This website began in Paris in the summer of 1988 when an enthusiastic staff member of AFS-Vivre-Sans-Frontière--a Frenchman who had spent a year living in Denmark-- exclaimed "I'm full of the AFS spirit, but if you were to ask me what AFS is, I'd be hard pressed to tell you." On a shelf in the director's office next door sat the three-volume History of the American Field Service in France, published in 1920, but with its pages still uncut.

Time, then, to start cutting the pages and open up the story---- the many stories--- hidden in those three spirited letters, AFS. First came an 8-page summary in French, then 15 pages in English and on from there. In 1989, there was a film, and in 1993 the project took the graphic form of six posters, presented at the AFS World Congress in Switzerland. In 1996, the "Story" appeared on the Web.

The present site has evolved from the posters--- a kind of family history, laid out in chapters devoted to eras. "Junior" did not just appear magically one day in 1947--- he has parents and aunts and uncles, grandparents, and all kinds of extended family who have contributed to the spirit and the activities which he calls his own. The Story progresses from the "international societies" of the 19th century to the "intercultural programs" of today--- always begging the question, "What do all these developments have in common?" Here, the dynamics of experience is evoked---and exploration in that direction begins through the portal on the right-hand introductory page.

The six "family history" sections are organized into increasingly-detailed subsections where the supporting quotes have been linked to their sources---complete documents, which can be found in a seventh section, a library of primary and secondary texts.

The result proves to be a labyrinth, alas, and we're working to make navigation there less perilous. Meanwhile, hardy explorers will be rewarded with rosters of ambulance drivers, a visit to the Blérancourt Museum and other such treasures for the seeker-of-truth who is never satisfied with summary or definitive answers to the question "Why?"