Lively 2nd Western Hemisphere Region Conference

The second Western Hemisphere Region Conference was held in New York, USA, from September 16 till 20, 2019. The activities took place in the world fair Marina near La Guardia Airport.

There were 132 participants from 14 countries: Argentina, Aruba, Chile, Curacao, Haiti, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, Uruguay, USA and Venezuela.

The host committee, the Central Branch group CASEGHA USA, did a great job and the program became very lively. However, it was quite a challenge that during this week there was no access to the internet as a main cable had been cut because of construction works in the area of Queens.

The keynote speaker, William Collins Jr. had an interesting speech and came up with many anecdotes from his life within the Boy Scouts of America.

The Conference theme: “Let friendship and unity be a bridge for a stronger world” was used throughout the week. It really united the participants and many new friendships were born.

The welcome dinner was held in a fancy restaurant with a fabulous show of a musician and many participants could hardly ignore the dancing floor. Even CASEGHA was there to perform their colorful lively Zumba dance.

During the business part some amendments to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) took place. The Western Hemisphere Region Committee (WHRCom) presented their triennial and financial report. Some countries were eager to show their presentation and shared their activities and/or projects.

A new Committee was elected for 2019 - 2022:
• Alberto Zambrano (Uruguay) chairman
• Ricardo Blengini (Argentina) vice-chairman
• Bryan Bell (USA) treasurer

The two former committee members, Vanessa and Marcos, will provide assistance to the new team whenever needed.

On Wednesday evening there was the dinner cruise to Manhattan, and we all did see the illuminated Statue of Liberty and the skyline of New York. In between the serious work of the business sessions you could shop in the ISGF Shop or roaming around the international market.

There were two countries, Argentina and Mexico, who offered to be the host for next Conference. The Conference voted and the 3rd Western Hemisphere Region Conference will be held in Cordoba, Argentina in 2022.

During the farewell dinner a performance of dancers from Haiti brought a fabulous show. The participants from the various countries presented a cultural show and they all ended up on the dancing floor.

Click here to view the photo gallery

pdf 2019 WH Conference, Minutes (664 KB)