THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 21, 1994 TAG: 9410190219
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 08K EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY GARY EDWARDS, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Please don't ask Elizabeth Kehrig where's she's from.
She'll probably answer your question with one of her own: Where am I from when?
The 18-year-old Kempsville High School senior was born in Portsmouth Naval Hospital to an American father from Detroit, Mich., and an English mother. She has lived in Virginia Beach and London, has traveled widely throughout Europe and holds an American passport.
Her maternal grandfather was a British subject born in Burma; her maternal grandmother was also British, but born in Uganda. Her mother, Catherine Kehrig, was born in Windsor, England, though she spent much of her life on her parents' rubber plantations in Burma, Pakistan and Uganda.
Elizabeth Kehrig isn't being rude if she demurs when asked where she is from. She is simply a ``global nomad,'' a three-generation global nomad. Like her mother, Elizabeth spent a large part of her youth living outside her passport country due to a parent's occupation. That's the definition of a global nomad. They are the offspring of diplomats, international business people, government workers, military personnel and missionaries; those whose occupations take them across national boundaries.
``Global nomads have a sense of belonging in several cultures, rather a smorgasbord of cultures,'' said Catherine Kehrig, who holds a degree in geography from Old Dominion University.
If the term sounds new and unfamiliar, you needn't feel alone. Elizabeth and her mother are trying to introduce the idea and start a group for people who share this common bond.
On a recent evening, the two waited in the Kempsville meeting room of the Kempsville Library, folding handouts and talking about what it means to be a global nomad. Catherine Kehrig had prepared a presentation and wanted to share her experiences with others of similar background. When the expected kindred spirits failed to arrive, the women talked about their experiences.
``I left here to live in England 5 1/2 years ago,'' said Elizabeth. ``Now people ask me if I'm glad to be home. I don't really think of Virginia Beach as home.''
In the parlance of the global nomad, America is Elizabeth's country of passport. Home is where the heart is, and where the formative memories live and that's England for Elizabeth now.
She said that it's not so much anti-Americanism, as it is that the people, the institutions, the culture of England still feel like home to her.
``The largest school I attended in England had 250 students,'' she said. ``There are more students at one lunch bell at Kempsville than in any school I attended in England.''
Though she speaks with no discernible British accent, Elizabeth did betray her recent cultural influence when her mother asked her to use the copy machine. Elizabeth left the room with several documents and quickly returned. She would have to wait, she said, there was a ``queue'' at the copier. Most thoroughly American 18-year-olds would have said ``a long line.''
Elizabeth hopes to attend either Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Lynchburg or the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg. She plans to major in international relations. MEMO: The Kehrigs would like to invite those who are interested in joining or
learning more about Global Nomads International to attend the next
meeting on Monday, Nov. 7, at 7:30 p.m. at the Kempsville Library at 832
Kempsville Road. Call 497-8073.
ILLUSTRATION: Photo by GARY EDWARDS
Elizabeth Kehrig, left, and her mother, Catherine Kehrig are forming
Global Nomads International.
by CNB