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Above, Milan residents John and Christine Rorabeck and their children, John Henri and Anna, hosted German teen Julius Heise in the 2006-2007 Milan High School year through the Youth for Understanding international exchange program. The Rorabeck family currently is hosting 16-year-old Myong-Hyo You from South Korea (left), who picked the nickname "Roo" after he arrived at the end of August to spend his sophomore year at Milan High School.
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Milan residents John and Christine Rorabeck and their two children opened their home and hearts twice over to teens from overseas, through the Youth for Understanding international exchange program.
Last year, the family hosted a 17-year-old boy from Germany. Currently, they are hosting another teenager from South Korea.
"This is a way to put a face with the name of a country on the other side of the Earth," Christine Rorabeck says.
"It takes commitment and patience to invite a stranger into your home for up to 10 months, but in the process, you receive a lifelong blessing of friendship around the world."
A job transfer for her husband -- a laboratory technician with the Michigan Eye Bank -- brought the family from Wisconsin to Milan in April 2006. Before moving, Rorabeck researched home schooling groups online, and came across a posted request for YFU host families.
Rorabeck contacted the organization to offer support -- and when asked, she and her family opened the doors of their York Township home.
"We've always had a home open to guests from a variety of backgrounds, just never a whole year hosting experience," she says. "When our children, John Henri and Anna, were small, we had two Korean boys for six weeks during the summer of 2000. So being hospitable comes naturally to us."
During a home interview process with YFU staffer Vickie Gaynor, the family learned how YFU utilizes host families for different lengths of time — some to welcome students for a few weeks, some for a semester, and some for a whole academic year. The host family provides a bed and three meals a day, and the student pays for his/her own purchases, trips and incidentals. The student attends the local public school, riding the school bus.
"We thought we could manage that, and gave it a try," Rorabeck says.
She and her husband selected Julius Heise from Berlin because of his musical interests -- a passion the couple and their home-schooled children share. John Henri, 13, plays drums, 11-year-old Anna studies piano and flute, and their mother teaches piano lessons both privately and through Milan Parks and Recreation.
John Henri also enjoys drama and sports, and was on a Milan Youth League baseball team last spring, while Anna enjoys art and ice skating.
So their German guest, the son of an actor and a fashion designer and with an older brother in medical school, was coming to stay with a family with many interests, although the move from Berlin to Milan was an eye-opener for the teen.
"Living out on a country road with no city bus service was quite the culture shock for that big-city boy," Rorabeck says.
Julius, who turned 17 before arriving in Milan in August 2006, spoke fluent French and English.
"So he and I could communicate in three languages," says Rorabeck, who speaks French and who teaches German, Spanish, English, history and science through Home School Connections at Knox Presbyterian Church and Home School Central at Scio Community Church.
As a senior at Milan High School, Julius played trumpet in the band, participated in the fall and spring drama productions, and joined the foreign language club.
He enjoyed bicycling around York Township, and often went to movies, the mall, or restaurants with friends from school.
"He attended the Ann Arbor Seventh-day Adventist Church with us every week, although his family in Germany has no religion. It was an eye-opening experience for him, since he had never attended services in his whole life," Rorabeck says. "We also took him to the Ypsilanti Seventh-day Adventist Church on numerous occasions, and he enjoyed the traditional African-American style services there."
Julius particularly enjoyed visiting various American cities during his stay. The family took him to Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Niagara Falls and Omaha, and he took YFU trips to New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Julius returned to Berlin in June.
"He still calls us occasionally, and keeps us up to date on his current life back in Germany," Rorabeck says.
The family currently is hosting 16-year-old Myong-Hyo You from South Korea, who picked the nickname "Roo" after he arrived at the end of August. The son of a computer consultant and daycare provider, Roo has a younger brother, 13.
A sophomore at Milan High School, Roo sings in the choir, plays forward on the JV boys' basketball team, and was chosen to be on the Coming Home king's court. He is a member of the Pathfinder Club, a Scouting group, along with John Henri and Anna.
"He attended a Seventh-day Adventist school in Korea, and attends church with us here, although his family at home is not Christian, either," Rorabeck says.
Both visiting teens are good students, and have been on the honor roll in Milan. Both are able to communicate well in English, having had several years of English classes before coming to the United States.
"Our family gets to help fine-tune their pronunciation and enrich their vocabulary, as well as introducing them to such typical American things as S'mores," Rorabeck says.
"We get to learn many things about other cultures from our students, and our children are developing a world view that is broader than their own backyard."
Sheila Pursglove is a freelance writer. She can be reached at bingley51@yahoo.com.
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