by Anne Cordon

I was introduced to Servas by my parents when I’d come home from college and hear about the latest Servas travelers to stay there. My parents, Ann and Walter Mulbry, were Servas hosts for about 20 years from the mid-eighties to the early 2000’s. My parents lived on the central east coast of Florida, a popular destination for many travelers.  

Recently I was going through some of my late parents’ papers and found a journal with about 70 names and addresses of Servas travelers who’d stayed with my parents. My mother belonged to a local writing group, and I found this piece she wrote in the Servas visitors journal that I thought would resonate with other Servas members.

Ann Mulbry's Servas Diary  

Becoming part of Servas, an international friendship organization, gave me plenty of practice in meeting new people. My husband and I joined Servas at least 25 years ago when we heard about its very flexible way of being hosts. During the first few years, we had many visitors, mostly young 20–39-year-old Europeans. They made contact by finding our names in their host book and either writing or contacting us by telephone asking if they could come for two days. There is no obligation to say “yes,” but we enjoyed most of them so much that we usually extended the invitation to stay longer if their travel schedule allowed.

It had not occurred to us that we might be travelers, too, until we decided to explore New Zealand and Australia. No one could have had a happier entry into the everyday life of Kiwis [and Ozzies]. Of course, our friends had stayed with us for 2 months, long enough to sail us with on our boat to the Bahamas. 

They launched us on our adventures of travelling to the South Island with local hosts. Our first night was spent with a couple who had never been hosts before. We were new to the guest experience. The two men benefitted from the ritual glass of Scotch, a tall glass, if I remember correctly.

The next encounter was memorable, not just for the stay on a deer ranch, but because Neil, our host, was so pleased to have us. He made us feel welcome, saying how much he loved Servas. His words have delighted me over the years, that as soon as someone walks in the front door, you are friends.