Jan. 12, 1951

Mr. Ward Chase, Secretary
Tishomingo Rotary Club
Tishomingo, Oklahoma

Dear Mr. Chase;

Due to this [being] income tax time, [and] making out returns for the farmers, I have been a bit slack in answering your letter of the 3rd. In regards our town affiliation with the French town of Feves, there is so much to say, that I don�t know where to start. First of all, the credit for starting this project back in 1948 is all due to one of our town�s leading citizens, Miss Velma Carson. She is sick at the present time, otherwise I would let her tell you the main points. After we had picked out this town as our project, we put on a pageant to raise money to send the people food and clothing, also garden seeds through the CARE organization. We also sent school supplies, Xmas treats to the children, also pictures of our town and its people. Feves is about the same size as Morganville and is composed of farmers and is also a dairy and farming community. Its people were right in the middle of Patton�s Drive and it was also one reason why we picked out this town. We have been very fortunate in that we have had three different citizens of our town visit this French town on tours that they have made and this has also helped to cement the ties of friendship and good will between two peoples. This Xmas, we send the mayor and school teacher a check for $100 for them to purchase a projector which they can use in their school. We intend sending film of scenes here which they can show their people also. We made contact with Operation Democracy, Inc. of New York and they supplied us with the names of different towns in Germany, France, Italy and others from which we could pick our future friends. We shipped all our supplies through American Aid to France, which operates under the Marshall Plan, in that the cargo is carried to Europe and delivered with no expense to us after we delivered on board boat. American Aid to France also had a packing room, where the goods were delivered to them and they packed it for overseas shipment with a very small cover charge. There are still lots of people in Europe that are less fortunate than we are due to the havoc of war and I firmly believe that if we all would make contact with the common people we would soon learn to know each other and that way would lessen the chances of another world war. We have written back and forth, but due to the language barriers, it takes a little time to get the letters translated.

I am certain that your town would get a lot of satisfaction out of adopting some town in Europe, like we have and if you are interested, I can supply you with the necessary names and addresses in New York. Did you hear our Morganville-Feves story over the NBC network before Xmas?

This story is not very good, but I hope you can get a few points out of what I have written. If you ever come up through this part of Kansas, stop and see me and I will show you some of our correspondence and other information as it is very interesting reading.

Very truly yours,