US embassy
Di spatch e s| giving
Louise Fréchette in Burkina Faso
Georgiy Mamedov in Churchill, Manitoba
David Wilkins in Afghanistan
When Louise Fréchette was the United Nation’s deputy secretary general, she found herself in the awkward position of being unable – in more ways than one – to accept a gift. In 1998, she was visiting a village outside the Burkina Faso capital of Ouagadougou, where she had helped establish a microcredit program for women. “They showed me what they did with the money, which was very touching because they were minute amounts,” explains Ms. Fréchette, who now works at the Centre for International Governance Innovation. “At the end, I had a session with all the women … and then I was given two live chickens! Now, I’m a city person. I’ve never held a live chicken in my hand!” says Ms. Fréchette. She was rescued from her embarrassment by a member of her staff who knew the custom, and took the chickens away. “And then we found a way to return them discreetly to the village people who needed them more than I did. “That was quite a touching event, and one I will never forget. Because a gift is a gift and those people were very, very generous and this was not a symbolic gift. This was a great honour that they were giving me.”
Russian Ambassador Georgiy Mamedov says he’s received “lots of fancy stuff” in his years of service to his country, but the most exciting gift for him was an extraordinary opportunity in Churchill, Man., when he travelled to the northern port a couple of years ago for the inauguration of a shipping line between Murmansk and Churchill. “Everyone was excited on the ground and they suggested I look around,” Mr. Mamedov recalls, “and the most interesting things there are all those polar bears.” It would be his only chance to see them up close, so his tour guides suggested a trip to the “polar bear prison.” But on visiting the huge prison, his hosts had a surprise. “They suggested that I should pet one of them. Can you imagine? One would never dare to come close to this terrible carnivore,” Mr. Mamedov says. “I thought it was a joke but they said ‘no, we’re serious.’” The next moment, the ambassador was out of the car, approaching the beast. “It was a beautiful, sunny day in late autumn and here he was, a sedated, huge polar bear – with open eyes,” Mr. Mamedov says, his voice quavering as he relived the memory. “They told me he can see me and he
understands that I am the prey, but he can only keep his eyes open and breathe slowly, that he can’t move at all,” he explains, adding that he was “trembling” as guides took the photo. “I saw many things in life but never did I imagine that I would come close to a polar bear. And it was a very special feeling – his fur is not like fur for a hat or coat. It’s very tough,” he says. “So I patted him on the head and later they sent me a photograph with your humble servant [Mamedov] kneeling, patting this huge, terrible, terrifying polar bear.” This photo is now the highlight of his collection at his home in Moscow, where he can share it with his grandson.
20
Similarly, it’s life-changing moments that also make the best gifts for United States Ambassador David Wilkins. For him it’s experiences ranging from those in private at home to very public events that have made Christmas memorable. Mr. Wilkins and his wife, Susan, adopted their first child in 1975 just 11 months before his wife gave birth to their second child. “When you think back to that first Christmas with your first child … it’s a memory that lasts a lifetime.” Last year, Mr. Wilkins received another Christmas gift experience, an opportunity to visit Canadian forces in Afghanistan. november—december
2008