All-American Celebration

AERWA is pleased to host an All-American Celebration for our Independence Day sponsored by the American Chamber of Commerce and in conjunction with the American Embassy's Community Liaison Office and the Marine Detachment.

Date: June 27, 2015
Where: Residence of Ambassador Swan
Time:
     Parade Set-up - 3:00 pm at the entrance to the Residence of USAID Mission Director Putman (see           below for more information)
     Parade Starts - 3:15 pm
     Entrance to Ambassador's residence will open at 3:00 pm
     Doors close for the evening at 6:30 pm
Who: This event is open to all official American personnel and their families, locally employed staff and their families, and American citizens.
Cost: $10 per person age 3 and over (children under age 3 are free)
Entrance fee includes 5 tickets which can be used to purchase food and non-alcoholic beverages (AERWA members receive 10 tickets)
Additional tickets can be purchased for $1 per ticket
Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase, cash only
Pre-register: Click here to pre-register!

Parade Information: Kids and adults come out and display your patriotic spirit.  Participants are encouraged to dress-up and/or decorate their wagon, bike or tricycle to show their American pride (red, white, blue, stars and stripes).  Walkers and riders (non-motorized) are welcome to participate.  Winning ribbons will be awarded to the most spirited participants.

The "fine" print...

Please note the following for ease of entry and your enjoyment at the event.

All guests must show identification at the event.  Official personnel and family members and locally employed staff must show their embassy badge AND present identification with verification of age in order to receive an wristband.  American citizens must present their passport to evidence citizenship.  Guests of American citizens and official personnel must present identification and arrive and be escorted by an American.

Only guests age 21 and older may purchase and consume alcohol during this event.

Announcing AERWA's Board of Directors for 2015-2016

AERWA is delighted to announce the results of our elections for the new Board of Directors. More than half of our eligible members -- U.S. citizens or legal residents in good standing and under U.S. Chief of Mission authority -- cast electronic ballots, easily surpassing our quorum of 30 percent. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote! 

Please meet the new Board of the American Embassy Recreation and Welfare Association, Kinshasa:

President: Kate Maxwell

Vice-President: Kaukab (Koki) Smith

Secretary: Diane Herrera

Treasurer: Heather Khan

Member-at-large: John Kelley

Member-at-large: Christine De Silva

Member-at-large: Jim Gilman

Stay tuned for upcoming announcements. Our next big event is scheduled for Saturday, June 27, an Independence Day celebration organized in collaboration with the CLO Office and the Marines, to be held at the U.S. Ambassador's residence.

As always, AERWA welcomes your feedback and suggestions at aerwakin@gmail.com. We also always welcome volunteers.

BOARD ELECTIONS May 20! 

Send us an email if you're interested in running for a position and we'll get you on the ballot.
Must be a voting AERWA member.

President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and 3 member-at-large positions open!
Three of our board members will return for a second year

Questions?

emails aerwakin@gmail.com

Cooking demonstration postponed

The AERWA cooking demonstration scheduled for Friday, Nov. 14, at the JAO compound has been postponed due to an emergency in the speaker's family. Apologies for any inconvenience.

YouTube chef La Sonia to give cooking demo Nov. 14

This Friday, Nov. 14, from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m., AERWA welcomes Sonia Kabanda, host of the “La Sonia” cooking show on YouTube, to the African Queen at the JAO compound (498 Avenue Colonel Lukusa, Gombe) for the second installment of our new cultural series. Mimicking the format of her YouTube show, Sonia will be giving a cooking demonstration in English of one of her favorite Congolese dishes. Attendance is free for AERWA members and $5 for non-AERWA members.

For security reasons, if you do not have a U.S. Embassy-issued I.D., please RSVP here by Tuesday, Nov. 11, so we can arrange for you to access the JAO compound. Please bring a photo I.D. with you and no electronic devices. Your understanding is appreciated.

If you would like a preview of Sonia’s work, please search “La Sonia Cooking” on YouTube and take a look at some of her many videos – from pondu to catfish to chicken in peanut sauce! Sonia is a qualified chef in both cooking and pastry and studied culinary arts at The Nottingham New College. Tell us below if there's a particular dish you would like to see Sonia prepare. Hope to see you there!

Announcing our new monthly cultural series!

AERWA and the U.S. Embassy's Public Diplomacy section are pleased to announce a collaboration on a monthly cultural series aimed at promoting a better understanding of Congolese culture among the U.S. Embassy community in Kinshasa.

The series launches this month. Our first event, on Friday, Oct. 17, will feature art expert Monsieur Mbungu Mbuka from the Antika art gallery at College Boboto.

Monsieur Mbuka will showcase antique Congolese art from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the African Queen hall at the JAO compound at 498 Avenue Colonel Lukusa in Gombe.

Attendance is free for AERWA members and $5 for non-AERWA members. English translation will be provided at the event.

For security reasons, if you do not have a U.S. Embassy-issued I.D., please RSVP by Tuesday, Oct. 14, so we can arrange for you to access the JAO compound. Please bring a photo I.D. with you and no electronic devices. Your understanding is appreciated.

We hope to see you there!

Join our new Facebook community!

On Oct. 1, we launched AERWAkin, a Facebook group for the wider English-speaking community in Kinshasa. Its goal is to connect you to the happenings, people and information that make life in the Congo a little bit easier and a lot more fun. The AERWAkin Facebook community is not intended to be a marketplace for things for sale or rent -- there's already a Facebook group for that -- but an English-speaking peer resource for information and advice about life in the Congo. 

Our online community is already at 80 members and growing. So far, community members have shared advice about barbers, a dependable taxi service and even a few job leads. Please take a look and consider joining. Membership to AERWAkin must be approved by an administrator and member posts will be moderated to ensure a friendly experience for all.

If you enjoy our online group, please consider joining AERWA as a paying member. You do not have to be a U.S. citizen to join and enjoy certain privileges, such as free or discounted entry to our events. Only U.S. citizen government employees under the authority of the U.S. chief of mission may vote on AERWA affairs and enjoy a full range of benefits.