FAQ

Becoming a member of Friendship Force offers many benefits. You will have access to educational and experiential programs that promote intercultural understanding. You can connect with thousands of like-minded members in over 60 countries. Join local and international groups and participate in international hosting experiences. Visit or host members around the world. Participate in curated transformative travel opportunities. Whether you choose to join a local club or become an individual member, there is a place for you within the Friendship Force network.

▸ To join a club:
Step 1: Create an account on my.friendshipforce.org. (see this video tutorial) You will need to read and familiarize yourself with our Member Code of Conduct and our Terms and Conditions
Step 2: Pay the FFI Membership Fee (see this video tutorial)
Step 3: If you would like to join Spokane’s local club, you can do that through the member portal. Under “My Clubs and Groups”, you will see a button that reads “Join a Club”. Choose Spokane from this list. Someone from the club will then reach out to you to tell you about their application process and will collect local club dues.

Alternatively, if you would like more information about the local club first, go to the home page and click “Interested in joining? Tell us about yourself”, then fill out the short form. An officer from the club will contact you.

A club member will pay dues to both Friendship Force Spokane (the local club) and to Friendship Force International (FFI). 2026 dues are $10 for the local club and $100 for FFI.

Friendship Force Spokane currently has about 70 members. It varies from year to year, but we have stayed close to this number the last few years. Each year a few members retire and a few new members join us.

Each journey requires two Coordinators – a Host Coordinator and an Ambassador Coordinator. The Host Coordinator is part of the receiving club and works to arrange home-hosting and activities, as well as determining journey costs, for the Ambassadors who will be visiting. The Ambassador Coordinator is part of the traveling club and receives and screens applications from potential Ambassadors for the journey. The two coordinators communicate from the very beginning to make sure that the journey runs smoothly. They will discuss possible activities and find those best suited for the incoming Ambassadors.

Once you get signed up and are a member of both FFI and the local club, you will start receiving the local monthly newsletter as well as emails from both Friendshipforcespokane and Friendshipforceinternational. Another good source of information is the my.friendshipforce.org website. When you become a member you have access to all the information on this site, which includes a local calendar and information plus LOADS for information about what’s going on internationally.

And after you become a member and register with our website, you'll have access to all the events, planned journeys, express interest in journeys, communicate with members, etc.

Home hosts agree to share their home for five to seven days and nights with a Friendship Force member(s) from another country or state. Learn about another culture without leaving home. Home hosts provide breakfast for the guest most days. The host will have the opportunity to participate in a number of group/club outings so the host won't have to plan everything for their guests. The cost of events, admissions and outside meals for group activities are generally paid for in advance by ambassadors. But just as you would entertain a friend in your home, hosts do not receive compensation for meals at home, transportation in the host's car, and their own activity/tour costs.

Day Host – A day host is someone who wants to participate in an inbound journey, but, for whatever reason, is unable to host people overnight in their home. This individual volunteers to escort an ambassador for one or more days to a scheduled activity or, if it is a day when no group activity is planned, decides how and where to spend the day with the ambassador.

Small Group Dinner Hosts will provide a dinner on one day of the inbound journey for several ambassadors and their home hosts. Dinner participants usually number between six and ten, depending on the small group dinner host’s seating capacity. Dinner can be as fancy or as simple as the host wishes.