By VICTORIA A. CARUSO
Each summer, many Long Island teenagers spend their summers at local pools, away at camp or on family vacations, staying with relatives in other parts of the country. And each year, students from other parts of the world set out to sample America through the World Exchange program, which has sent several young people to the Merrick, Bellmore and East Meadow area in recent years.
On July 11, 60 French students, ages 15-18, will arrive in the New York for three-week stays with American families. But as of press time, only half had been promised homes.
"There are boys and girls over in France who would love to hear that they have been chosen by a family as eager to discover all there is to know about them as they are eager to discover their new American friends," said Vera Sklaar, World Exchange founder. "We will work down to the wire as we always do. We will not fail the students."
World Exchange, which Sklaar and her husband, Michael, founded in 1985, is a non-profit, international educational exchange based in Putnam Valley, NY. World Exchange home-stay programs are available for students and adults, and while most take place during July or August, special programs run at other times throughout the United States.
World Exchange has arranged exchanges among more than 8,000 students and American families. Sklaar said World Exchange placed 400-500 students in its July program five years ago. Today, she said, the organization accepts half as many applicants because family sponsorships have decreased.
"We place less and less students every year," said Sklaar. "With so many more moms working and single-family homes, it has become so much harder to find homes. Having a student takes more juggling and planning for their lifestyle." Sklaar also said that New York attracts the largest number of students each year, with more than 100 placed each July throughout the state.
To be eligible, a student must be ages 15-18, have been involved with a home-stay program in Europe, provide references and be in good health and academic standing. Sklaar said funding for the program is subsidized by French corporate grants. "The French government, after World War II, felt they had to reach out to the world more because they received so much help from their allies," she said. "The government mandates that any company with more than 50 employees provide funding for the program to children of their employees."
Host families receive no payment for hosting a student. Each young person comes with spending money for personal expenses and excursions with host families, as well as full accident, health and liability insurance. The host family is required to provide the student with his or her own bed.
Ruth Price of North Merrick knows firsthand how meaningful hosting an exchange student can be. Some 29 years ago, Price and her husband, Earle, welcomed 15-year-old Pierre into their home for two months. "We read in the paper that a group of French students would be coming for the summer to stay with families on the North Shore," said Price. "At the last minute, several families backed out, and they had no place to go. Pierre was the same age as our youngest son."
What began as a two-month sponsorship has grown into a friendship spanning three decades. "It was a marvelous experience," she said. "We have become extremely close, and Pierre is like family. We went to his wedding, he was at all our kids weddings. He has grown into a wonderful man, husband and father of two children." Price also said that both families keep in touch and visit frequently. "Pierre and his family now live in Paris and usually come here every other year, and in between, we try to go over there," she said. "Sometimes, we meet somewhere. They will be coming here in August."
This year, the Prices will again welcome a 15-year-old boy from France into their home. "A good friend of the family works in the language department at Hempstead High School," said Price. "She was approached to sponsor this boy, but is in the process of remodeling her home and does not have the room to take someone else in. She mentioned it to us, and we decided to participate."
Diana and Alan Weinstein of East Meadow have been involved with World Exchange since its inception. Diana now serves as state program director and Alan as local program director. Over the years, they have hosted several French students and look forward to welcoming 15-year-old Charlotte from Guadeloupe into their home this year.
"Each one is a very special experience," said Diana Weinstein. "We not only get to know the French students and find out their viewpoints on things, but we also meet other wonderful host families and become friendly with them and so do our children. The attachments that are formed make you feel like you've been part of something really special."
Sklaar agreed, saying, "We truly believe in the value of these exchanges.
They are the grassroots of relationships. It's people getting to know people, and the teenage years make the greatest impression."
Doreen Tascone of Massapequa Park and her husband, Bud, a science teacher at John F. Kennedy High School in Bellmore, served as a host family for the first time last year. "My husband was very apprehensive at first," said Doreen Tascone. "It turned out being the most phenomenal experience we ever had. When it came time for her to leave, we were crying. We wanted her to stay the rest of the summer."
