Francisco Salomon Luna, SI Peace Secretary on the Road

While at the recent 2022Servas International Conference 
and General Assembly (SICOGA)_ meeting in India, I applied – and was selected – for the International Peace Secretary position. I will serve for three years in this capacity together with Mei Wang from Taiwan. 

I was born in Mexico in 1980. My origins are a mixture of European, Asian, Middle Eastern and indigenous Mesoamerican. I was offered a scholarship to study in China and joined Servas in 2004. A neighbor's daughter, who had taken a trip to Europe using Servas contacts, recommended this organization to me. During my stopover in Seoul, South Korea, I sought Servas hospitality. It turned out to be an extraordinary experience! I was treated as if I were a family member or a lifelong family friend.  

When I returned home from China, I wanted to offer that same hospitality to Servas travelers visiting Mexico. I contacted Servas to express my interest in participating more actively as a volunteer. I became an assistant to Lilli Kerekes, the Mexican Youth coordinator. In due course I took over as Youth coordinator. In 2010, I participated in the first International Youth Meeting held in Mexico. After that, I became the Servas Mexico Peace Secretary as well as coordinator of Mexico City. In 2017 and again in 2020, I was elected Servas Mexico National Secretary. Throughout the Covid pandemic, in addition to being a host and traveler, I participated in Servas meetings in Kyrgistan, Costa Rica, Spain, Korea and India. I also engaged in the SYLE program in Brazil and Making Connections in Israel.  

While at the recent 2022 SICOGA meeting in India, I applied – and was selected – for the International Peace Secretary position. I will serve for three years in this capacity together with Mei Wang from Taiwan. As International Peace Secretary, I intend to maintain communication with other National Peace Secretaries to try to promote activities and events that promote Servas and that connect Servas to other organizations that have the similar objectives.  

I believe that small actions can have significant impact. Everything counts in the promotion of peace. The virtue of selfless “hosting of the pilgrim” appears in all the religions, cultures and philosophies of the world. Welcoming strangers into our homes, generates a positive energy that raises our consciousness and broadens our understanding. As ambassadors of our respective cultures of origin, the interaction between host and traveler convinces us that even if in many ways we are different and may have different view-points, we can be good friends. This is something of great value when we consider the human actions that sustain the world.  

-- Translated by Yosi, U.S. Peace Secretary