The French Connection Local families host teens in international exchange program
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Left to right: Allan Fetters, Liliane Mouche, Jill Fetters and Courtney Fetters.
Photo by Greg Nichols
OUR TOWN
By Dana Martin
Allan Fetters awoke one Sunday morning to a great idea. He saw an article in the newspaper that mentioned a local company seeking families to host French students for 10 days in February. Foreign exchange programs were something he had thought of before, so he decided to share the idea with his wife, Jill. “Our daughter, Courtney, is taking her third year of French, and she will be going to Paris for spring break,” said Allan. “Our son had graduated and left the house, so we had extra room and thought it would be something unique. We contacted Susan and started the process.” Susan Peninger is the local coordinator for Horizons du Monde, a nonprofit travel organization that promotes quality homestay programs, encouraging intercultural friendship, among other things. Their goal is to provide a rich and rewarding experience for students and host families. Peninger says that recruiting good families like the Fetters is a big part of her job. “To recruit, you just want people who are 70
Bakersfield Life
April 2011
willing to open their homes for the experience and to be an ambassador to the United States and to Bakersfield,” said Peninger. “It’s an educational experience for the family, so if they are willing to embrace the program, then that’s who we want.” Jill Fetters’ only concern was whether a busy family could contribute enough to a student’s American experience. “I’m a teacher. I work full time,” said Jill. “Allan works full time. Could we get a student to the places she needed to be? Could we spend enough time with her to make her feel at home?” According to 18-year-old Liliane Mouche, they did quite well. Mouche, a senior at her boarding school in Paris, is the student Peninger placed with the Fetters family for her 10-day trip to the United States. Fluent in English that is tinged with a heavy French accent, Mouche explained she had wanted to explore the lifestyle, culture and traditions of American families. “I also wanted to improve my English and meet new people,” she said.
For Jill Fetters, it was a match made in heaven. “We got to help choose our student. We looked through the student profiles to make sure we were compatible,” said Jill. “We are a very athletic family in marathons and triathlons. Liliane skis competitively, so she’s very athletic also. And she is going to medical school to be a doctor, so she’s strong in the math and science pathway. Courtney wants to be a food scientist, so we thought they would be a good match.” They were right. Courtney, a junior at Stockdale High School, said she enjoyed Liliane’s company, especially in the evenings when the two could practice their language skills. “We had little French lessons,” Courtney, 16, said. “I had to practice on my pronunciations because I couldn’t say the words quite right. It’s very embarrassing. It’s Liliane’s native language, and for me, it’s a second language, and I have an American accent.” Mouche is one of 31 students who traveled to Bakersfield from their Paris boarding