At our recent breakfast meetings, Ipswich-Rowley Rotary presented this year’s scholarship recipients and introduced our short-term youth exchange students. Earning scholarships this year were Charles Quimby from Ipswich High School and Emma Penniman from Rowley who graduated from Triton Regional High school. Charlie will attend Fordham University this Fall where he will study for a business degree in Environmental Science. Emma is heading to Syracuse University to pursue a degree in Business Management.
Presenting checks to these deserving scholars were the Scholarships Committee co-chairs, Andrea Lacroix and Katie Platt.
Interesting side note, exactly 60 years ago the then Ipswich Rotary Club presented a scholarship to Cindy Quinn, our current bulletin editor and a Past President.
In the photo, Andrea Lacroix, Charlie Quimby, Emma Penniman, and Katie Platt (Bob Snow photo).
Also introduced to the club were our short-term youth exchange students, Sean Mahoney from Ipswich High School, and Sergio Giannico from Sicily. Sergio is sponsored by the Viagrande 150 Rotary Club, and he presented that club’s friendship flag to co-President Doug Shealy.
Rotary Short-Term Youth Exchange is a family-to-family exchange. According to Martha Mauser, the club’s Youth Exchange chair, “When a student applies s/he is matched with a student about the same age and sex from another country. When the match is accepted, the families decide who will go where first. For example, with these boys, Sergio came to Ipswich first to spend about 3.5 weeks with Sean's family. In the photo, Doug Shealy, Sean Mahoney, Sergio Giannico, and Martha Mauser (Bob Snow photo)
So far, the boys have travelled to New York City, York Beach, and around Boston. In the coming weeks they will head to Vermont and other places in New England. When Sean joins Sergio's family in Sicily, their plans include travel to Rome and to Puglia, where Sergio's parents are from originally.”
Martha continued: “This program is a great way for a student to get a taste of exchange. They live with a family in another country and see it from the inside rather than as just tourists. It is also very reasonable, cost wise, as the only expenses are a small application fee and for an insurance policy, plus airfare (and a passport if they don't already have one.)
Over the years we have had several students who so enjoyed the short-term exchange that they applied for a long-term exchange and spent a year in another country attending high school. Both programs are for students age 15.5 to 18.5 years.”
Clubs that are interested in more information can contact Martha Mauser, mmauser@mauserlaw.com, or Bob Ford, rpf@fordlaw.net