Commentary by Ken Kingshill
On July 21, Rachel Zaiger spoke to the Westfield Rotary Club about her experience as a Rotary Exchange Student in Switzerland. A Carmel High School student, Rachel spent 11 months — including her entire junior year — in Switzerland. She “wowed” the Westfield Rotarians with her presentation of more than 700 photos of her travels.
Sponsored by the Westfield Rotary Club, Rachel endured an extensive Rotary qualification process before her selection as a Rotary Exchange Student. In the end, however, the rigors of the selection process were well worth it as she enjoyed a life-changing experience, making lasting friendships and learning much along the way.
While away from her Indiana family, Rachel stayed with two different host families in Switzerland. She attended school daily and Rotary Club meetings in Zurich twice a month. She took the train to school each day. Living in Switzerland meant she learned several local dialects of German.
Life in Switzerland offered many opportunities for activities and travel with other Rotary Exchange Students. Rachel’s favorite activities included hiking all over the country and viewing the beautiful mountains and scenery. In addition to travelling all over Switzerland, Rachel took a 21-day Rotary sponsored tour of Europe, visiting Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, Germany and Austria. She commented that sledding in the Alps is “way different” from tackling a typical sledding hill in Indiana.
Rachel whole-heartedly agrees with the Rotary quote, “If every student went on a Rotary Student Exchange trip, there would be no more wars.” The Westfield Rotary Club is proud of Rachel’s accomplishments and believes that she was a great ambassador for Rotary and for the United States.
Ken Kingshill is a member of the Westfield Rotary Club. He also serves on the Westfield Advisory Plan Commission and is the executive director of the Downtown Westfield Association. To contact him, email [email protected].
