Fourteen Rotary Youth Exchange students attending Houston area high schools meet all together, many for the first time, during Rotary District 5890's Host Family Appreciation Dinner at the Lake Houston Family YMCA in Kingwood on Sunday, April 16, 2023. Students' host families were treated to dinner and recognition for all they do to make the foreign exchange students, representing eleven countries, feel at home and experience living in the United States. If you'd like to find out more about being an exchange student from the U.S. to a foreign county visit: https://lharotary.com/sitepage/rye
On Sunday evening, over 100 Rotary Youth Exchange students, their host families and Rotarian counselors from all over Rotary District 5890 gathered at the Lake Houston Family YMCA in Kingwood to share their American experiences, thank their host families and Rotary for making their visit possible.
This was also the first time many of the 14 exchange students from 11 different countries had met each other.
Sunday’s Rotary District 5890’s RYE Host Family Appreciation Dinner was hosted by Lake Houston Rotary. It was also the first district RYE appreciation dinner held since before the pandemic.
Lake Houston Rotarians sponsored three of the eleven exchange students. They are Andre La Casas Dornas Ferreira from Brazil, Barbara Valentina Sanna from Italy and Jaehyeok Lim from South Korea. All three are attending Humble ISD high schools during their visit.
This was also the first time many of the fourteen exchange students from eleven different countries had met each other.
Other nations represented, besides the three above, during this year’s student exchange are from the Czech Republic, Spain, Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden.
Rotary District 5890, which includes the greater Houston area, has hosted 583 exchange students since 1987. The district also sends out our local students to these countries in exchange for their students.
Andre Ferreira, of Brazil, speaks to the assembled Rotarians and host family parents
One of the Lake Houston Rotary sponsored students, Andre Ferreira, spoke to the entire audience of his experiences in America, including American football, food and attending school here. His father was also a Rotary Exchange Student when he was a teenager. He’s found the experience to be a very positive one.
Each of the students participated in a flag ceremony carrying their country's flag. (Some countries were represented by more than one student.)
Each of the students participated in a flag ceremony carrying their country's flag. (Some countries were represented by more than one student.)
The dinner included a flag ceremony with each student carrying and or accompanying their nation’s flag (some countries were represented by more than one exchange student), welcome comments from District RYE officer Susan Broadbeck, remarks from 5890 District Governor Mindi Synder, LH Rotary RYE chair Sandra Gasdanaduy-Collison, observations from Andre and fellow exchange student Sarah Noordof from the Netherlands, introductions of all the students and their host families followed by the singing of Rotary songs for unity and peace on Earth.
The Rotary Club of Lake Houston Area is a community service organization serving the greater Lake Houston area since 1967 (formerly known as Humble Rotary). Rotarians are neighbors, friends, leaders, and problem solvers who see a world where people can unite and take action to make our communities and the world a better place to live and work.
Our members live and/or work in the greater Lake Houston area. Guests interested in learning more about Rotary are welcome to attend one of our regular meetings in Kingwood and/or Summer Creek.
Meetings are held weekly from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m., most Wednesdays at the Lake Houston Family YMCA, 2420 West Lake Houston Pkwy. in Kingwood.
Our members live and/or work in the greater Lake Houston area. Guests interested in learning more about Rotary are welcome to attend one of our regular meetings in Kingwood and/or Summer Creek.
Meetings are held weekly from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m., most Wednesdays at the Lake Houston Family YMCA, 2420 West Lake Houston Pkwy. in Kingwood.
The Summer Creek Satellite Club meets the 2nd and 4th most Tuesdays of the month from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., at Generation Park's 3rd floor Nimble Office Suite, 250 Assay St., Houston.
Additional information about Rotary and membership is available here: https://lharotary.com/page/who-we-are-what-we-do .
The dinner was held in the Y'MCA's gym.