Transcription
Youths from all over the world travel for week's stay in Snow Hill
By: Nancy Pridgeon
When 27 students from all over the world (and their chaperone) stepped off the bus in Snow Hill Friday evening, July 3, it was the climax of a year with host families in the Sheboygan, Wisconsin area. But on their way back to New York, and thence to their homes, American Field Service had arranged "Bus Stop" tours in Galesville, Ill., Cleveland, Ohio, and Snow Hill, Md., to give the returning students a broader view of their host country, the United States. At each stop, special events were arranged.
The Snow Hill Chapter of the AFS had volunteered to host one busload of students and appointed Tommy Tucker, newly designated principal of Stephen Decatur High School, as coordinator. It was his task to find families to give the students a few days of their time.
"It was a matter of saying, 'Yes we will be a bus stop family'," said Sandy Facinoli, Maryland Extension Service agent. "It was my first AFS experience, and I'm happy I took part in it."
Twenty Snow Hill families signed up, so a few families had two students as guests. Kathy and Bob Fisher were the only couple with one student from Bolivia, one from Columbia, and one from Iceland. Fifteen students were from Europe, five were from South America, three were from the Far East and the rest divided between Turkey, Australia, and Canada.
Because it was a holiday weekend, nearby activities were planned. Tommy Tucker drove the students and their host families to see the fireworks in Salisbury on the evening of the 4th and picked up as many as wished to go the next evening to a swim party at Nassawango Country Club.
Monday, July 6 dawned bright and clear as the busload - this time with a professional driver of students and new-found friends headed for Washington, D.C. There they saw the Capitol, Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial, and visited Arlington National Cemetary where they saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and John F. Kennedy's grave. Back on the Mall, they were turned loose to visit the many Smithsonian museums, ending with the Air & Space Museum where the bus picked up a tired but happy crowd for the return to Snow Hill.
The next day, they saw Assateague and visited the National Seashore. That evening, there was a covered dish supper at the Snow Hill Middle School. As a thank-you to their AFS hosts, the foreign students staged a talent show. The evening was scheduled to be over by 11 p.m. when buses would arrive to take the students to their departure points in New York.
"But then the unexpected happened," said Tommy Tucker. "The bus that was scheduled to arrive at 11 p.m. on Tuesday, July 7, did not arrive until 4:40 a.m. on Wednesday, July 8. Just as the bus should have arrived, we were notified that it would be late."
With time on their hands, they sang, exchanged stories about their year's experience, and looked at the videos of their talent show effort. At 3:30 a.m., there were cookies and pizzas. Finally the bus arrived, but not before some of the students had missed connections. The AFS hosts in New York, who had been ready with farewell ceremonies, assured the AFS host families that everyone would be taken care of.
"It was quite a night at the Middle School, and much credit goes to the host families who stayed with the kids and did all they could to make the time pass pleasantly," Tucker said.
Students participating in the Bus Stop in Snow Hill get Middle School. This was just one of the activities dur- together prior to their talent program at the Snow Hill ing their stay in Snow Hill.
While in Snow Hill for the Bus Stop the foreign students took a bus trip to Washington, D.C. to learn about the nation's capital. Making the trip with the students were Bev Boolter of Sheboygan, Wisc., the chaperone; and Bobbi Lynch, a parent-chaperone.
Students participating in the Bus Stop in Snow Hill get together prior to their talent program at the Snow Hill Middle School. This was just one of the activities during their stay in Snow Hill.