How it all began!
Family to Family International began in the fall of 1991. David Lewis, a resident of London, Ontario, Canada and his wife were watching the news showing the fall of the former Soviet Union. The CNN story was showing a young family in Moscow who had very small supply of foodstuff. The factory in which the father was employed was closing due to the change to a free market economy. The man was out of a job, with a wife and three small children. David and his wife very much wanted to help out this family. If there was a way to directly help them, not through a huge organization, they would find a way. Well, there simply was no way. There were a number of areas where it was possilbe to donate cash to worthy organizations working over there. There seemed to be no way to directly contact and help a specific individual family.
With a simply idea in mind, David drove 8 hours to Ottawa, Ontario. There he approached the Russian, Romanian, and Bulgarian Embassies. He pitching the idea that there were other Canadian families like his own, who desired to help out, if they could be twinned with a specific family to care for. All three embassies agrees and said they would assist in the effort to find specific families in their countries. With a few words of gratitude, and the hopes thatr there would be a response, he returned home to London. A few week went by, then a few more. Nothing. Early in May, 1992 David went to get the mail for the day. That day there were over 1,700 letters waiting for him. Letters from across the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Newspaper clippings from foreign newspapers explaining the efforts of Family to Family. People were responding from news releases heard on Radio Baltica, Radio Canada International, Latvian Television, on reference from the Mayors Office's in major cities.
The following day David and Sherrie began finding other families who would like to care for and befriend a family giong through a hard time overseas. It's been a wonderful experience. Since that time the organization has grown to over 7,000 families in 37 countries! Every day more mail comes in. Every day new families begin a mutually rewarding friendship that will last a lifetime.
An incredibly simply idea that really does work.
