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4- PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, April 16, 1996 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice " By Mary Sanchez Port Perry Star Imagine leaving everything and everyone that you love behind, as you venture into a new country to stay with people that you have never seen or even talked to before. Anna Richards, a 17-year- old exchange student from Cobram, Australia, has done just that. She is currently staying with Jerry and Sharon Hopkins and their 17-year-old daughter Rebecca of Port Perry. The exchange was organized by the Rotary Club. Rotary Clubs from all over the world take turns hosting foreign stu- dents so that they, in turn, may send local young people to another country. Mr. Hopkins, president of the Rotary Club in Port Perry, volunteered to host Anna for a few months. Anna wanted to come to Canada because "my dad has a lot of business connections with Canadians, and I heard a lot about it through that. I also have a pen pal in Canada." One day while flipping through the local newspaper, Anna saw an advertisement for an exchange. She filled out the application, and went through a series of interviews. Because Anna knew about Canadian history and politics and she is connected with the Cobram Rotary Club, she was chosen to spend a year In Canada. Although Anna was extremely excited about the exchange, she describes it as "the hardest thing [I've ever done in my life." Anna, an only child, is very close to her par- ents and found it very hard to leave them. Since her arrival Jan. 17, Anna has had a wonderful time in Canada, but she said that "it is difficult, because I get homesick." The Hopkins family has made her feel very at home and she has gone to New York, the CN Tower, the Sky Dome, Maple Leaf Gardens and the University of Guelph. She has seen a Raptors game as well. And she took in Niagara Falls, her favorite attraction so far: "It was really beautiful. It was amazing." Other activities have includ- ed snowmobiling, skiing and winter camping (which she » describes as "a bit too cold"). Anna is really enjoying her- self and has met a lot of nice people, who she said are much like the people in her home town. "It 1s so similar but it is so different," said Anna. "School 1s different here, it's more social," she added. "I go to a private school back home and it 1s harder, more demand- ing." She is currently in grade 11 courses at Port Perry High School and upon returning to Australia, she will be in "year 12". From there, she plans to attend University in Australia for Vet Science. On April 27, Anna will be leaving the Hopkins home to stay with the McCrae family in Utica. Throughout her stay in Canada she will live with four families, moving every three months. The purpose is so that Anna can experience different cultures. She returns home sometime next January. Anna said that she would definitely come back to Canada, and calls the exchange "a once in a lifetime experience." 's yout =. i Exchange student Ann Richards (right) is having a great Aussie student loving her time in Canada 17-year-old arrived in January as part of Rotary h exchange program &* a time in Canada. The Australian is staying at the Port Perry Home of Rebecca Hopkins and her folks. She returns home next January. NOTHING DOWN AS LOW AS 8.4%" O.A.C. NEON REEZE INTREPID \ DODGE CARAVAN D150 CLUB CAB PLUS MORE NEW MODELS! SCUGOG CHRYSLER /\ HWY. 12-7A MANCHESTER PORT PERRY 985-7354 OR 404-8220 SCUGOG CHRYSLER PORT PERRY