Fall/Winter Newsletter
January 2017
Une Beaujolais Nouveau Célébration Superbe
In November, AFN joined forces with the French American Chamber of Commerce to create a magical evening,
the air filled with 1930-40s-Paris-manouche-style music provided by Jonny Gowow & The Japanese Cowboys.
We enjoyed luscious hors d’œuvres from Et Voila, the perky Beaujolais Nouveau 2016 from Georges Duboeuf,
a swing dance demonstration, French cocktails courtesy of RED Spirits & Wine, a silent auction, and more.
In This Issue
Top left: Jonny Gowow; Bottom left: Kerri Jameson

Beaujolais Nouveau
Celebration/Fall
Fundraiser

From the President’s
Desk

Celebrate Nashville

AFN Member Spotlight

Annual AF Meeting

Holiday Fête

Une Petite Annonce
From the
President’s Desk
Another year upon us, and AFN
is an exciting place to be right
now. The board is busy planning
2017’s cultural events—some fan
favorites, some brand new—and
we can’t wait to hear the fresh
ideas of new board members,
Lonnie Frey and Amy Sellberg.
We’re also getting ready for a
Resource Rom makeover in the
spring. Suzie Cohen has been so
kind as to let us store some rarely
-used items chez elle, and we’ll
soon do another culling of books.
Stay tuned for the announcement
of a book sale after conversation
circle, un de ces quatre.
Dress up is not just for kids!
Nikki Alexander, a.k.a. The Hatoholic, generously leant us lots of her vintage accessories so celebrating guests
could really get into the evening’s theme. Mille Mercis, Nikki ! And we can’t forget Jeromy Réaux and Michael
Shumate, event photographers extraordinaires, and all the volunteers formidables !
Levons notre verre . . .
A toast to the new harvest
Is there such a thing as too much fun?
AFN Member
Spotlight
Amy Sellberg
A Tennessee native, Amy
describes herself as a
Francophile to the bone.
She has earned a BA, MA
and PhD in French (and
Cinema Studies). She
loves the French people,
culture, food, lifestyle,
and, of course, spending
time in Francophone
places. She has close
connections with her
college host family near
Montpellier and her more
recent hosts in Caen.
Amy has chaperoned
three different groups of
Sister Cities high school
ambassadors to Caen and
one group of UT students.
A professor of French,
media, and film on three
different campuses in
Nashville, Amy still makes
time to attend AFN’s
monthly soirées, where
she enjoys people’s
company and the cultural
event, and hike and create
culinary delights with her
husband, John.
Joseph Antoun shares Alexandra’s secret recipes at Celebrate Nashville
Celebrate Nashville
Early on the first Saturday in October, several AF members set up a booth at
Celebrate Nashville, formerly Celebration of Cultures, and welcomed people to
experience French culture through food, language, and art. While people waited
to taste Alexandra Courcoux’s delicious cakes, Rob Pilling helped them to
recognize the many words they already knew in French.
People of all ages and nationalities flocked to AFN’s booth. We even got the
opportunity to talk with a Brazilian couple who were members of their AF in
Curitiba, and we worked on recruiting the next generation of AFN members:
Annual Alliance Française Meeting, Minneapolis
For three days in October, Joseph Antoun and I attended the annual meeting of AFUSA, where we went to
workshops and networked with colleagues from throughout the Alliance Française réseau in the United States,
from Hawaii to Maine. We discussed changing demographics, available grants, how to implement children’s
programs, the best ways to raise funds, how to attract new members, the One Book, One Federation program,
and the new One Film, One Federation program. We got to attend a wine tasting with the AF Minneapolis
Young Professionals group, and they hosted a reception in their spacious, but cozy building on the final night.
De plus, we returned to Nashville full of plans and the energy to realize them!
Holiday Fête
Marie-Pierre Isherwood—with help from Carl Marsh and Joseph Antoun—has recently organized a chorale for
AFN, and the singers put on quite a show during our end-of-the-year party. Kathy Chiavola also wowed the
crowd, with her rendition of “Mary Did You Know.” There was plenty of Bûches de Noël to go around, and the
holiday spirit was palpable.
Une Petite Annonce : Immersion Day
Jacob Truax and I are busy organizing this year’s Journée d’Immersion, which will feature a full day of French
language, culture, music, sport, and more, so mark your calendars for
Saturday April 15th, 10:00 am—8:00 pm.
We’ll be gathering at the Coronada Clubhouse, in Bellevue, and the cost
for this fun and fabulous day will be as follows:
AF Members (any chapter)—$30
Nonmembers—$40
Cost includes all activities, coffee, catered lunch, dégustation, and dinner.
Alliance Française de Nashville Music City’s French Connection
A Look Ahead

Journée de la
francophonie

Immersion Day Recap

Spring Soirées

Fête de la Musique