Greenheart is looking for 4 host families for 4 weeks this summer

STUDENTS ARE ARRIVING ON JUNE 25TH SO TIME IS RUNNING SHORT AND WE STILL NEED 4 MORE HOST FAMILIES!

Greenheart Exchange (www.greenheart.org) is seeking volunteers in the area to host students from Spain participating in a short exchange program from June 25 – July 23. The 10 students range in age from 13 -17 and have a variety of interests. They are also joined by an adult chaperone. Hosts can be families can be with or without children, single parents, single sex couples as well as empty nesters.

Greenheart offers host families a $500 stipend to defray the cost of hosting. We also offer a $100 referral fee to anyone who refers a family that hosts.

Take that first step to becoming a host family for just 4 weeks during this summer. That is right, only 1 month!

It's a “Taste of America” for the students. It’s also an opportunity for a "Taste of Spain & Hosting" for your family.

Hosts provide a bed (students may share a room with similarly aged host sibling), meals, some help with transportation to and from the YMCA of Wayne, and a warm and safe environment. Students come with spending money and insurance. They will also be supervised by three local coordinators and an adult chaperone from Spain.

Local coordinators, Mike & Stacey Gottesman and Janelle Gottesman-Woolridge, are a husband and wife and daughter team with over 8 years of experience hosting and serving as local coordinators. They are partnering with the “Wayne YMCA” to give your family a chance to have a truly extraordinary experience.

During the program, the students have ESL classes every morning Monday through Friday and are busy with other activities each afternoon. Then they have the weekends to spend with their host families. So the program is suitable for busy, working families. (Host members may also participate in activities, if they like.) Host families can also be paired with another to split the placement if there is a vacation or conflict that makes either party unable to host the full time.

“Taking that first step can be a hard choice, but the results can be life changing!” explains Mike Gottesman. “We felt the same concern when deciding to host our first high school foreign exchange student, David, from Brazil. After just 2 weeks, David was calling us "mom" and "dad." Now 8 years later, we still speak with ‘our son’, David several times a week, he has been back to visit 5 times and he was a groomsman in our daughter Janelle’s wedding. We've watched our son graduate from high school, college and law school and are proud of the young man he has become.”

If you are interested, please complete the short term host application to start the process:

https://www.tfaforms.com/236744

(Please choose Gottesman Family as the Local Coordinator)

You may also contact Mike, Stacey or Janelle for more information:

• Phone: 973-715-0986

• Email: becomeahostparent@gmail.com

A few short weeks can lead to lifetime friendships!

Help Greenheart “break down walls and build cultural bridges!”