Presenting: Robert & Bette Allekotte - Servas Members, Family Travellers, Volunteers for Peace and the Environment

Robert and Bette were among the people I had a chance to get to know at the Canada-US Servas conference which was held in Vancouver from August 5 to 8, 2005. At 53 years of age, both retired recently since they view time as one of their most precious assets.

Through Servas, Robert and Bette have travelled extensively throughout the world and they have been members of the US organization since the 1970s. Throughout their membership they have had an opportunity to create personal connections in a great variety of places. They have also hosted many Servas travellers from many different countries in their home and have passed on this generous spirit of hospitality to their own children as well as to other young people. Here are some of Robert and Bette's experiences:

1. Please tell us a little bit about yourselves. Where are you from, what are your professions, where do you live now?

We are both born and raised in Philadelphia. We enjoyed small town living in Moorestown, NJ for the last ten years. Our girls are pretty grown and so the big house was unnecessary. So now we are retired middle school teachers living in the resort of Brigantine, NJ (just north of Atlantic City).

Robert & Bette Allekotte

2. Both of you just recently retired at the young age of 53. I am sure that involved some conscious choices. Why was that decision so important to you and how did you manage to carry it out so early?

We firmly believe that rich people have money while wealthy people have time. We wanted to be wealthy. Bette’s bout with leukemia three years ago reminded us how short life can be, making time even more precious. Also, the provisions of No Children Left Behind have made creative teaching obsolete. The only thing worse than bored students is a bored teacher.

3. You found out about Servas in the 1970s. How did you hear about this organization and what was your first travel experience like?

A friend, Mimi Rosen, took a three-year vacation from teaching in the 1970’s and learned about Servas in Australia. We thought it sounded too good to be true, but the organization has gone beyond our high expectations. We first traveled through Scandinavia, hitchhiking while meeting interesting local people from all walks of life.

4. What other countries have you travelled to through Servas? What kinds of people from what places have you hosted in your home? What makes Servas travel so special to you?

We have made Servas visits in New Zealand, Hong Kong, Australia, Canada, U.S., India, Western Europe, Malta, and Singapore. A visit to Thailand is upcoming. Our listing says that families are especially welcomed. We’ve hosted many Europeans, North and South Americans, Indians and Japanese. Our cultural most distant visitor was a student from Bhutan. Servas allows people to see the places they are visiting from the inside. We come to understand what makes a society what it is: daily routines, wedding albums, leisure activities, meals, and raising of children.

5. Please tell us about your 3 favourite or most memorable travel stories.

I played ancient Japanese drums in a marching band during a Nepeta festival in Japan while my family helped pull a deity through the streets. We sailed and got stuck in the doldrums while exploring the medieval ports of Malta. We admired in the junk art of an unknown, anonymous dump operator in India. We toured Mesa Verde’s ruins with a host/ park ranger during twilight when we were the only ones there.

Israeli-Palestinian peace quilt

6. Please tell us about your 3 favourite or most memorable hosting experiences.

The Bhutanese student told us of how his parents grew up in a world without money, bartering only. We’ve visited and hosted some families who have become friends over the years. We see one another’s children grow from a great distance, but we feel like relatives. Servas guests have taken me to museums and architectural sites in my own city which I never knew existed. ( Frank Furness buildings, Barnes Foundation). It’s been a wonderful gastronomical experience as well. Some hosts have prepared memorable meals or suggested great restaurants, and occasionally we cook for our busy hosts. We enjoy living in homes, chatting, trading customs and participating in the day to day lifestyles of caring people.

7. You also work as volunteer interviewers for Servas. Please comment on that role and why you chose to get involved in that capacity.

We interview potential members because we want to spread the word about Servas and make sure members understand how it works. Our mission is to spread peace and justice as we provide memorable experiences through hosting and traveling. People like to talk about their trips; interviews give us a chance to listen and possibly give ideas to potential members. We have enjoyed sharing our experiences at union workshop conferences, parent groups and students who always wonder how we can afford such extensive trips on teachers’ modest salaries. It’s also been wonderful building friendships around the world and watching families grow as we continue to keep in touch, sometimes even revisiting.

8. You also communicate the message of peace to young people. How do you go about that?

Through teaching, we emphasize the understanding and acceptance of cultural diversity, that while geography and climate may make us different, the common bonds make us very similar. If students come to see people as individuals, then wanting to hate or kill them becomes more difficult.

9. Your children have grown up travelling with you and hosting people from all over the world. Please tell us how that experience has affected your children and your family as a whole.

As world travelers, our own children do not take the earth’s resources for granted. Both of our daughters are students of international dance and language, using both to communicate as they travel. We believe they see themselves as international citizens. They are happy to travel independently and love to learn. Their last trip was to the Galapagos Islands.

People ask us if the girls remembered their travels. I know they are more globally aware than the average American child. They certainly are adventurous when it comes to ethnic foods. Months after traveling through Japan, as I was putting our oldest daughter, then four, to bed, she asked me, “Mommy, what does the Buddha’s hand mean? Why is it facing down and sometimes up?” I told her what I knew and the next day we researched it.

Both girls traveled to Japan by themselves to meet us after a teacher’s seminar, where we visited many wonderful hosts and soaked in many small town onsen (public baths). The girls were 13 and 16, which are usually very self conscious ages. The youngest said, “It’s really a shame we don’t have these bathhouses at home, but I guess Americans wouldn’t be comfortable naked in one big room.”
Micole, our ball room dancer, has been sponsoring a child in the Philippines for ten years and is supervising social workers this year while applying to law schools. Alana has joined a Mexican folk dance troupe and a hip hop group while majoring in cultural anthropology.

10. You also dedicate your time to help save our environment as members of the Sierra Club. Please tell us about these endeavours and any other volunteer activities you may be a part of.

Servas and Sierra Club have some commonalities. Both stress respect and preservation of the earth for present and future generations. The Sierra Club’s Innercity Outings try to show kids that the outdoors is accessible and fun. Leaving their TV’s, games, refrigerators and air conditioning back in Philadelphia for a few hours or overnight camping can be eye opening for all of us. To earn their “ticket” home, they collect up trash as we walk. We try to teach kids to get along as they explore their planet. At the end of each excursion we gather in a circle and tell the group our favorite part of the trip. They learn greater respect for themselves, one another, and their home. The Sierra Club’s motto is,” Take only pictures; leave only footprints.”

Israeli-Palestinian peace quilt

11. What are your plans, now that you have all this free time on your hands?

Now we plan to live in Brigantine and have time to be volunteers for Servas. We are active in the communications, key persons and membership committees, trying to increase our numbers and partnerships with like-minded organizations. We welcome family, friends and Servas members to our home at the beach. Bette is adjusting to our new environs. We will still lead Sierra Club trips and try to bring a more active chapter to Atlantic County. Rob is involved in the writing and production of middle school musical theater and Holocaust education. We still plan to travel. We’re heading cross country in October followed by a trip to Southeast Asia. Servas will definitely be a part of those trips.

Thank you both, Robert and Bette, for taking the time to tell us about your international experiences and connections as well as your local activities. We wish you all the best for your upcoming travel plans to Thailand and all your other endeavours.

Related Articles:
Presenting: Pablo Chufeni - Servas member, champion of youth causes for Servas
Presenting: Mary Jane Mikuriya - Servas traveller, volunteer for peace and social justice
Presenting: Helga Smith - Servas traveller, Marathon runner, conqueror of Mt. Kilimanjaro
Preview: Robert & Bette Allekotte - Servas members & family travellers
Preview: Gilbert Sherr - Servas traveller & cultural researcher
Preview: Mary Jane Mikuriya -Servas traveller, volunteer for peace and social justice
Preview: Helga Smith - Servas member, Marathon runner, conqueror of Mt. Kilimanjaro
Preview: Pablo Chufeni - Servas member, Champion of youth causes in Argentina
Coverage of the first Canada-US Servas Conference in Vancouver, Aug 3 to 5, 2005
Interview with Patrice Samara from the US Office of Servas
An interview with another global volunteer organization: Doctors without Borders
The story of Toronto woman Danielle Lafond who mortgaged her home to start a community development organization in Peru
The story of Mony Dojej and her 5000 km Walk for Peace from Rome to Jerusalem
My reflections on the day of the London Transit Bombings
Here you can read my other travel stories from this trip to Victoria and Vancouver