Ohio's First Lady to attend exhibit opening at Wilmington College

Ohio First Lady Frances Strickland has accepted an invitation to attend the opening of Wilmington College's upcoming exhibit "Bridges of Friendship: How Children Learn about Other Cultures."

 The event is March 3, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the Meriam R. Hare Quaker Heritage Center. The exhibit reflects ways in which children learn about world cultures through books, dolls, festivals and music.

 The Quaker Heritage Center, along with WC's Watson Library and Peace Resource Center, are hosting various components of the exhibit, which will be open weekdays, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., between March 4 and Oct. 1.

 A highlight will be a display of 100 dolls from around the world including the doll known as "Ellen C.," which had traveled from Japan to Wilmington for a five-month stay at the College. Ellen C. actually originated in Wilmington, as the doll was named and dressed by the Friends Junior Sunday School class and sent to Japan as part of the 1927 Friendship Doll Project in which the United States and Japan exchanged dolls as an effort in nonpolitical diplomacy. The doll project was intended to ease the rising tensions between the two nations over the United States' 1924 Immigration Act, which effectively ended Japanese immigration into the United States.

The doll was named after Ellen C. Wright, a member of Wilmington College's first graduation class in 1875 and a beloved faculty member at the College through her retirement in 1920.

Coinciding with the Bridges of Friendship exhibit's opening, Sodexo, the College's dining services provider, will serve an international-themed dinner March 3, from 5 to 6:30 p.m., in Pyle Student Center. The cost is $7.50.

Following the opening, a number of monthly special events have been planned through the exhibit's run.

In addition to the weekday hours, the exhibit will be open some Saturdays.

Also, special group tours and classroom visits can be arranged by contacting Ruth Dobyns, curator of the Quaker Heritage Center, via email at ruth_dobyns@wilmington.edu or by calling her at the College at (937) 382-6661 ext. 719.