Through YFU, I have to say that our family life has turned around 180 degrees
Meet the Schweigmann family: in the small town of Spelle in Germany, they have hosted YFU students since 2012. Also the family's own children have spent their exchange years abroad in other host families. The mother of the family, Ruth, shares their story as a host family - she herself has volunteered in YFU in many ways for over 10 years. As she puts it; she’s “stirring around in all pots!”
Ruth is involved in the different stages of the exchange program: she interviews students who want to go on exchange, hosts students in her family, and acts as a counselor for incoming students and their host families in Germany.
“I help the exchange students and their host families with the difficulties of living together and on how to have a good exchange year. I also am engaged in the host family meetings, where all the families that are here in my area meet and exchange with each other. These meetings then have to be organized and run”, Ruth explains.
And there’s even more to her engagement in YFU: “Until recently, there were also some language courses that I organized. I'm also in public relations, meaning I do a lot of school presentations to tell the students that you can all go on an exchange, you don't need to be in a gymnasium for that. Even if there are obstacles in everyone's eyes, don't be afraid to ask, in any case you can go on an exchange year. That's what I do in public relations”, she shares.
That is indeed quite many pots to stir! Ruth senses a shared attitude within the community: “In YFU I meet people who all have the same flame burning inside of them, that is the YFU spirit.”
Becoming a host family
"Through YFU, I have to say that our family life has turned around 180 degrees. In the last 10 years, we've actually had exchange students with us all the time", Ruth shares.
The YFU Spirit is exemplified in the Schweigmanns' motivations to become a host family themselves: “...We became a host family because I experienced what an enrichment it is for our children to be able to do an exchange year and that is only possible if a family is willing to take my child. So, I also wanted to give this opportunity to another child from another country", Ruth explains.
Echoed by so many YFU host families but always a powerful realization, Ruth shares how much she gained from hosting: “At first, I thought of myself as the giver, but I realized that I was much more the receiver, even though I might have thought that I was more on the giver side during the year, because I was constantly doing something for the exchange student. You take them somewhere or pick them up somewhere and the person also eats with you and lives with you. But at the end of the day, you are the one who receives and that's why I always think that at the end of the day, you are very enriched by it.”
Ruth's advice and perspective for potential host families
“You always have to go beyond yourself, beyond your own boundaries and say, okay, maybe it feels strange at first. Someone just goes to your refrigerator, but you told him to just go to the refrigerator. Still, it feels stupid at first, and then it feels just as normal as when your own child goes to your refrigerator. These things, that is simply what at the beginning may cost more overcoming, but afterwards is simply an insane enrichment…”
"The bottom line is that if I hadn't had the exchange student at my home, or if I hadn't had this exact exchange student at my home, then we wouldn't have experienced that moment - that's actually what counts" she concludes.
A heartfelt thank you to Ruth for sharing her and her family's experiences in hosting. This article was written based on the interview of Ruth by YFU Germany - Deutsches Youth For Understanding Komitee e.V. For the German speaking audiences, you can see Ruth's full interview here: https://youtu.be/D6zU6OFSK7Y