by Mrs. Therese Stewart-Red Hook, NY
More than 200 family members and friends gathered for a reception and dinner hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Farley Jones on Sat., Oct. 28, 1995 at the Troy Country Club in Troy, NY. The event honored Matthew and Yun Hee Jee Jones, and M. and Cara Jones Kamiyama, who were blessed in the Aug. 25, 1995 Blessing of 360,000 Couples.
Mr. and Mrs. Farley Jones, Mr. and Mrs. Han Young Jee-Yun Hee's parents-and Mrs. Y. Kamiyama Moon, sister of M. Kamiyama, greeted the guests. Sebastian Huemer, a gracious master of ceremonies at the dinner, welcomed the guests, and Dr. Hugh Spurgin offered a prayer before the meal. Jo Won Seuk and Joni Ang Choi, representing other second-generation couples blessed with the Jones and Kamiyama couples in August, offered toasts to the two couples. A delicious dinner followed.
During the dinner, both couples sang and Yun Hee performed a classical Korean dance. Matthew and Yun Hee sang "Keeper of the Stars." Cara and M. sang "Love Can Build a Bridge." A brief slide show included photographs of the Blessing in Korea. After dinner, Mr. Farley Jones addressed family and friends, warmly introducing his father, Mr. E. Stewart Jones; his brother, sister-in-law, and sisters; Mrs. Mary O'Neil, Betsy's mother; and Marilyn, her sister. Farley reminisced about his and Betsy's Blessing in 1970 and the 25th anniversary which they celebrated recently, portraying marriage in the Unification tradition as he did so. Farley and Betsy together thanked everyone for sharing this historic and happy moment with them. Mr. Jee expressed appreciation on behalf of Yun Hee's family and Mrs. Y. Moon spoke on behalf of the Kamiyamas, who could not be present for the occasion. She expressed her happiness for M. and welcomed Cara as his bride and, from now on, as wife of the eldest son, "the one who takes care of the Kamiyama clan." The couples cut the three-tiered wedding cake.
Perhaps first among many factors contributing to make this a true family celebration was the diversity of those present-the international couples themselves; their parents, brothers and sisters; second-generation friends who were blessed with them; fellow students from Williams College, Princeton, New York University and Johns Hopkins; former school friends and athletic coaches; and other friends and colleagues of both the couples and their parents. Farley introduced Dr. David S.C. Kim as an early member of the Unification community, further bringing together many different worlds into one. The evening was the culmination of the Jones family's many years of tribal messiah effort in their hometown of Albany.