural environments. The trips are meant to extend the ethos of Smith Hall beyond Durham, NH.
On March 13, 2010 a group of 12 current Smithies and the hall director will travel from Durham, NH to Port of Spain, Trinidad to visit Nicole "Nikki" Lee. Nikki, a native of Trinidad, was a 4-year resident of Smith Hall and graduated in 2008. Nikki now works as an elementary school teacher. The group will spend a week in Trinidad, visiting cultural sites, volunteering in Trinidad's reforestation efforts, doing a presentation at Nikki's school, and enjoying the natural beauty of Trinidad. We will document our trip on this blog.
We are already starting to plan a trip for Spring Break 2011. We are starting to reach out to Smithies that would like to invite us to visit their country.
Finally, we hope that this blog will become a place where all Smithies can share their own experiences visiting folks they met through Smith Hall.
We look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,
Taras Ferencevych
Smith Hall RHD