Montevideo, Minnesota asado a big success

Patrick Moore, a board director of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, writes in with the following news...


"I am happy to report that the 3rd annual Montevideo Fiesta Days Asado was a success!

Thanks in large measure goes to the efforts of Asador Marcos Villanueva who did an incredible job. It was such an educational event -- just to watch him in action, conversing with everyone who came up to him, including the Queens from towns throughout the region. He not only cooked the Moonstone beef but also cooked up a mess of catfish from the river that were caught as part of the fishing contest!

You can see great photos of the event by visiting: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4180003376675.2175121.1182123470&type=1&l=c78ae17b7c

Audrey Arner, Duane Ninneman, Dixie Tilden and myself were there as were Youth Ambassadors Martin Moore, Amber Sorensen and Brendan Stermer.  Amber was introduced to the crowd and had the honor of drawing the winning ticket for the kayak raffle."

The Passing of Ed Slettom

A sad but inspiring note was received this week by longtime Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member KiKi Gore...


"I think that by now you might have heard of the recent (June 4) death of Ed Slettom, just three days after his wife Iris died. He was an early and strong member of Partners, a fine, fine, man and, along with Iris, good friends of ours since we moved into the house next door to them 40 years ago. We could not have had better friends, parent substitutes in a way, and gems, both of them...Partners owes a great deal of its early success to the Slettoms."


We received similar notes expressing sadness over the passing of Ed Slettom from past presidents Stan and Darlene Diesch, David Pace and Roger Moon, who provided the photo above of the founders and early supporters of the chapter, taken March 9, 1966, in Washington, DC. The photo includes the future United States Vice President, Walter Mondale; future Minnesota Governor Al Quie; future Minneapolis Mayor and Congressman Don Fraser; future presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy and other notable figures in our state's history.


An obituary for both Ed and Iris mentioning their work with Minnesota-Uruguay Partners ran in the Minnesota newspapers. Services scheduled for July 24 at Glen MN Community Church at 1 PM and July 26 St. Anthony Park UCC at 2 PM in St. Paul.




Photo: L–R: Congressman Don Fraser; Senator Eugene McCarthy; Clifford Whitehill, General Mills; Stan Wenberg, Vice President, U of MN; Otto Christenson, MN Employers Association; Congressman Clark MacGregor; Congressman Al Quie; Uruguayan Ambassador to USA,Juan Feljpe Yriart; Speed Stone, Bravo Foods; Senator Walter F. Mondale; Denis Daly, Peat, Marvick Mitchell; Gerald Forbes, MN Dept of Agriculture; Ed Slettom, MN Association of Cooperatives; Congressman Odin Langen; Howard Nelson, U of MN Industrial Education.

Uruguayan Asado (BBQ) to be held June 16 in Montevideo, Minnesota

As part of the rich and longstanding friendship between sister cities Montevideo, MN and Montevideo, Uruguay, a Uruguayan Asado (Barbecue) and potluck luncheon will be held on Saturday, June 16th from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Montevideo’s Lagoon Park. The asado will be part of the Montevideo Fiesta Days Riverfest Rendezvous, which includes a full day of events starting at 9 a.m. The event is free and open to the public. For more information on the Riverfest Rendezvous event visit: http://www.curemnriver.org/events.html - rendezvous Afternoon activities will feature samplings of locally raised, grass-fed beef from Moonstone Farm in rural Montevideo, music on the Riverside Stage played by area musicians, and conversation with Uruguayan visitors. Partners of the Americas (POA) Youth Ambassadors Martin Moore of Montevideo and Amber Sorenson of Louisburg will be present to meet with members of the western Minnesota community in anticipation of their upcoming trip to Belize in July. Freewill donations will be accepted for the meal. Attendees are asked to bring a dish and a beverage to share. For more information and questions, call Patrick Moore 320-841-1487.

Success!

We are delighted to report that Minnesota fundraising for the June art project in rural Uruguay (see earlier post on this, below) has exceeded expectations. Nearly $600 has been raised to buy art supplies for primary school students in the interior of Uruguay. Congratulations!

An American in Uruguay...

Gary Kuhn forwards news of an American living in Uruguay, Paul Turman, making a splash on national television, singing about Montevideo, Texas and clearly having a spectacular time. See Link 2 and Link 1.

You can help bring art supplies to rural Uruguay school children

We are delighted to report that Minnesota-based emerging artist Sarah Trembley will be leaving June 9 on a two-week project in the interior of Uruguay. She will be teaching rural school students and training educators in a range of media in the small town of Migues. While her travel is supported by a Partners of the Americas culture and education grant, she is seeking funds to bring art supplies so that this important work can be carried on well after she leaves. Please consider making a donation to support this meaningful project by visiting the link below. http://www.razoo.com/story/Mup-Art-Projects We're excited about Sarah's trip and look forward to sharing photos and updates on our blog when she returns.

Uruguay Well Represented at Minnesota Trade Forum

The nation of Uruguay was well represented at a Minnesota trade forum April 17 at the global headquarters of medical device products leader Medtronic in the Twin Cities.

Dr. Nury Bauzan, the country's general consul representing the upper midwest, spoke on trade trends and diversification of Uruguay's economy. She was joined by trade and diplomatic officials from Argentina, Ecuador and Brazil.

Erik Brand, the president of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, moderated the panel of trade officials. Rob Scarlett, vice president of the chapter, moderated a panel of Minnesota businesses exporting to South America, which featured chapter member and Uruguay native Graciela Cuadrado-Vielguth as an expert commentator.

Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak offered comments on the region, stressing the importance of South America to the company's future and noting that access to medical services remains a challenge for many countries of the Americas that we must work together to address.

Many thanks to Medtronic for hosting the event. And congratulations to the inspiring Silvia Ontaneda Andrade, Ecuador's general consul in Minnesota, and to the Minnesota Trade Office's Rachel Limon, a longtime Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member and leader, for planning such an ambitious and successful endeavor. An estimated 150 businesspeople attended the half-day conference.