Life in the country, a lesson in diversity

By Kathy Augustine

Editor’s note: Kathy Thomforde and her husband, Henry, are among numerous farm families scattered across the countryside in the states of Minnesota and Wisconsin who contribute to the efforts of the World Press Institute by hosting visiting WPI fellows on their family-owned farms. In 2005, the Thomfordes welcomed Anne Jambora of the Philippines as their guest. The Thomfordes were recruited to the WPI program by their neighbors, John and Kathy Augustine, who have hosted WPI fellows for more than a decade. Kathy Augustine wrote the following article for their local community newspaper, the Zumbrota (Minn.) News Record.

GOODHUE, Minn. — They came from afar to the Goodhue area for the annual Lions’ Club fund raiser. Anne Jambora, a World Press Institute fellow from Manila in the Philippines, was the guest of Henry and Kathy Thomforde. Anne helped Kathy in the ice cream booth at the Lions’ Bar BQ. There were also several visitors from Brazil in attendance. The Brazilians were working on area farms.

Anne, a newspaper reporter, was one of nine international journalists from around the world who were touring the United States for four months as WPI fellows. The purpose of the fellowship is to enable journalists to see parts of the U.S. that are not carried on the Associated Press wires. During their time in the U.S. they go to many major cities, but they also visit small-town newspapers, farms and a wilderness area in northern Minnesota in order to see the diversity of the country.

Anne Jambora (left) and Kathy Thomforde made a good team scooping ice cream at the Lions Club Bar BQ during Anne's visit to the Thomforde family farm. — photo by Nathan Augustine

During Anne’s visit to the Thomfordes’ home, she saw various methods of milking cows, the sales barn and local (grain) elevators, and learned a little of how farmers marketed the crops grown locally. Kathy and Anne also visited nearby Red Wing, Minn., to see the decorative boots made to celebrate the Red Wing Shoe Company’s 100th anniversary. As a lifestyle reporter, Anne enjoyed seeing the Sheldon Theatre and other historic buildings in the Mississippi River town.

While talking with Anne about her family, her hosts learned that Anne’s grandfather fought the Japanese together with other Philippine men alongside the American troops during World War II. The Thomfordes were surprised to learn that he belonged to the American Legion. Anne remembered going to an American Legion meeting as a young girl.

As an interesting side story, Anne told them that her grandfather, Pacifico Alfon, married her grandmother when she was only 13 years old. She was an orphan and when the Japanese invaded (the Philippines), many young girls were made sex slaves unless they were married. So the couple married for her safety. Anne’s grandmother later died of cancer and her grandfather eventually moved to the Chicago area.  

Coincidentally, the same week Anne was in Goodhue there was a program on local public TV about the cooperation of the Philippine troops with the Americans during World War II. Anne’s personal account made the history come alive to her farm family hosts.

The Thomfordes hoped their brief encounter with Anne would become, for her, a lasting and pleasant memory of her stay in the United States.