History:
In 1985 a small group of Canadians, Mexicans and Americans gathered in the home of Judy and Angelo Galeana with the idea of forming what is now the popular and successful International Friendship Club of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Dues were set at $1.00 US per month and Howard McGill was the first guy to put his dollar in the bank, which was a shoe box that Judy pulled out from her son Juan's Closet. Word got out soon that this group had big plans and high goals. The membership list grew and soon we no longer were able to meet in private homes. Helen Jones, our first President, was teaching English to the Sheraton Hotel employees and she was able to persuade the manager into loaning us a meeting room for a few months. From there we rented Franzi's restaurant on the Rio Cuale island, which later became the Cuiza restaurant. Our next move was to the drafty top floor of the unfinished Medasist Hospital and then to one of Alejandro Mesa's apartments on Manuel M. Diegas street. From the Galeana living room and Juan's shoe box bank, finally the IFC has it's own facility in the Parian del Puente building, a paid administrator, and a proper working bank account. And now we have our U.S. based foundation, CAFIN (Children and Families in Need), to collect donations from individuals and foundations in the U.S. allowing us to provide proper US recognized tax-deductible receipts.
The first IFC newsletter was published in November 1986 and President Jones wrote," It appears we have a strong community minded group with many varied interests and abilities. This first year will be difficult and somewhat experimental in the search for our true identity. We'll advance slowly and undoubtedly we'll stumble and falter on occasion, but the overwhelming response received so far indicates that we have the talents, resources and the willingness to prevail." It has been full steam ahead since that small group got together.
Our first fund raising events for our many endeavors began with our culinary members offering a bake sale every Sunday in the main plaza. Our first Home Tours began on Sunday, December 7, 1986. Now we tour on Wednesdays and Thursdays and the tours have become our biggest fundraiser. Those same ladies who did the original Sunday baking, compiled their own as well as their friend's recipes together and published a cookbook which is now in it's 4th edition. January 1987 produced our first annual bazaar, a tradition that the local community looks forward to every year now.
All the hard work and fundraising has been put to good use. The International Friendship Club has built new schools and improved many others. We have aided numerous needy people with health problems, eye surgeries, hearing aids, eye glasses, and developed our most successful endeavor, the Cleft Palate Surgery Program. Fortunately, the International Friendship Club has been so successful that it has become nearly the United Fund for service organizations in Puerto Vallarta. We provide monthly donations to the local Rehabilitation Center, the Becas Scholarship Foundation, the Public Library, the local Red Cross, the Regional Hospital, the Baptist Church Rice and Beans Program and the R.I.S.E. Orphanage to name a few. In recent years, we have also developed our Community Service program that provides funds and food to other civic organizations such as Arturo y Los Hijos de Dios (as safe house for needy families), and Casa Ama (a boys home).
Our first newsletter named the twelve original Committee Chairpersons but made special note to remind the members that "the most important person in this organization, of course, is you - the participating member." That still holds true today.