Published: July 12, 2008 11:50 pm         

AFS seeks host families

An open heart and a home is all that’s needed

Akira enjoys playing the guitar, making music on his computer and playing volleyball.

Otavio plays bass guitar, goes to the gym, is very studious and loves to read.

Sasja loves sports and practices basketball every day, and Supitcha is a nature lover. Alexander, who plays the saxophone, also gets into field hockey, skiing and cycling.

These are just a few of the students from across the globe who hope to come to the United States in August to participate in the annual American Field Service Exchange Program.

According to Darlene Frederick, local AFS chapter president and host coordinator, host families can range from “welcome” families who help the students get acquainted with the community and the school until a full-time host family can be located, to families who provide a home for the student for the entire 11 months.

“Some folks may not want to commit to a whole year,” she said, adding that arrangements have even been made where one family hosts a student for a semester and a second family provides a home for the student for the second part of the year.

Either way, she says the experience is one that benefits both the family and the student more than either could imagine.

“It’s incredible what it gives the family that hosts a kid and what it gives the kids themselves,” she said.

According to Frederick, there are about 20 students available to come to the local Appalachian area, which includes Mineral County, Allegany County and Bedford-Altoona, Pa. Some of the countries they represent include Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Belgium, Thailand, Turkey and Norway.

Last year, AFS students attended Keyser, Allegany, Southern Garrett and Mountain Ridge high schools.

This year, Frederick hopes to expand the areas touched by the foreign exchange students.

“I’d especially like to get a kid into the Petersburg area,” she said.

Frederick realizes that some families may be a bit hesitant to sign up to host a student due to the instability of the economy. She emphasizes, however, that the benefits of the program far outweigh the cost.

“I have a hat that says ‘World Peace’ on the front and ‘AFS’ on the back,” she said. “That’s what it’s all about. “You open your heart to these kids and you learn that their countries aren’t all that different. Kids are kids no matter where they’re from.”

American families who host students often find that they learn almost as much as the visiting student.

Keyser host parent Stacey Boggs, for example, said having Chilean student Sebastian Silva as part of her family for a year helped her children learn Spanish.

“It was just a lot of fun,” she said.

According to www.afs.org, the American Field Service Web site, host families can come from any type of area, including farms, small towns, suburbs and city apartments.

Although AFS host families receive pay, “getting a new son or daughter is the reward,” the Web site says.

“Hosting creates a lifetime friendship with another person — and often — with another family in a different part of the world.”

For more information, call Frederick at (304) 788-6644.

Contact Liz Beavers at lbeavers@times-news.com.