But nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to our small Newsletter editing team of two !

Karen was born and grew up in Brazil, her parents being a British mother and a Danish father. She then moved to Belgium to finish school, and eventually married an Englishman.
Christianna grew up in Athens, Greece, studied in France and later moved to Brussels, where she met her Belgian-Flemish husband. She still has friends and family in her native town, so home is for her both Athens and Brussels. "I miss Brussels when in Athens and vice versa" she says.

So, geographically and culturally, we could hardly be more different. Yet somehow, our little team works so well. Perhaps what matters most is the ability to appreciate each other, complement one another’s strengths — and, of course, share a good sense of humour !

Karen : "I have lived an interesting life. I was born and spent many years in Brazil. Languages were important in my family. I learned English from my mother, Danish from my father and Portuguese at school. In 1968, my family moved to Belgium. It was a difficult change, but I soon adapted when I started working and met people from different countries. Where is home ? It is wherever “you hang your hat”. For me, that is our house in Grez-Doiceau, not far from my 3 daughters and 5 grandchildren !

I graduated from the International School of Brussels. My French was not strong enough for further studies, so I studied French again. I also took a shorthand course — does anyone still know what that is ? I found a job with a UK marketing company that published reviews. Later, I worked for many years for a large pharmaceutical company. When my husband went back to studying, we moved to Fontainebleau in France. We had two young children then, so life was difficult. Being a stay-at-home mother was new and challenging for me. After our return to Belgium, I began volunteering.

Volunteering helped me return to work after many years away. Technology had changed quickly, and I did not feel confident enough to ask for a paid job. Volunteering gave me a challenge. I first helped at my children’s school. Then I volunteered at the ACS Centre 112 in La Hulpe, where I learned how important teamwork is. Later, Tove asked me to join FdE, and I have never regretted it.

I came to know our Association from my quilting friend, Tove Thonar (from Norway), who was Secretary General of Femmes d’Europe, so I joined the EFTA Group in 2005. Our President at the time, Gillie Hinds, asked me to help with the Newsletter. I worked on it with Nancy Barnum. Since then, the magazine has changed from paper to digital, and technology changed a lot, especially during and after COVID-19. However, the work is still much the same. Our current editor, Christianna, and I work very well together.

I enjoy our Group meetings and the wonderful women I have met there. It is rewarding to see that our fundraising helps women and children living in poverty. I also enjoy seeing everyone at the big events. They are great opportunities to make new friends.

I think our mix of nationalities makes us special. Even within the national groups, members come from different countries and have different languages and experiences. This mixture makes our Association unique.

Belgium has many beautiful places and hidden treasures. After more than 50 years here, I still find new places to visit. We like taking short trips to different cities. We discover history, museums, good food, walks or just places to simply relax. There is no need to travel through busy airports !

Brussels has many excellent restaurants. One of my favourites is Cantina Brasil. They make a great caipirinha ! Since we live outside Brussels, my favourite place is my daughter’s restaurant with her husband in Wépion, near Namur. It is called “L’Ô à la Bouche”. They also donate prizes to the FdE Christmas Tombola almost every year. The food is excellent and reasonably priced. I may be biased, but I truly recommend it.

No particularly motto but I try to live in the present. I deal with stress through yoga and other holistic practices. I also try to understand myself better. I believe that we can find many answers within ourselves."

Christianna : "My Greek parents believed it was very important for my sister and me to learn foreign languages. So, from a very young age, I was introduced to both English and French. I also travelled abroad quite often with my father, which gave me an early appreciation for other countries and cultures. It therefore felt quite natural for me to study in France. After one year of medical studies, I realised that this was not the path I wanted to follow, so I decided to change direction. I first studied languages and then went on to study Educational Sciences and Vocational Training. It was during my Master’s studies that I happened to see an announcement in Le Monde from the European Parliament, looking for candidates to train as Conference Interpreters. It was one of many coincidences in my life that I consider to have been very fortunate.

I decided to give it a try, and six months later, after very hard work and intensive training, I became a Conference Interpreter. I initially worked as a freelance interpreter and later joined the European Parliament as a staff member, spending 38 years in the profession altogether. I absolutely loved my job, particularly the multilingual and multicultural environment in which I worked. It also gave me the opportunity to combine my professional experience with my interest in education as I was able to train and mentor new colleagues myself, which was something I found particularly rewarding.

I first heard about Femmes d’Europe from Janny Van Doorn, a Dutch member and colleague, we were taking dance lessons together. She invited me to the 2016 Dutch Gala at the Cirque Royal, where we went to see a performance by Introdans -another fortunate coincidence in my life ! I decided to join FdE afterwards and soon met the ladies of the Greek Group.

To be honest, during my first few years I mainly helped with events organised by my own group and knew very little about the Association as a whole. It was only when I joined the Newsletter Team that I really began to discover, understand and appreciate the incredible work being done by Femmes d’Europe. I realised that every one of us can contribute in our own way, according to our interests, skills and availability. Whenever I hear about a project that we are financing and see photographs of the smiling people we are helping, I feel genuinely happy. I have been very fortunate in my life so far, and I feel it is only natural to show solidarity to people who have not been quite so lucky.

When it comes to the events organised by the Association, I particularly appreciate the cultural programmes and conferences, which are consistently of outstanding quality. The Get-Together lunch is another wonderful initiative. I really enjoy this informal opportunity to meet friends and exchange ideas about new projects and initiatives. And, of course, the Christmas Bazaar, the highlight of the year — the culmination of much hard work and dedication. Seeing so many visitors returning year after year is immensely rewarding for all the members who work tirelessly behind the scenes to make this special event possible.

Femmes d’Europe has given me new friends and opened up new horizons. It has also taught me something completely different : how to create a newsletter ! My professional life had always been about talking rather than editing, so learning to work with WORD documents and PDFs — and later with the online format — was quite a challenge. Thanks to our wonderful team, I managed to master it, and I now really enjoy the creative side of the work.

I am especially grateful to the members who trust me and give me the opportunity to contribute.

In Brussels, I particularly enjoy going out for dinner and discovering new places. In Stockel, where I live, there is a relatively new restaurant that I like very much, ’The Shake’.
I also often go to Ostend to visit my in-laws. I love the beach there — it seems endless, and the sea is never quite the same colour. I could spend hours simply looking at it.

My motto ? Focus on solutions, not on the problems ! There is always a solution to every problem. It may not be the perfect solution, but it is certainly better than remaining stuck with the problem. I have tried to follow this motto throughout my life — and that is what keeps me moving forward."

• So, that is who we are and what we believe in. If you would like to join our team and help with the monthly Newsletter, send us a message, with a few words about your interests and experience to : [email protected]

• If you think of a member of the Association that you would like us to interview, please let us know sending us a message : [email protected]