President's Message...
The IFC 2026-2027 season is off to an early start. Mahjong and Spanish classes begin mid-October. Home Tours and Dine Arounds start mid-November. Hiking in December. Details below, and on the IFC website calendar.
Please join us for our season kick-off welcoming party, "Fiesta de Bienvenida al IFC" on December 6 at 5:00 PM at the IFC Clubhouse. Live music, tasty food & beverages, a great reunion. SAVE THE DATE!
We are about to host our final Cleft Palate Clinic in 2026, September 30-October 2. We are flying in pediatric plastic reconstructive surgeon Dr. Ezekiel Fuentes and 2 nurses from Guadalajara who will team with our new anesthesiologist, Dra. Lilibeth Monroy Favela at CMQ Hospital in the Romantic Zone.
Your support for our programs makes possible the IFC's cleft palate program and grants to educational and social services non-profits.
|  | | October programming is beginning at the International Friendship Club, and registration is now open for several early-season activities and lectures.
Monday Mahjong: Game Day / Social begins October 5 and continues every Monday. Whether you are a regular player or simply enjoy the social side of the game, it is a great way to start the week at IFC.
On October 8, join us for Eye and Vision Care: AMA (Ask Me Anything) with a retired American optometrist. Bring your questions and learn more about common eye and vision concerns.
Spanish Classes for All Levels begin October 12, with classes offered on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.
More events will be added as the season gets underway, so be sure to check the IFC calendar regularly.
Register and view upcoming events: HERE
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Behind the scenes...
Lots of changes to report among our all-volunteer led programs.
- Cleft Palate - This is a new committee of the IFC, recently launched, to support transition in the cleft palate medical team over the next year or two. As previously reported, Dr. Llontop, our anesthesiologist is 82 and moving toward retirement. Dr. Fuentes expects to take a short medical leave. And, with the right staffing, we have the need and capacity for more life-changing surgeries. This team will be looking at bringing on additional medical support and managing the program. Co-chaired by Eric Rude and Peggy Nelson.
- Grants to Education & Social Services Non-profits - With Henry Golas retiring, Sydney Clark will chair the Education Grants Committee, working side by side with Linda Sandell, who will chair the Social Services Grants Committee.
- Festival of Friendship - Mark your calendars for February 13, 2027, 1:00-5:00 PM. The 2027 Festival of Friendship will showcase the educational and social services non-profits supported by IFC grants, as well as the Cleft Palate Program. A day of learning, sharing, community. With live music and other performances. There are many opportunities to support hosting this festival!
- Home Tours - With Beth Tesler managing the IFC Website and David Lightstone retiring, a new Home Tours leadership team has stepped up, led by Betsy Snare, Wendy Harrington and Karen Davis-Farage. This team has been working all summer to put together the right Home Tours team and has some great new ideas for the upcoming season. Stay tuned.
- Development & Fundraising - This, too, is a new committee, co-chaired by Mario Champagne and Dave Craigen. This team is developing a sponsorship program for IFC events, a legacy giving program, and similar programs. Get in on the ground floor!
- Preferred Providers Program - We are so thankful that in six months as PPP chairman, Robert Nickerson doubled the number of IFC preferred providers giving our members discounts. Sadly, Bob will be stepping back, and a new team is in the works.
- Marketing Communications - There is a unique opportunity for volunteers interested in marketing communications, such as Facebook posts, press releases, development of posters and flyers, the IFC Impact Report and other communications with members and the public. Members with a variety of skill sets are sought, including Canva & Facebook technical know-how, artistic, writing, and leadership.
Interested in volunteering? Please contact us at volunteers@ifcvallarta.org for more information.
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As we look back on the season just past, we are excited to report our progress as a Club.
The following is a list of "firsts" for the IFC in 2026:
- Created a new US Legal entity that will reduce IFC Mexico donation costs and issue US tax receipts for US based donors
- Created the "Festival of Friendship" to showcase the charities supported by IFC grants
- Developed an Impact Report to report to donors, members and the public about what their support makes possible
- Held a Board Retreat to plan for the IFC's future. Retreat grew out of 2025 Focus Group held to receive feedback from community leaders to aid in developing further as an organization and look into the next 5 years.
- Held a beachfront IFC-wide Volunteer Appreciation Event, paid for by a mystery donor, to say thank you to our 100+ incredible volunteers
- Added mahjong, cooking classes, mural walking tours and hiking, and many others, and expanded Dine Arounds to multiple days in a week
- Reinvigorated the Preferred Provider Program, doubling the number of preferred providers offering IFC members special discounts
- Hosted our first Gay Happy Hour @ Trovasi Cafe, owned by an IFC Home Tours homeowner
- Set up an IFC table at Three Hens & A Rooster Saturday market to showcase our charitable mission
- Created a Future Planning Group to evaluate needs of the organization, including volunteer burnout, staffing, guide team through cross-fertilization, greater collaboration between and among working groups and need to create cleft palate medical team transition team
- Created a Cleft Palate Program Committee to plan for the program's future
- Created a Development/ Fundraising Committee to enable the IFC's cleft palate and charitable grants programs to grow
- Created a database on a shared drive for maintaining important IFC records rather than on individual PCs
|  |  | Vallarta Abuelos
Seven years ago, a young mother waited in a long line-up surrounding the home of Anne Marie Weiss, founder of Vallarta Abuelos, an IFC grantee, in Cinco de Diciembre. She hoped to be one of the lucky moms to get a free backpack, stuffed with school supplies, for her 13 year-old son, Alan, and his two younger siblings. In Jalisco, school is tuition-free, but for a 7th grader the annual cost to provide required school supplies, uniforms, shoes, lunch and transportation, averages $250 USD.
Cupertina Dominguez, a single mother, lived hand to mouth on her minimum wage, then $5/day. She could not afford the required “extras”. She was determined that her son, a bright and diligent student, continue his education. She learned about Vallarta Abuelos, a charitable organization that supplies children with backpacks and stationery at the beginning of the school term. In 2026, 700 children from low income families received backpacks.
Dominguez’ son, Alan, was deemed a gifted and serious student, and was selected to receive a Vallarta Abuelos “scholarship” which included the required uniform and shoes. Alan registered for grade 8, the first year of junior high school in 2013.
Fast forward to 2026. After three years in University, Alan will graduate as a Mechanical Engineer. He is the first in the Vallarta Abuelos program to graduate from university. Five more students, with the help of Vallarta Abuelos, will graduate in the next two years.
About the Vallarta Abuelos program, Alan says, "I am deeply grateful to every person who believed in me and gave me the opportunity to change my life. Through the Vallarta Abuelos family, I have learned that even our greatest dreams can become possible when we receive the right support."
IFC GRANTEE
As the backpack program has grown, the annual cost has risen to $6000 USD. Weiss successfully applied for a grant from IFC and Vallarta Abuelos became one of 18 IFC Grantees. The IFC grant covers half the cost of the stationery supplies. This support enables other Vallarta Abuelos funds to be directed to all Vallarta Abuelos programming.
|  | | Alan at University. |  | | Alan doing mechanical engineering homework. | | |
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We want to thank our generous members for stepping up to improve our clubhouse!
Thanks to IFC members who quickly stepped up in response to the Wish List in our last newsletter, we will be making the following Clubhouse improvements, making our Clubhouse safer, more comfortable, and more useful for everyone.
- We will be acquiring 100 new padded folding chairs with a storage rack, and 25 folding tables.
- Our electrician will be grounding the electrical outlets in the Clubhouse and making improvements to lighting in the meeting room.
- We will be replacing the existing lobby monitor—the one that displays the Clubhouse calendar - which has gone to tech heaven.
- We will be adding a larger monitor in the lobby to showcase the Mexican charities supported by IFC grants.
- We will be installing 2 new phones for the front desk - reduced static, able to take your messages, call forward, etc.
Together, we will have the Clubhouse ready to welcome everyone back for another great season!
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