Elkins Rotary welcomes foreign exchange student
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ELKINS -- Rotary Exchange Student Lilou Roiseux from Belgium visited with the Rotary Club of Elkins.
Lilou came to the Rotary Club of Elkins last fall and has been attending Elkins High School. Rotarian Hoy Ferguson and his wife Teresa served as Roiseux' hosts upon her arrival. Kate Somers and Todd Miller then hosted Roiseux until her move to the home of Heather Hall and John Carte where she will complete her stay in Elkins.
Lilou hails from the small village of Rulles in southern Belgium, close to the borders with Germany, Luxenbourg and France. The country of Belgium is approximately half the size of West Virginia but has a population that is 10 times as large. Three languages are spoken in Belgium: French, German and Dutch. Students also begin learning English during their elementary school time.
Lilou is the youngest child of Olivier Roiseux and Christine France; she has one brother and two sisters. Lilou is very close with her family and is in contact with them almost every day either by phone or text. She enjoys going on walks with her mother and their dogs. She also likes to bake and used to play volleyball and tennis.
Belgium is divided into three Rotary Districts - two in the northern part of the county and one larger district in the southern part of the country that also includes cities in bordering countries. Lilou is from the larger district which, this year, is sponsoring 90 exchange students.
During her time in Elkins, Lilou has been able to travel to many interesting places including New York City, Washington, DC, Baltimore and Florida. She has also been able to participate in skiing and, most recently, attended the Elkins High School prom.
School is very different in the US than it is in Belgium. In her home country, school is much more focused on academics with each year's curriculum prescribed by the school with no opportunities for elective classes such as art or culinary classes that are offered at Elkins High School. The relationship between students and teachers is also very formal and age groups are not mixed in classes.
When asked what she will miss most about Elkins (other than her host families and the friends she has made), Lilou said she would very much miss living in a town. Her village is very small and rural, requiring her family to drive to a grocery store or restaurant. "I will also miss the landscape. Belgium is a flat country; we don't have any mountains. Even if I'm a little bit carsick here, I'm still going to miss the landscape," concluded Roiseux.
When Lilou returns to Belgium, she will begin the process of university admission. She hopes to pursue a course of study that will allow her to work as a translator.
The Elkins Rotary has sponsored a number of Youth Exchange candidates, sending students to Australia, Costa Rica, Czechia, India, Japan and Germany and as well as hosting students from Australia, Brazil, France, Hungary, Japan, Peru and South Korea in addition to Roiseux from Belgium. Candidates for this program must be between the ages of 15-19 when they begin their exchange experience and must be leaders in their schools and communities. To learn more about the program, visit www.Rotary.org and click on "Our Programs" to find the link to "Rotary Youth Exchange." Interested students can also contact Elkins Rotary Club President Kenny George at the email address below.
Rotary is a global network of 1.4 million neighbors, friends, leaders and problem-solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change -- across the globe, in their communities and in themselves. Visit www.Rotary.org to learn more about Rotary International, visit the club's Facebook page -- Rotary Club of Elkins -- or contact club president Kenny George at kenneth.george@blueridgeriskpartners.com for more information about the Rotary Club of Elkins.