It was June, 2004 and I was headed for my first ICCFR Conference which was being held in Estonia. I knew that Estonia was on the Baltic Sea and that my destination was so far north that daylight would last almost 24 hours.
After an all-night flight from Boston to Helsinki followed by a train travel to Tallinn, and then a taxi ride to my destination, I was exhausted. But when I stepped out of the taxi and saw a group of beautiful young girls in traditional Estonian dress, singing folk songs, my exhaustion melted away. What an enchanting beginning for my first ICCFR conference!
That day began my 20+ years of being a part of the ICCFR. During that time, I regularly attended yearly conferences, became an ICCFR board member and elected to a term as a chair of the board. When ICCFR became a registered British charity, I served as a trustee and I am now a council member.
As a family lawyer and advocate for children and families in the United States, my training and perspective were, up until that wonderful experience in Estonia, primarily legal and American. ICCFR conference presentations, colloquy with other conference attendees and presenters, and the long-lasting professional contacts and friendships made in a wide variety of countries and cultures different from my own, enhanced my work on behalf of families and allowed me to see so many other points of view.
ICCFR has enriched my knowledge and perspectives on children and families immeasurably over these 20+ years. I am grateful to the legal colleagues, friends, professional associates in the social sciences, and social policy makers for adding so much richness to my experience.
