A Visitor’s Perspective on Cuba in Transition

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Guest Speaker: ESU Kansas City Member Ben Martin

Presented in Partnership with The International Relations Council

Cuba sits a mere 90 miles off the U.S. coast, but few from the mainland have had the opportunity to immerse themselves in the nuances of Cuba's history, culture, and relationship with the U.S. Join Ben Martin, board member of IRC organizational member The English-Speaking Union, Kansas City Branch, as he reflects on observations and lessons he gleaned from his 2016 visit to this Caribbean nation in transition.

Explore this fascinating trip to Cuba through the eyes of Ben Martin on Tuesday, December 7 at 6:00 pm CST. This is a free program in partnership with the International Relations Council of Kansas City as part of their Global Experience Series of programs. Please register below. After registering, you will receive an email with instructions on how to join the program on December 7.

About Ben Martin

Ben Martin taught and directed speech and theatre in Missouri high schools for 34 years before retiring in the spring of 2010 from the Lee's Summit School District. He served many years on the Boards of Speech and Theatre Association of Missouri (President 1987), Missouri State Thespians and the national board of the Educational Theatre Association. Martin is an active advocate for arts education programs, and served as Executive Director for the Missouri Alliance for Arts Education until he re-retired in July, 2020. He continues as the State Advocacy Captain for Americans for the Arts. Ben is currently on the Board of Directors of the English-Speaking Union Kansas City Branch.

He still feeds his theatre addiction through the Summit Theatre Group, a community theatre he co-founded in 2011 and by writing and directing innovative street theatre and online productions in Lee's Summit. Cellular 'Cenes, his first script, was recognized as the top Promotional Event in 2013 by Missouri Main Streets.

Ben and his wife, Roxanne, have been involved in the English-Speaking Union ever since 1998 when he was honored to receive an ESU scholarship to study at the International Globe Center in London, England. They are committed to the idea that travel broadens the mind and allows one to be a more discerning and educated citizen. They led student tours over a dozen times to London, Dublin, New York and Paris. Among their many additional adventures have been trips to central Europe, the Mediterranean, the Panama Canal, almost all 50 states, 23 National Parks and Alaska—both in the summer and winter. They have ridden on a dogsled, sat for an hour in a traffic jam on the Mojave Desert with no air conditioning, survived an emergency landing at KCI, visited 5 different volcanoes and sailed through a tropical storm on the Queen Mary 2. And, of course, one of their favorite adventures was the location in today's talk—Cuba.

Ben does not claim to be an expert on all-things-Cuban, but his experience there was a unique and eye-opening time. He hopes that in the very near future you might also be able to enjoy a trip to our closest, but most difficult to reach, neighbor.

About the IRC Global Experience Series

Global Experience is one of many programs offered by The International Relations Council of Kansas City. Global Experience gives participants of all ages, interests, and backgrounds the chance to explore how international Kansas City is while answering two key questions – What's your global story? Do you get the chance to share it?

Often free or low-cost, Global Experience events range from visits to internationally-themed restaurants and other outings to film screenings and discussions on timely global issues. As interesting as the topics and venues are, the best part of Global Experience programs are the hosts and participants who share their diverse knowledge and insights. Won't you join us for this introduction to IRC programming and Kansas City's vibrant international community? For more information, go to www.irckc.org.

About the English-Speaking Union

Founded in 1920, the English-Speaking Union of the United States is a national non-profit, non-political educational organization with more than 4,000 members in 65 branches across the country. ESU members and volunteers are the pillars of our educational and cultural programs as they work in their local communities to carry the ESU mission forward.

For 100 years, the ESU educational and cultural programs have enriched the lives of American students, teachers, English language learners and ESU members. The English-Speaking Union employs English as a shared language to foster global understanding and goodwill by providing educational and cultural programs for students, educators, English language learners, new immigrants and members. The Kansas City Branch of the ESU was also founded in 1920. For more information about the ESU Kansas City Branch, go to www.esuus.org/kansascity.

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