By Scott D. Johnston
Fourteen international exchange students got a wet and windy introduction to Washington’s “Wet Coast” as they gathered near Ocean Shores last weekend for a combination of orientation meetings and a public service project. Their eye-opening experiences with the Academic Year in the U.S.A. (Ayusa) program got underway in Western Washington as schools opened throughout the area.
Shannon Clark, an Ayusa Senior Regional Director, brought the high school sophomores, juniors and seniors to the Ocean Breeze Resort campground near Ocean City.
Saturday morning, they joined local host family Rich and Ashlee Lindquist, for a beach cleanup party at the Damon Road beach approach, just north of Ocean Shores. The Lindquists are hosting 16-year-old Indonesian student Muhammad Nabil Eralsyah, who just began his senior year at North Beach High School.
Clark, who got involved with Ayusa by hosting a student 11 years ago, said community service is a key part of the program, and something the students have fun with. Despite the fact that Saturday was windy and the first day in several weeks that the North Coast has seen any more than a spritz of rain, the young visitors seemed to enjoy their morning on the beach.
After all were once again warm and dry in the campground lodge, they answered questions about their experiences and reasons to spend the better part of a year halfway around the world from their homes.
For Shintya Sembiring, a 17-year-old from Indonesia who is a senior at White River High School in Buckley, the motivation is, “I want to simply get out of my comfort zone, and of course, get to know more about this very different culture of America. And I feel like I’ll even learn more about myself.”
Several said becoming more fluent in the English language was a goal. Simone Diedrick, 15 and a junior at Onalaska High School in Ethel, WA, said “I’m very interested in the American culture and their traditions, I want to improve my English and meet new people.”
These students have been in America from a few days to a month or so. Asked what has surprised them so far, many said it was the friendliness of the people.
“People are very nice, way more than in France,” said Maxine Marchand, a 16-year-old from Paris who is a junior at River Ridge High School in Lacey.
Others said there were surprised that “Americans are so open and don’t judge,” “everything is bigger,” “I can see the stars,” and “I can hear the waves from the Pacific Ocean, which is wonderful!”
More information about Ayusa is available online at www.ayusa.org.
International Coast Cleanup
The 2017 International Coastal Cleanup will be held this Saturday (Sept. 16) at dozens of beaches along the outer coast, the Olympic Peninsula and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. To help event organizers prepare, volunteers who want to help are asked to visit www.coastsavers.org, where participants will find information about how to register, when to check-in, what beaches will be cleaned and where to camp.
For North Coast beaches, cleanups will be located in Ocean Shores at the Taurus and Chance a la Mer beach approaches, at the Ocean City beach approach, at Griffiths-Priday State Park, at Seabrook and at Moclips/Pacific Beach. The CoastSavers website directs those seeking information about volunteer check-in, recycling, and BBQ service, to contact a park ranger at Ocean City State Park, 360-289-3553. In the South Beach, the cleanup will be staged at Twin Harbors. This year, the Strait beaches will be cleaned in the morning and the outer coastal beaches will be cleaned in the afternoon due to the tides.
“This is an opportunity to take part in a global effort to get trash off of our treasured beaches including many county parks, state parks and the Olympic National Park. Be part of the solution to the pollution, that is marine debris,” said Jon Schmidt, Washington CoastSavers coordinator.
