By Ryan Thompson, Fort Leonard Wood Public Affairs Office

FORT LEONARD WOOD, Mo. (Aug. 22, 2025) — International military students from 38 countries are preparing to share their cultures with the Fort Leonard Wood community from 6 to 8 p.m., Sept. 5 during the 23rd Know Your World event in Nutter Field House.

Hosted by the International Military Student Office, the Know Your World event provides international military students a chance to share their culture and heritage with Fort Leonard Wood and the surrounding community.

“Know Your World allows all these students to represent their countries to regular people by giving them the opportunity to meet people from different countries that they may have never knew existed,” said Kenny Howard, IMSO Field Studies Program manager.

And according to Howard, there will be plenty of activities to keep the whole family entertained.

“All 38 of these different countries will have individual booths with background information on their country,” Howard said. “The students will either be in their military’s dress uniform or traditional clothing representing their culture.”

Attendees may also be able to try different foods and refreshments from the various countries represented at the event.

“As people walk through and get to talk to the different students, they get a chance to sample a little bit of what the students have at home,” Howard said.

In addition to sampling food from other countries, there will be an interactive passport available for children and adults to help encourage exploration among the countries and to start conversations with students.

“It’s always a fun event with tons of conversation going on,” he said. “These conversations lead to a broader understanding of one another because there is more to a country than what we see on television.”

1st Lt. Cynthia Haydamous is an operation officer for the Lebanese Armed Forces. She arrived at Fort Leonard Wood in April to attend the U.S. Army Engineer Basic Officer Leader Course.

She said this is her first time in America, and she is looking forward to sharing her country’s rich history and cultural identity.

“I’m looking to represent my beloved country, my culture, my language, my famous cities and all the features of Lebanon to include its food and drinks,” Haydamous said. “I want people to know that Lebanon is a wonderful country and that it is more than just what you see in the news. There is a natural beauty to my country and the Lebanese people are so kind and generous.”

After learning about the different cultures, Micah Pereza, IMSO Field Studies Program coordinator, said he wants attendees to leave with a specific objective.

“Every year I leave Know Your World, I’m amazed by the similarities that exist between all our cultures and how alike we are as people,” Micah said. “I want people to leave here with a bucket list of places they want to go visit.”

For Howard, the purpose of Know Your World is simple.

“You may never get the opportunity to meet this many people from so many different countries,” Howard said. “Our goal is to bring all these different people together and make lasting friendships.”

To learn more about Know Your World or how to sponsor a student through the IMSO’s Ambassador Program, call 573.855.3613.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

-30-

About Fort Leonard Wood

Fort Leonard Wood is a thriving and prosperous installation that has evolved from a small basic training post more than 80 years ago to a premier Army Center of Excellence that trains nearly 80,000 military and civilians each year.

Fort Leonard Wood is home to the U.S Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and three U.S. Army schools: the U.S. Army Engineer School; U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School; and the U.S. Army Military Police School. In addition to training engineer, CBRN and military police specialties for the Army, Fort Leonard Wood also provides gender-integrated in-processing and Basic Combat Training for new Soldiers.

Fort Leonard Wood also hosts and trains with the largest Marine Corps Detachment and Air Force Squadron on any Army installation as well as a large Navy construction detachment.