Eleven international guests arrived at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 13320 Garden Plain Road, in Morrison, IL, on Wednesday, November 26, 2014, to celebrate Thanksgiving with local host families.
Hilltop Lanes, 629 E. Lincolnway, provided a fun Friday, November 28, afternoon as families and guests tried their skill at bowling.
Friday evening everyone celebrated with a potluck dinner held at St. Peter Lutheran Church, 601 N. Jackson Street. Many students prepared traditional dishes from their country. After dinner, a candle lighting ceremony was held. Each guest introduced their host family, explained their field of study at the college they were attending, and expressed their thanks for getting to know an American family.
Talented guests shared their gifted abilities at piano, drum playing, and singing.
More fun was shared as our international guests learned to dance to the Hokey Pokey, Chicken Dance, YMCA, and line dancing to the Electric Slide.
Saturday, November 29, various activities were enjoyed, such as touring a local farm, sight seeing at Morrison-Rockwood State Park, Eagle Point Park, Lock and Dam 13, the windmill in Fulton, IL, and the Mississippi River.
Saturday evening or Sunday morning, November 30, students attended church with their families.
The following guests are students at the University of Illinois at Chicago, IL.
Mateusz Klimaszewski from Poland, studying English and theology, and Gabriel Monteiro from Brazil, studying mechatronic engineering, were hosted by Steve and Carol Hollister.
Vic Yu from Taiwan, studying English, was hosted by Jim and Heather Coyle.
Maki Matsumot from Japan, studying English, and Nayeon Kim from South Korea, studying English, were hosted by Scott and Karen Stephan.
Emily Kussmaul from Brazil, studying English and Pharmacy, and Chengxin Chen, studying Political Science, were hosted by Luke and Joan VanderBleek.
Ludmila Monteiro from Brazil, studying English, was hosted by Stan Steines and Deb Milder.
Sebastian Zebrowski, studying English and theology, was hosted by Jim and Janet Fisher.
These students are attending Loyola University in Chicago.
Renata Torres from Brazil, studying Pharmacy, was hosted by Stan Steines and Deb Milder.
Jonatha Nunes from Brazil, studying computer science, was hosted by Jim and Janet Fisher.
Organizers Carol Hollister and Janet Fisher look forward to planning another great Thanksgiving weekend next year. They invite anyone interested in being a host family to contact them. They also wish to thank Church Women United, Knights of Columbus, Morrison Rotary, Schuler Motors, Inc., and private donors for making this program possible.
