March 2012 Newsletter
EXXONMOBIL SPOUSES NETWORK BRUSSELS
The spouses network is a social group open to all spouses of ExxonMobil employees in Brussels and surrounding area. It exists for two reasons: to welcome incoming families and help them with their transition, and to provide opportunities, through our interest groups,
for socialization in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere.
If you want to receive this newsletter at home and be notified of upcoming events, please send your name, email address and phone number to sjvanderleeuw@gmail.com
Si vous voulez recevoir la newsletter chez vous à votre adresse email adresse privée, faites le savoir à Joanne.
If you have met a newly arrived ExxonMobil employee or spouse, please let them know about us and how they can get on the newsletter email list.
Special Activity:
Does anyone have an idea for our last activity before summer break? Whatever we decide to do it will be held in April sometime after Easter and before all the long weekends in May! We can do another potluck lunch or something completely different. We could do lunch and have a speaker if you have someone in mind, or we could take a field trip somewhere. We would really appreciate some ideas. If you are willing to host a potluck lunch of 12-15 ladies, that would be wonderful. The last potluck in February was well attended. Thanks very much to those who cooked and to Jos van den Berg for her hospitality. Email your ideas/comments to sjvanderleeuw@gmail.com
What’s new:
1) If you are moving to or from the Brussels area, please check out our website (http://esnb.over-blog.com) and use the buy/sell platform to help facilitate your move. If you have articles to sell, please send details (description, cost, contact info) to sjvanderleeuw@gmail.com for posting.
2) Elena Harrauer has kindly offered to be the new contact person for the Wezembeek- Oppem area. You can find her contact details on the website. Thanks Elena!
3) We are still looking for a contact person for the Waterloo/Rhode St. Genese area. If you know this area and are willing to field the occasional phone call from newcomers, please let us know.
4) Elena van Bouwel-Salles, the revered leader of the book club, is leaving her position this spring. The spouses network is indebted to Elena for her dedication and leadership over the many years she has been involved. Thanks Elena! We are now in need of a new leader. Elena says it is time for new blood and anyone who is interested in taking over the book club should let her know. Currently the members meet during the day, but meeting in the evening may be a possibility as well. Please feel free to make the book club your own and set it up as you would like it to be. Anyone who is interested should email Elena at evbsalles@skynet.be
Relocation Group:
Contact: Paula Matarazzo
02 647 2385
The relocation group is comprised of members who live in all areas of Brussels and the surrounding region. Feel free to contact someone from below who lives close to you, or someone who speaks your language. They will be happy to try to answer some of your questions either before or after you arrive in Brussels. They are always ready to take the time for a chat by telephone, email or over a cup of coffee.
(If you do not see your mother-tongue below, and would like to volunteer to be a member of the relocation group, please contact Paula Matarazzo.)
Vous êtes nouveaux en Belgique? N'hésitez pas à nous contacter. Nous serons ravies de répondre à toutes vos questions et de vous accueillir dans votre nouveau pays.
Appena arrivati? Chiamateci, saremo felici di rispondere a tutte le vostre domande e di accogliervi nel vostro nuovo paese.
Acaban de llegar ? No duden en llamarnos para que contestemos a sus preguntas y que les damos la bienvenida en su nuevo país .
Acabam de chegar? Contacte-nos, Ficaremos felizes de responder às suas perguntas e recebê-los em seu novo país.
Welkom in Brussel! Als je vragen hebt kun je me altijd bellen. Ik kan je dan ook over het spouses network van ExxonMobil vertellen. Misschien tot binnenkort!
Willkommen in Brüssel! Bitte rufen Sie mich an, damit Ihre Fragen beantwortet werden und ich Sie über das Spouses Network informieren kann. Ich freue mich auf Ihren Anruf.
Contacts: by region
Whether you are new or not to the Brussels area, the ladies listed by neighbourhood below are ready to help with any questions you have.
Uccle/Ixelles -Paula Matarazzo pmatarazzo@hotmail.com (Français, English, Italiano, Português, Espanol) and Anne Alloncle annealloncle@yahoo.fr (French, English)
Waterloo/Rhode St. Genese
Antwerp area -Christine Lesny cdley@web.de(German, English, Dutch and French) Antwerp International School contact
Tervuren/Vossem/Moorsel -Jos van den Berg bergvier@telenet.be(Dutch, German, English)
Overijse -Joanne Vanderleeuw sjvanderleeuw@gmail.com (English- Canadian /American) ISB contact
Sterrebeek -Christiane Merhof gmerhof@aol.com (Deutsch, English, Dutch) German School contact and Sabine Decker sab.decker@gmx.de (Deutsch, English, French) German School contact
Boitsfort- Carron Lane michael.lane@skynet.be (English) and Anne Gerard nanouchkaide@gmail.com
Hoeilaart -Kirsten Bye kirsten.bye@hotmail.com (Norwegian, English, Italian) ISB contact
Stokkel/Kraainem -Debbie Wright deborahjwright@gmail.com (English) International School of Brussels contact
Brussels Centre -Monique Cardyn mocardyn@gmail.com (French, English)
Leuven and area -Ria Bakker maria.e.bakker@gmail.com (Dutch, English)
Wezembeek-Oppem – Elena Harrauer elena.harrauer@hotmail.com (Ital., French, Eng.) British School contact
Mechelen and area -Elena van Bouwel-Salles evbsalles@skynet.be (Portuguese, English and Dutch)
Monthly Activities –before attending an event contact the event coordinator to make sure the time/date or venue has not changed.
Book Club:
Contact: Elena van Bouwel-Salles
015 62 00 16
We would like to invite all interested spouses to our monthly book club meeting. We meet to discuss the pre-selected book, and other widely variable topics!! It’s a very informal session, and even if you haven’t been able to finish the book, please join us for a coffee and good conversation. The discussions are in English, but the books can be read in any language. Please don’t hesitate to contact Elena for more information.
The selections for the following months are:
Date Thurs. March 29th
Time 10:15 am
Book THE TIGER’S WIFE by Téa Obreht
Place English section of “Cook and Book” across from the Woluwe Mall
RSVP Elena (see above)
Next Books: April 26th Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand
May 25th Pereira Maintains by Antonio Tabucchi
Tots Play Group:
Contact: Helen Starkie
helenstarkie@hotmail.com
04753 29853
All with young children are invited to attend our monthly get-togethers. Our playgroup meets at homes and parks at 10:00am on every second Monday of the month all year round. There is no limitation regarding the age of the children, and it’s a great way to meet some friends for you and your kids. Please contact Helen to see where the group is meeting next.
Movie Group:
Contact: Sabine Decker
sab.decker@gmx.de
02 305 0951
There is no formal movie group anymore, but if you happen to want to see a movie and don’t have anyone to go with, or think others would enjoy it, please contact Sabine to set up an informal group outing.
Did You Know:
Viewfinders is an English speaking photography club that meets monthly in the Swedish church at Ave. des Gaulois 35, 1040 Etterbeek. Monthly meetings consist of a variety of activities including speakers, challenges, workshops and member portfolios. Anyone is welcome to attend one meeting at a cost of 3 euros before they decide to join. Yearly memberships are only 30 euros. The group welcomes all levels of ability, so if you simply love taking photos, why not give it a try. It’s a great opportunity to meet like-minded people. www.viewfinders.be
Thank you for taking the time to read the newsletter:
The Spouses Network Committee
Links to Valuable Organizations:
Women’s Clubs: for Opening Hoursplease see web sites
AWCB (American Women’s Club): www.awcb.org
BCWCB (British & Commonwealth Women’s Club of Brussels): www.bcwcb.org
Accueil Francaise: www.accueil-bruxelles.be
Other women’s clubs in Brussels :
CHS Community Help Service: www.chsbelgium.org
CHS is a non-profit organization run by volunteers and provides mental health information and support to the English-speaking community in Belgium. Once a year they publish a calendar that contains lots of useful information and telephone number