0

The purpose of non-profit group of SILA is to encourage social, cultural and educational exchange and to foster deeper mutual understanding among SILA members while expanding their knowledge of Slovenia and the rest of the world. "We accomplish this through many activities such as sports activities, cultural activities, travel opportunities, language opportunities and social activities", says Terry Milk, the President of SILA. The idea for such organisation arose in 1993 from the need to create an organisation that would help newly arriving diplomatic families feel welcome in Slovenia. Today, there are approximately 240 members from more than 40 countries, not only wives of diplomats but also of economists, managers, and experts of all other domains. You can join the group by completing the application form at the regular monthly meeting, which are held on the second Tuesday of every month in Hotel Lev. The Welcome Committee is organised every 3rd Wednesday in Month. For more information, please contact terrymilk@yahoo.com. Arja Krauchenberg I've been a member of Sila for four years. I joined immediately after we arrived. I've always been part of women's organizations abroad. I find it very interesting and very helpful to be a part of Sila, especially when you arrive in Slovenia and you don't know anybody and when you need all kinds of information. I think it's very important to get in contact with other ladies who have experienced the same problems. I think that Sila is doing great because when I arrived here we were about 80 members, and now we are about 214. It's a rapidly expanding organization. I'm part of an English book club, French literature circle, I organize Spanish conversation evenings, we have dinner parties, usually in the home of one of our members, everybody brings something, and it's a lot of fun. Especially for people who do not have the opportunity to speak these languages every day. I go skiing on Krvavec. I don't take lessons anymore but, as a friend of mine once said, our mistakes are so well trained. We have excursions - often seing things that you cannot usually visit. There's fluctuation in the group because people come and go. I am "the hospitality person" at Sila, we're trying to accommodate newcomers, to help them with the problems that we had when we first arrived. Clementine Rouvillois When we came here, two years ago, we put our children into International School and we were told that there was an association, Sila, that provided a lot of sports activities and cultural education, so I joined. I took a golf course and I took advantage of discounts for skiing on Krvavec. Once a month we have a coffee morning where we meet different newcomers, people that speak English. As I'm French I can also meet other French ladies. You meet a lot of people, and then we form different groups according to our common interests. Sophie Paradis The association of Sila is good for everyone. You can be truly happy there as you can choose exactly what you want. I like it because you can meet people of different nationalities and cultures. I play golf and go skiing once in a while. I'm very satisfied. There are also cooking lessons, different educational courses, etc.