Archive: Around Town

Ryszard JarmuszewskiEvery year Lansing's branch of the Rotary Club, The Ithaca-Cayuga Rotary, tries to host an exchange student, and to send one abroad. This year the club is hosting Ryszard Jarmuszewski of Torun, Poland, a 17 year old who is attending Lansing High School this year. He spent the first part of his stay with the Garnett family and will be moving in with Dennis Mogill's family this month. The Rotary club is looking for a third family, if they can find one, to house Richard for the last portion of his stay. "It's a wonderful program, says the Lansing club's president, AnnMarie Hautaniemi.

Ryszard, known as Richard to his American friends, is outgoing and friendly. This is his first visit to the United States. He is interested in sports and has joined the Lansing High School wrestling team. At home he has participated in such sports as basketball, field hockey, hunting, skiing and martial arts, among others. He also plays saxophone, and he brought his along with him so he could play while he is here. He misses his dog, Bols, who is holding down the fort in Poland while he is away.

He was the guest speaker at the club's regular meeting a few weeks ago, talking about his home and the differences between living in Poland and the United States. Members were keenly interested, asking questions about what life is like in Poland. They asked how the European Union has changed life in Poland, and about everything from how colleges are set up, differences in the size of Polish and US deer for hunting, popular cars and what Richard's career goals are.

Enjoying learning new things was part of what attracted him to become an exchange student. "I started new subjects in school, new sports, a new culture," he says. "I never before did this, so I think that;'s important." Enjoying learning new things was part of what attracted him to become an exchange student.

Speaking at the 11/22 Rotary Club Meeting

Richard says he likes school here better than at home. "It's much better than our country. You can choose subjects, whatever you want. (There are ) different sports teams in school. You just go to school and you finish school, and if you want to make something else like sports you do that after school. In Poland I have two schools, high school and music school. Some nights I get home at ten or eleven, just from school. Then I have to do homework or practice saxophone, so here I have lots of free time to sit at home and do what I want."

But when pressed he admitted that he thought the Polish system is better at preparing him, because it is more intense. He wants to become an engineer like his father, though he admitted his mother, a Gynecologist and General Practitioner, would love for him to become a doctor. He says he most misses his family and friends plus the freedom to just go where he wants in Poland.

"What I can do there that I can't do here," he says. He has to check with his host family before he can go places, and won't be allowed to go to New York City on his own. Ms. Hautaniemi points out, smiling, "We are responsible to his parents to return him in the condition in which they sent him."

Richard keeps in touch with home regularly over the computer, especially with Skype, the free Internet phone service. He has to be aware of the time difference and catch friends and family when they are on-line. Here in Lansing he has had no trouble making friends. "I have a big group of friends in school. We sit at lunch together, some periods we are together for lessons. A smaller, closer group of friends -- we go to their houses on weekends, we message by Internet," he says. "If you are an exchange student everybody is your new friends, because you know nobody."

The Ithaca Cayuga Rotary Club tries to sponsor a student each year. Getting an exchange student is a one for one proposition: the club can send a student abroad if they house a foreign student here, so the number of students they can sponsor to go abroad depends on how many host families they can get here in Lansing. This year the club had no applicants to go abroad, but they have an applicant for next year.

Richard points out his home town of Toruñ, in the center of Poland.

Ms. Hautaniemi is quite proud of her district's program. "Traditionally this district has the strongest exchange program in all of Rotary International," she says. "We now send about 45 students." She also noted that the district's student safety program, written by Tom Overbaugh of the Trumansburg Rotary and other club members, was so well thought of that it was adopted by Rotary International. It was later adopted and adapted by the US State Department for all exchange students.

Club provides host families, a small honorarium of about $50 per month. Their parents provide most of their expenses. Ed Seamons handles any issues that come up, such as insurance or other questions. Members invite the student do things with them, such as skiing or going on a trip. The Rotary Club has events just for the exchange students as well, including a trip to New York and get-togethers with others. There is also a big trip at the end of the school year where students visit over 20 states.

"It's a chance for the kids to come over and understand our country. Our kids go over and see there are other ways of doing things that are different and that work," says Ms. Hautaniemi. "We can share knowledge and literally, one kid at a time, promote world understanding." That is exactly what Lansing is doing with Richard this year.

----
v1i20