<![CDATA[Virginia-Santa Catarina Partners - Home]]>Mon, 26 Jun 2023 14:50:00 -0400Weebly<![CDATA[In Memoriam, Denise Decker]]>Mon, 16 Nov 2020 22:36:35 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/in-memoriam-denise-deckerIt is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our friend and colleague, Dr. Denise Decker, on November 4, 2020. Denise was an active member of the Virginia Chapter of the Partners of the Americas, as well as the DC Chapter and the International Board of Directors. Denise's work with Partners inspired numerous projects and workshops in support of people with disabilities in the United States and Latin America, and her spirit will be missed by everyone in this organization. 

Please visit the National Partners website for a tribute to her memory and the impressive contribution she made to the Partners of the Americas, and to read the words of her colleagues and friends in remembrance. 
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Dr. Denise Decker, with her guide dog, Wonder. Photo credit: Dana Shaw. 
]]><![CDATA[Santa Catarina Chapter Welcomes Longwood University Researcher]]>Sun, 09 Feb 2020 21:53:59 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/santa-catarina-chapter-welcomes-longwood-university-researcherIn October of 2019, Dr. Alix Fink, Professor of Biology at Longwood University in Farmville, Virginia, visited Santa Catarina to work with Brazilian colleagues exploring collaborative opportunities in environmental education, citizen science and student engagement. During her nearly two-week trip, Dr. Fink met with researchers at UDESC, Unisul, and EPAGRI and learned about initiatives such as school gardening and student composting efforts, municipal water and wastewater treatment, water quality protection, wine production and fruit research, and challenges facing a local traditional fishing industry. The slideshow below offers a glimpse of Dr. Fink's visit, and we look forward to future exchange opportunities emerging from her efforts.   
]]><![CDATA[Virginia Partners Welcome Brazilian Researchers]]>Thu, 05 Sep 2019 23:45:41 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/virginia-partners-welcome-brazilian-researchersDrs. Daiana Petry Leite and Leo Rufato, professors and researchers at the Santa Catarina State University (UDESC) in Lages, visited Virginia to explore opportunities for cooperation between Virginia and Santa Catarina in the area of agriculture.  Arriving August 24, the pair traveled from Northern Virginia through the Shenandoah Valley and Central Virginia, visiting research stations, farms, and extension projects; observing various aspects of agricultural production; and meeting professionals, researchers and government agency officials. The visit culminated with visits and meetings at Virginia Tech, where they presented a seminar on opportunities for cooperation between the two states. 

Dr. Rufato is an Agronomy professor at UDESC, focusing his research on altitude viticulture, viticulture, fruit and seedling production. Dr. Leite specializes in Biomedical Engineering and is a professor of Environmental Engineering at UDESC. She has experience in the area of statistics and multivariate analysis, acting in the planning and analysis of experiments in projects of the Environmental Engineering and Agronomy courses. They will return to Santa Catarina on September 6.

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Drs. Leite and Rufato visit the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC.
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Partners in Central Virginia host Drs. Rufato and Leite
]]><![CDATA[July 07th, 2019]]>Sun, 07 Jul 2019 16:00:51 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/july-07th-2019In its Spring blog newsletter, the national office of the Partners of the Americas featured an article on Best Practices for Partners Chapters, written by long-time Virginia Chapter leaders Dewey and Patricia Brown. The article provides a great checklist for other partnerships to ensure success in their projects and chapter organization. 

Access the article through the main Partners of the Americas website, or by clicking here. ]]><![CDATA[Nomination Period for Board of Directors is open]]>Thu, 24 May 2018 23:45:37 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/nomination-period-for-board-of-directors-is-openIt is election season for the Virginia Partners Chapter. We have four members of our Board of Directors whose terms will end this year: Peter Nebel, Helen Warriner-Burke, Gil Debiasi and Marilia Deisenroth. We thank each of them for their service in the past term. 

A call for nominations for candidates for the Board has been opened. If you or someone you know is willing to bring skills and talents to help guide our organization, please email us at virginiapartners@gmail.com by Monday, June 4 to make a nomination. After June 4, a ballot with all Board nominees will be sent electronically to all current Chapter members for their vote. Results will be tallied at the Annual meeting in Richmond on June 23rd. 

For more information on the roles and responsibilities of the Board members, please see our Chapter By-Laws under the Chapter Documents tab above. 
]]><![CDATA[We're back!]]>Sat, 03 Mar 2018 14:42:46 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/were-backAfter a few months of website issues, we're back up and resuming our web updates. 

​The latest minutes from our February 2018 meeting in Farmville are posted in Chapter Documents. Please take a minute to review and see the latest plans for our Chapter's activities. We have several projects in the works and exchanges planned for the next few years. 

Also, check out the February Newsletter from the Partners National Office, with announcements and news from other partnerships in the US and Latin America.  

Want to get involved with our efforts? Reach out to us at virginiapartners@gmail.com. We'd love to have you join us!]]><![CDATA[Feast of Goodness]]>Tue, 25 Jul 2017 23:02:00 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/feast-of-goodnessPicture
Get your copy of the Virginia-Santa Catarina Partnership's 50th Anniversary cookbook!

Featuring over 100 Brazilian and American recipes for all occasions, the cookbook is a great keepsake for members and makes a great gift for loved ones! 

Books are $10 each (plus $2.70 s/h); use the order form below to get yours. Proceeds support the people-to-people projects of the Virginia-Santa Catarina partnership. 

​A special thanks to Dewey Brown for his efforts on this project! 
Order Form
File Size: 70 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
]]><![CDATA[50th Anniversary Celebration]]>Sun, 02 Jul 2017 16:47:33 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/50th-anniversary-celebrationThe 50th Anniversary Celebration was a wonderful success, bringing together numerous Partners representing a range of current and past projects and exchanges between Virginia and Santa Catarina. Below is a pictorial sampling of the event. 
Thanks to everyone who attended and to those who worked to make this a memorable occasion! 
]]><![CDATA[Join us for the Virginia/Santa Catarina Partners 50th Anniversary Celebration]]>Sun, 23 Apr 2017 15:57:40 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/join-us-for-the-virginiasanta-catarina-partners-50th-anniversary-celebration
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]]><![CDATA[In memoriam, Lois Long]]>Wed, 08 Feb 2017 00:23:26 GMThttp://va-sc-partners.org/home/in-memoriam-lois-longThe Virginia-Santa Catarina Partners sadly announces the passing of our Partners friend, Lois Culver Long, at Fairfax Hospital on January 8th, with her family by her side. Lois became ill over Christmas; however, her condition worsened this past week. 
 
Lois was a loyal and dedicated member of both the Virginia-Santa Catarina and Washington, DC-Brasilia chapters of the Partners of the Americas. She had been a member of Partners from the early years with her husband as Indiana-Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil) members, before they moved to Virginia. As an artist and photographer, Lois graced our events with her photos from her trips to Brazil that spoke of the beauty of the country and its people, and arranged exhibits to celebrate our special events. From her interest in recreation, Lois livened up our events with games and unique ways of getting to know each other. She served on the Board of Directors in recent years. 
Lois represented the spirit of Partners in our projects with Brazil, offering home hospitality and escorting visitors over the years. Her legacy will be the passion and enthusiasm she felt for young people from her experience with recreational workshops and for nature and humanity, from her photography. Aside from Partners, Lois had many interests and involvement with other organizations, among them the National Museum of Women in the Arts. We will miss her energy and generous spirit as someone who cared deeply about community, friendship, and personal relationships with our southern members as a way towards peace. 
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Lois on left, wearing turquoise, at Partners lunch in Richmond, April 2016
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