(CO)
Опубликовано: 8 Сентября 2008 г.

Melanie M. Sidwell

LONGMONT — Five delegates from Russia and a facilitator are visiting Longmont this week through the Open World Program hosted by the Longmont Rotary.

The trip, now in its 10th year, brings Russian professionals to the area, where they explore a topic, said local host coordinator Dick Richards. Past topics have included health care and women’s issues.

A program of the U.S. Congress, Open World brings business, civic and political leaders from Lithuania, Russia and the Ukraine to the United States to learn about democracy and improve relations between the countries, according to a previous Times-Call article.

This year’s theme is economic development, Richards said.

The guests this year are: Aleksandr Belov, a director at an information technologies company; Viktoriya Dzestelova, a real estate consultant; Olga Moshchenko, head of a farming enterprise; Vartan Yeranosyan, a private business firm manager; Yevgeniy Bakhirkin, a business director; and Yaroslav Tikhomirov, a product manager.

Lana Davis is serving as the interpreter for the group, which arrived in Colorado on Saturday and will remain in the area through Sunday, Richards said.

On Monday, the delegates visited nonprofits, including the Safe Shelter of the St. Vrain Valley, Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore and Cinnamon Park Assisted Living.

The assisted-living facility provides housing for low- to moderate-income senior citizens, said administrator Debbie Setlock. Most of the residents are in their 80s and 90s, she said.

This week is National Assisted Living Week, which the Longmont center is celebrating with a South of the Border theme with Mexican food, word of the day, music and activities, she said. The week kicked off with Grandparents Day on Sunday.

On Monday, the Russian delegates, who had lunch with the Cinnamon Park residents, toured the facility at 1335 Cinnamon St. before visiting the OUR Center, another local nonprofit.

Resident Robert Jackson said he was pleased to have the international guests.

“It’s nice to talk to new people and see what they have to say about (Americans). I’ve enjoyed talking with them,” Jackson said.

Dzestelova said she was interested in seeing how U.S. professions operate, especially in her field of real estate.

“I would like to see Americans, not in books or on TV programs, but I would like to see it with my own eyes,” she said through a translator. “Something like Habitat is not developed in Russia.”

Belov said he was surprised that Americans and Russians share many of the same interests, as well as problems.

“This program helps us better to connect with people and understand our cultures,” he said.

Melanie M. Sidwell can be reached at 303-684-5274 or msidwell@times-call.com.

[Перепечатано с разрешения]

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