If you have ever thought about having a foreign exchange student for a school year, but thought that was too long of a commitment, here is your chance to experience another culture for just aweekend. The International Thanksgiving Weekend committee members are looking for families to help host 14 college students for the Thanksgiving weekend. Students arrive by bus Wednesday, November 21, and leave Sunday, November 25, 2018.
Including an international student or two in your Thanksgiving festivities is a great opportunity to learn about other cultures, share what is good about America, and also make new friends.
This program, sponsored by Morrison Rotary Club, has been a Thanksgiving tradition in Morrison, IL, since the 1960’s. College students apply through The International House at the University of Chicago. In 2017, almost 100 students took part. This year they will visit families in Morrison, Geneseo, Paris, Prophetstown, and Sterling-Rock Falls, IL.
Various optional activities are available throughout the weekend, such as bowling in Morrison, sightseeing Rockwood State Park, Heritage Canyon in Fulton, IL, Eagle Point Park in Clinton, IA, Lock and Dam 13, and the Mississippi River. Simple family events are equally appealing: learning about farming and livestock, popcorn and games, a backyard fire, sharing songs, or visiting an apple orchard.
A carry-in potluck dinner is planned for Friday, November 23, at St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church, 601 N. Jackson Street, in Morrison, at 6:30 p.m.
If you would like to be a host family, please contact one of our committee members listed below. They can send you an application or answer any questions you might have: Janet Fisher 563-249-1414 or jfisher@mchsi.com, Carol Hollister 815-499-1954 or cshollisters@gmail.com.
For more information go to https://ihouse.uchicago.edu/living/community_building/traditional_resident_programs/thanksgiving_homestay_program/.