Augusta is home to several industries that bring people here from all over the world.
With the draw from Georgia Health Sciences University, Fort Gordon and the Savannah River Site, the Augusta metro area is rich with cultural diversity. More than a dozen ethic clubs and organizations meet the needs of both foreign-born Augustans and those who are fascinated with other cultures.
Pat Estep is an American who fell in love with German culture as a soldier in the Army. His wife, Christa, is from Phillipsburg, near Mannheim, Germany.
They lived in Augusta while he was stationed at Fort Gordon from 1981 to 1985 and were pleased to find two German clubs in the area at the time. They wanted to find a group of people who shared Christa’s heritage and Pat’s interest in the culture.
“We were impressed they were still carrying on German traditions,” he said of the two clubs.
They attended functions for both clubs without joining either one until they moved back to Germany in 1985 for his final tour of duty. They moved back to Augusta in 1997 and joined the German Friendship Club, which is now the only German club in the area.
Pat is its president.
The German Friendship Club formed in 1976 when a group of immigrants, mostly soldiers’ wives, banded together to socialize in their native tongue.The club has about 200 members and meets four times a year, but they also observe all of the major German holidays.
Such clubs serve several functions. Socialization and preservation of the culture is important for people who share a common heritage, but another function is educating the community around them.
Ahmet Suer joined the Turkish American Society when he moved to Augusta in 1992 to accept a job with Westinghouse. He wanted to share his Turkish heritage with his new community.
“I thought that I could involve them and share knowledge that we have – the history, ethics, habits and cooking – and share that with people here who are interested to learn about other cultures,” said Suer, who is the society’s president.
He does presentations about Turkey, its history and culture at schools, churches and civic groups.
“Turkey has a rich culture that goes all the way back to the second century before Christ,” he said.
He takes a small group of members and uses maps, posters and small artifacts such as Turkish money to show his audience.
“Sometimes we bring some kind of Turkish pastry to let them taste it,” he said.
The Turkish American Society participates in cultural events such as Arts in the Heart of Augusta whenever they can. Suer said when they do, they like to offer a variety of Turkish food inexpensively so that people can experience different Turkish dishes.
The society meets twice a year for religious holidays and occasionally gets together to socialize at a local restaurant.
Education and outreach are also the main focus of the Ascociacion Cultural Hispanoamericana.
The Hispanic Festival at the Augusta Common earlier this month is one of their largest community events of the year.
Food from a variety of countries and dance and music groups offered a glimpse into various Hispanic cultures.
The Asociacion Cultural His-panoamericana was founded in 1986 by a small group of Augusta State University professors who wanted to promote and preserve Hispanic culture. Nearly 20 Latin countries are represented now.
Vice President Octavio Arroyo Jr. said the group works to showcase the best of the Augusta community and the Hispanic community that’s part of it.
“We hope to be a voice for community, to let them know we are here. We are part of the community, the Augusta community. We just happen to be Hispanic,” he said.
Members do get together to celebrate various holidays and gather for social activities such as picnics in the summer. All three spokesmen said that affiliation to the countries they represent is not necessary to join their organizations.
They welcome members such as Asociacion director Rhonda Carey. She joined in 2003 even though she has no ties to the Hiispanic community.
“I just fell in love with the culture and the people and the language. I just love it. It’s so beautiful,” she said.
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