Location: Southern New Jersey
Members: 100
Founded: Apr 1 1979
About the club:
Our club was organized in 1979 and has traveled as Ambassadors of Peace to Italy, West Germany, Costa Rica, Austria, China, Ireland, Colombia, New Zealand, Ukraine, Netherlands, Czech Republic and Wales. We have hosted numerous exchanges including those from Japan, Europe and Central and South America. We are a small club with members who come from various communities all over Southern New Jersey. We hold three general meetings and a summer picnic every year and try to organize other activities of interest.
About the region:
We are in the Delaware Valley region in Southern New Jersey across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, (the birthplace of our nation) with its historical sites in such as the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, and excellent art, natural history and science museums. We are also about 1 hour from the New Jersey shore. Southern New Jersey is a prized agricultural area known for its tomatoes, cranberries, blueberries (first cultivated here), peaches and corn as well as for its well-protected million-acre natural phenomenon, the Pine Barrens. There are historic sites such as the WheatonVillage (re-creation of a glassmaking community) and Batsto, (a former iron foundry which was the principal source of ammunition for the American Revolutionary War).
About the exchange:
We are able to offer Ambassadors a great variety of home stays because our members live in highly varied settings. We try to have fun-filled, educational group activities as well as the friendship-building home experience everyone thrives on during these exchanges. Because of the distance and the 6-7 hour round trip involved, a day trip to Washington, D.C. is not practical from our area. We suggest that clubs wishing to visit Washington arrange a few days there before or after the exchange. Bus fare from D.C. to Mt. Laurel, NJ is about $25. In the same way a one-day sightseeing trip to New York City, while only 2 hours away, would be very superficial due to congestion, traffic and parking problems in the city. A trip to Ellis Island and/or the Statue of Liberty might be more feasible.