Mars families build lifelong relationships through AFS program
For some Mars Area School District families, opening their doors to American newcomers have helped build relationships that last a lifetime.
Through the American Field Service (AFS) student exchange program, Mars households have welcomed students from across the world, while allowing local students to travel the globe.
“They’ve always been the nicest kids,” said Maureen Orchard, a Mars Area School District resident who has hosted numerous students. “It’s good if you have younger kids, they can suddenly have a big brother or sister, and you see them learn. They become like family.”
The relationships created through the exchange program go back generations.
At a meeting earlier this year of the Mars’ AFS chapter, district resident Aimee Thompson reflected on how both studying abroad and hosting an exchange student enriched her life. She also shared with the district how meaningful it was to reconnect in New Zealand with friends who have truly become family.
In 1984, Thompson, then a Mars Area High School sophomore, decided she wanted to see the world as an AFS exchange student. She spent the year attending high school in South Africa. To this day, she thinks of her host mother and host sisters as her forever family.
Inspired by their daughter’s experience, Thompson’s parents paid it forward during her senior year by hosting Shona, an AFS student from New Zealand.
Shona joined their family and attended Mars Area High School during the 1985-1986 school year. While in Mars, she formed close bonds with her host family and developed lasting friendships with Thompson, now-high school secretary Barbara Iman and their friend, Lisa.
Shona returned to Mars several times, but the group had long dreamed of making the journey to New Zealand together.
Earlier this year, they did.
They reunited with Shona on New Zealand’s North Island where she lives. They spent time with her family, exploring geothermal landscapes, experiencing Māori culture and visiting stunning lakes and waterfalls. The group then traveled to the South Island, where they took in alpine scenery, turquoise lakes, glaciers, dramatic coastlines, towering cliffs and breathtaking fjords.
“It was such a wonderful opportunity. To be able to go to a place like New Zealand, and meet up with her and her family, it was amazing,” Iman said.
Thompson said the AFS program has the power to change lives, and to build connections that last a lifetime.
Orchard and her husband, who are both in their 80s now, have housed seven students over the years. Their daughter, who lives next door, also has housed seven students, Orchard said.
The Orchards’ first exchange student they hosted, she said, was a young lady from Finland. She was sophisticated, and liked ballet — bonding over it with the Orchards’ daughter.
They took in another girl from Costa Rica, whose sister visited America during the school year.
“Then, we thought, maybe we need a boy,” Orchard said. “We had a young man from Austria. We still get Christmas cards from him. He’s married now with two children of his own. He’s always liked skiing.”
A boy from Switzerland was the most religious they hosted, Orchard said. He enjoyed attending the Bible Baptist Church in Mars, and after coming here, went on missions to Brazil. The Orchards also got to visit his family later on.
The Orchards had two different students from Turkey. One, a girl, enjoyed basketball. She was the type of person, Orchard said, that tried to know everyone, always introducing herself.
The Turkish boy is now an American citizen who lives in San Jose. He did not want to go back to Turkey because of crackdowns on freedom by the government there, Orchard said. The boy met a Chinese girl in South Korea, got married, has two daughters and works for a tech company. The Orchards were invited to their wedding.
“In addition to knowing all these people from around the world, it’s like being invited into their family. You get to see them grow up,” Orchard said.
Perhaps the most memorable was Abdullah, an exchange student from Islamabad, Pakistan. The Mars couple had received an email about a young man participating in a program aimed at providing learning opportunities for students from developing nations.
Abdullah thrived in America, so much that he returned and went to North Catholic. He graduated from there, then got his degree from La Roche University in three years, where he tutored other students in calculus and science. He then earned a master’s degree at Pitt.
He was going to attend Carnegie Mellon University, but his student visa was only good for six years. It has not yet been renewed, and Abdullah is back in Pakistan.
“He calls every day. His mom and dad visited a year ago. They’re wonderful people,” Orchard said.
“They all were the nicest kids. We have taken them on vacations with us to see various parts of America. It’s interesting to hear their views and perspectives,” Orchard said. “It’s nice to see them growing in their understanding of our country and government.
“It’s nice to see when they get friends here and go out with them, go to prom, football games.”
Shawna Peters, a German teacher at Mars Area High School, has been the AFS adviser for 27 years. She said while it can be hard to find host families, the school has had exchange students most years and tries to have three families house students every year.
Peters said host families build lasting, cross-cultural friendships, experience new cultures and perspectives right at home and make a lasting impact on a student’s life while enriching their own family’s experiences.
“The kids will typically come some time in August or September. If we get families early enough, we’ll try and get them in before school starts, before fall sports. The students like to immerse themselves in American schools and things they’ve seen on TV, experience all sorts of things,” Peters said. “It’s hard sometimes finding host families, but they become part of your family.
“We’ll see students and families keep in touch for years, go to weddings, have a lifelong relationship.”
