On Tuesday, October 17, more than 175 people from the Abbey community and invited guests celebrated our diversity at the 11th annual International Student Dinner in Stillman Dining Hall. A special treat in this year's program was the presence of Chef Hak Joon Kim, South Korea's national culinary trainer, who heads Sodexho's Korean culinary team and was in his final day of a three-day visit to Portsmouth Abbey as part of Sodexho's Global Chef Exchange program. Chef Kim and the Sodexho team prepared a wonderful array of Korean foods, including his signature Bulgogi (Barbecued Seasoned Beef), as well as several specialty dishes from other countries.
Outside guests included nine international military officers and their families from Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, France, Germany, Korea, Mexico, Spain and Taiwan, who are attending the Naval Command College in Newport. Also in attendance were six Abbey families serving as hosts to international students this year, Mr. and Mrs. Franklin, Mr. and Mrs. Gladney, Mr. and Mrs. Edwards, Mr. and Mrs. DiMattino, Dr. and Mrs. Collins, and Mr. and Mrs. Libutti.
In his remarks, Master of Ceremonies Dr. Fred Zilian, who serves as the School's International Student Advisor, discussed his study of the unification of the East German and West German armies 15 years ago. Dr. Zilian emphasized the choice between conflict and cooperation faced by the German armies and that today's international community faces.
For the final portion of the evening, individual international students spoke of their respective countries, some with humor, but all with great affection and pride. They included: Geoff and Chris Larson (Bahamas); Zander Dill and Johnny White (Bermuda); Jonny Valcour (Canada); Raoul Oloa (Cameroon); Chiu and Tsz Ki Guan (China); David Vasquez (Colombia); Felipi Vicini (Dominican Republic); Ricardo Kriete (El Salvador); Mary Chegwidden (France); Isabella Maegli and Martin Minondo (Guatemala); Na Hyun Lee and Yong Seok Kim (Korea); Rodrigo Bichara-Assad (Mexico); Katherine Pereira (Puerto Rico); Lucas Araoz and Jaime Gil-Delgado (Spain); Wei-Chieh Chuang (Taiwan); and Naseemah Mohamed (Zimbabwe).
To see photos of the International Student Dinner, see Photo Galleries.
