An Evening of Baseball

Why does the youth exchange always have the hottest day of the year for going to the ballgame? At game time, it was 99 degrees Farenheit or 35 degrees Celcius ... we were sweating inside our ears!

But that did not dampen the spirit of our group. All German students in the exchange had a chance to get onto the field. Two boys sent first pitches screaming to the catcher, while 18 other students accompanied Peoria Chiefs baseball players to their positions on the field. And all received an authentic American baseball as a gift!

The Peoria Chiefs did not hold up their end of the bargain, as they lost the game. But the Friends of Friedrichshafen Youth Exchange was a winner with another example of the Great American Pastime!

Fifteen Minutes of Fame

Every week, a Peoria car dealer creates a new television commercial to show that week's special sales. He also gives up part of that commercial to publicize a local event or organization. And while our students were here, he gave that time to our youth exchange!

Several of our students met at Jim McComb Chevrolet to "help" them film that week's commercial. None of the boys in the exchange could manage to get out of bed in time to be in the commercial. Too bad for them, but the girls' pretty faces made Peoria TVs look much nicer!

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Paintball Commandos!

On Sunday, several of our mild-mannered students turned into ruthless mercenaries on a mission! We took them to a local paintball facility where we ran through the woods, hid behind barricades, protected and attacked forts and castles ... and had a wonderful time!

While everyone came away a bit more bruised and very tired, it was unanimous that the event was extremely popular. Boys and girls alike enjoyed it!

Service Project

On Saturday of this past weekend, we conducted the first Friends of Friedrichshafen Youth Exchange service project. The local building owned by Family House - a group that offers inexpensive housing for families facing a medical crisis - had overgrown landscaping. It once was beautiful, but was now bordering on uruly. FOF to the rescue!

Several of our students, along with their host parents, pitched in to pull weeds, trim bushes, clip vines and otherwise beautify the grounds. With so many hands pitching in, we were done in very short order!

Family House management as well as others familiar with the property commented that our efforts made a terrific improvement. One went so far as to say the grounds hadn't looked this good in five years!

We were more than happy to begin a new tradition in our youth exchange program. It is only right and fitting that we begin to give back to the communities that have made our terrific program possible. We look forward to next year's service project in Friedrichshafen!

A Peoria Journal Star reporter came to learn about our project and our exchange. Read the article for yourself.

Hot Sun, Cool Beach

We had a perfect day for relaxing at Lake Bloomington, at the home of longtime program friends Wayne and Joyce Oberlander. They opened their lake home and their hearts to yet another group of exchange students, which they have been doing for decades. Swimming, floating, tubing, skiing, volleyball, bags, soccer, lots of good food and drink and just hanging out together on a beautiful day ... what more can we ask for?

This annual event is usually one of the students' favorite, and it did not take long for them to find fun in the water. Many of the students tried water skiing for the first time ... some succesful, others not so. Some of our German guests learned what "shucking corn" was all about! Still others competed in an unofficial diving contest. No matter where you looked, you saw everyone having great fun and we thank the Oberlanders for their generous support of the youth exchange.

A Day at the Museum

Our friends at Lakeview Museum took our guests under their wing and entertained them for an afternoon. The students enjoyed he museum's many exhibits and displays of artwork and precious artifacts. They spent time being children again in the younger person's area. And Mindball served as a special focus of attention, where one person's brain waves makes a ball move against the brainwaves of his or her opponent. We are not yet sure if the person with the MOST brainwaves or the LEAST brainwaves won, but everyone had fun!

Sweet Home Chicago

Tuesday took us to the Windy City, where the weather was sunny and HOT. But our students found the city to be very cool! It helped when one group arrived at the bus with a box full of tasty donuts!

We saw the city from its highest viewpoint, the top of the world famous Sears Tower. Many students commented how different the city looked from such a high perspective.

Next we visited the Planetarium and Buckingham Fountain. From these locations, students took outstanding photos of the city skyline. The views are truly amazing!

We then turned the students loose in the city (poor Chicago!) where they explored and shopped and ate and walked. Such freedom in one of the world's best cities is an exciting time.

Finally, we stopped for dinner near the Hard Rock Cafe, where several other restaurants can also be found: Rainforest Cafe, Portillo's, Ed Debevics, Rock & Roll McDonalds and more. We also found the Hard Rock Cafe store full of nearly 20 of our students shopping for souvenirs. A great way to end a perfect day in Chicago!