Wilsonville Rotary Seeks Host Families for Youth Exchange Program

From the Rotary Club of Wilsonville:

Spain, Austria, Argentina, Slovakia and Switzerland are among the register of destinations that high school students are traveling to and from through the Wilsonville Rotary Youth Exchange Program.

"The inbound youth will stay with three host families during the school year. He/she will interact with these families, with new friends in school and with the local Rotary members and their families," said Rotary member Jake McMichael. "All who come in contact with the hosted student will learn about his/her customs, culture, school systems, way of doing business and the way they live. This learning experience within the local community broadens the individual understandings of the world and helps to bring the world closer together. Exchange is about learning, about tolerance, acceptance and treatment and understanding of people."

Wilsonville High School student Callan Kehoe traveled to Spain for five weeks and stayed with a family in the city of Alicante on the Mediterranean coast. He returned home by mid-summer, accompanied by his Spanish host brother, Ruben Ibanez. The Kehoe family then hosted Ibanez for a five-week stay that included a trip to the N.Y. Finger Lakes area.

Dawson Durig, a junior at WHS, arrived in Argentina mid-June, hosted by the Berios family in Daireaux 250 miles west of Buenos Aires, and returned Labor Day. Durig attended school with his host brother, Juan Santiago Berois, during what is the winter semester for those south of the equator. The Durig family will host Berois from December to February during the Argentine summer vacation season.

"One of the main purposes of the Youth Exchange Program is the exchange of knowledge on an international level. The hosted student is an ambassador for his/her country. Show an interest in that country, and try to learn as much as possible about his or her home environment," McMichael said. "In turn, the host family is also an ambassador for the U.S. by imparting as much knowledge as possible about the U.S. way of life to the student so that he/she will be able to take home a picture of the U.S. that is as accurate as possible."

This two-way exchange of ideas and information, says McMichael, can be a stimulating and rewarding adventure.

"You will gain a new son/daughter who lives 'across the pond,'" he continued, "and will be a lifetime treasure for your family.

Two additional Wilsonville 11th-grade students departed abroad in August. Elizabeth Harms is with her host family in a suburb of Vienna, Austria, and her classes will be taught in German. She is set to return to Wilsonville summer 2017. Amanda Weatherly has been with her host family in Poprad, Slovakia, since Sept. 5. Struggling to learn the Slovak language, Weatherly is finding Google Translate to be of great value.

The Rotary Club of Wilsonville is hosting Anna Knill of Switzerland for the 2016-2017 school year. Knill speaks fluent English and German and understands French and Italian. She is a senior at WHS and is living with the first of her three local host families in Wilsonville, set to move to a second family in December.

McMichael offered advice for those visiting abroad for the first time

"Be a member of the family, not a guest," he said. "You adjust to the host family, not them to you. Immerse yourself in, learn and respect the culture. Make every effort to learn and become fluent in the language. Attend school on a regular basis [and] get involved in school activities."

It is important, he added, to be flexible at all times and to venture out sans preconceived notions as to how the experience abroad will be, while limiting communication with natural parents and friends early on in the exchange.

The Rotary Club of Wilsonville is seeking a third host family for March to June 2017. Those interested in hosting her must contact Jake McMichael via (503) 694-2127 for further information.

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