During this last week in August four students from Assiniboia Composite High School, Cassie Kuffner, Adison Lidberg, Brenna Luke and Brooke Schollar, have set off to four different countries to participate in the Rotary’s youth exchange program.
Cassie Kuffner participated in the Rotary’s short-term exchange last year, spending last summer in Paris. This time, she will participate in the long-term program, spending a year going to school in Fusagasuga, Columbia in South America. Kuffner has proven to be an inspiration to other Assiniboia students. Adison Lidberg, who has always had an interest in history and travel, headed to Belgium and Brooke Schollar landed in Paris this past week, and Brenna Luke will be in Italy. All three are on the exchange for the first time, becoming interested in the Rotary program after learning about it from Kuffner.
“I’m very proud of her,” stated her mother Sandy Kuffner, “She’s determined and excited about her opportunity.” Brooke’s mother, Janelle Schollar added, “What an amazing experience to be able to travel to France at age 16 and learn about different cultures.”
The Rotary youth exchange is an international program promoting friendship and peace around the world. Students are placed in a host family for short or long term stays to learn about other cultures. To participate, the Assiniboia students and their families went through a detailed application process with interviews and lots of paperwork. The parents attended Rotary conferences in Canada to learn about the process and meet parents from other countries. “The Rotary paperwork was detailed but was easy to get through,” said Sandy Kuffner. Part of the way was smoothed by the students’ contact from the Assiniboia Rotary Club and high school teacher, Joanne Feeley. “She was a huge help through the whole process,” added Janelle Schollar. Because she’s on a long-term exchange, Kuffner had additional preparations such as visas, immunizations and organizing personal items like cell phones and insurance.
The Rotary gives careful thought before pairing a student with a host family. It takes into consideration the country, student interests, length of stay and the personalities of the student and hosts. “The girls are well matched,” Janelle Schollar commented about her daughter and the host family’s daughter. Skype and Facebook now allow the Assiniboia students and their parents to get to know the host families. Lidberg’s and Schollar’s parents have already connected with the hosts, but Sandy Kuffner declined the opportunity. “I wanted Cassie to experience it first.”
Each of the students have their own daily schedule. Adison Lidberg will be the youngest Rotary student in Belgium. He’s a bit of a history buff, so he will have opportunities to explore the countries of the European Union. Kuffner starts her day at 6:30 a.m. attending school for the year in Columbia.
