At long last, time for lunch – Patricia Moccia

L to R Front Row: Lena Hartono, Rima Salah, Nancy Raphael, Shalini Dewan, Madeline Eisner,
Sree Gururaja, Shahida Azfar, Sudharshan Narula
Middle Row: Fran Silverberg, Maie Ayoub von Kohl, Malika Abrous, Mehr Khan Williams,
Carol Bellamy, Doreen Lobo
Last Row: Karin Sham Poo, Sandra Haji-Ahmed, Patricia Moccia, Kimberly Gamble,
Cecilia Lotse, Nancy Cain

XUNICEF women met for lunch at an Upper East Side Restaurant on 21 September 2022. The organizers, Doreen Lobo, Mehr Khan Williams, Nancy Raphael and Sree Gururaja had reached out to women colleagues who live in the New York area or were visiting NYC. It was amazing to see a resolute group of women who managed to adjust their work and travel schedules and carve out time to attend this mini-reunion lunch.

Organizers with Fran Silverberg & Shahida Azfar

Notwithstanding heightened security and snarled traffic due to President Biden’s UN visit, our XUNICEF women showed up on time! Some colleagues had not met in years, others in decades. Chatter, joy and laughter permeated the air. The gathering was a truly happy, light-hearted affair.

As an ice-breaker, each person by turn, briefly shared what they have been doing “for fun” since their UNICEF days. They spoke of travels for adventure, or to attend the XUNICEF Reunions. They are now able to fully indulge in their interests such as enjoying live theater, museums, concerts, and operas. Some spoke of their delight in having discovered their latent talent for painting and writing. They told us that they’ve been writing books, poetry, earning certification as a yoga teacher, volunteering in the parks and their local communities. Others mentioned how they were engaged with retiree associations and networks, organizing reunions and forums, volunteering their time to the XUNICEF blog and Weekly Digests. Some women shared stories of their grandchildren and families, of returning to universities as educators and, yes, as students, of returning to their home countries, some to work, some to build homes; of creating and supporting local NGOs, of creating new institutions and raising millions of dollars to protect the rights of children.

Pre-lunch chatter

Ice breaker - "Fun" life after UNICEF

Captive audience

Beaming for the camera?

Lighthearted banter

Yummy what a spread!

Walking home, I thought how much more than a reunion of our days at UNICEF this lunch had been. As much as we shared UNICEF, we shared the values of what had brought us to UNICEF in the first place, and what kept us there. Our conversations were in the tradition of the ages: strong, smart, creative, and wise women, kind and caring with each other, committed to doing good and being good, and of leaving the world better than they found it. It was a lunch that not only reminisced about some good old days but inspired us for today and tomorrow.

Thank you each and all. 

(Patricia Moccia, PhD, Retired chief of publications, DOC) email: patriciamoccia@gmail.com