This is my (very young) father, six rows back, just left of center, representing Western Samoa
at a conference at the U.N. in 1976.
This was the first time that we had been to the U.S. and I can remember being amazed by the HUGE cars, the freezing cold weather (we had come from a tropical climate and it was early spring), the gigantic stacks of pancakes for breakfast, early morning TV that I would watch with my grandfather (who was living, with my grandmother, in N.Y.C. at the time), and so many things.
It was such a different world. Highlights included going to the Ringling Bros. circus, ice-skating in the Rockefeller Center and seeing Doug Henning in his magic show (my eyes nearly popped out of my head). Oh, and being winked at by Nipsey Russell in the street (I had no idea who he was, but my grandmother was excited by it). I fell in love with Gilligan's Island and Paul Lynde and would watch 'Days of our Lives' with my grandmother every day at 3 PM. We also got one of those rubber balls with the suction pads on it (what were they called?) and our next-door neighbor had a Stretch Armstrong. It's funny what you remember... Who knew that my future husband was playing Little League just 1 1/2 hours away?
Hats off to my parents too, who didn’t think twice about taking us out of school for a couple of months, knowing that education that takes place outside the classroom is as important, and often more important, than that which takes place during school hours.
An anecdote of a Bennett consultant.