Youth Exchange Inbound
Aurelie Roisin 2005-2006
Rotary Club of Philippeville-Florennes, Belgium
Rotary District 2170
After my year in Canada, I studied Marketing and management for 5 years. I met my husband Xavier Briot at University. We have been together for almost 11 years now. I have returned to Canada twice and the last time was in 2017 and that's where he proposed to marry him. We got married in 2019 and some exchange students came to the wedding! I have 2 kids, Louise (2.5 years) and Raphaël (8 months). I have been working for Lidl for almost 7 years as a district manager. We bought a house 6 years ago in a small village in the south of Belgium.
Going to Canada as an exchange student was probably the most scary and best decision I have ever made. What a year! Full of new experiences and new friends. I'm still in contact with my second host family and friends I met there. My best memory is our trip in California with exchange students organized by Rotary.
Juan Carlos Cajerville 2006-2007
Rotary Club of Bragado, Argentina
Rotary District 4905
Upon returning to Bragado after my year in Youth Exchange, I was lucky to have the opportunity to study at Pontificia Universidad Catolica Argentina (Buenos Aires) and become a lawyer. However, after a few personal and family issues I have decided to travel and discover new countries, new cultures, lots of new people and -as I like to say- learn how to smile in different languages: English, when doing my Rotary Youth Exchange Program, and afterwards Portuguese and Italian, so far.
Nowadays, I find myself working (within the tourism area as in Guest Relations) and traveling through Europe, as well as volunteering in different NGO. Lots of experiences that let me understand we can live simple, with fewer things than we could imagine.
As an exchange student in Canada, I felt at home, literally. Surprisingly, I found a society way more warm and empathetic than I expected. I just have great memories and lots of love when thinking of my exchange experience.
I would also like to congratulate and thank the Windsor-Roseland Rotary Club, because you were not only a great host, but also a very proactive Club, locally and internationally speaking. These characteristics led to a big positive impact in my home community of Bragado through an RI Global Grant to help create a Neonatal Unit in our regional hospital.
I send you all a very big Argentinean hug, and I'm looking forward to seeing you again.
Woobin Choi 2008-2009
Rotary Club of Busan-Souel, South Korea
Rotary District 3660
After coming back to Korea. I took my Korean SAT and attended Inha University, majoring in Business Administration
I served my military duty in 2014~2015. I started to learn computer programing about 1 year ago, and now I have started to work as computer programmer.
To think of my 2008-2009 exchange year. It was a great moment that I still remember even more than 10 years later. All the Rotary Events, people I met there, and my friends from all over the world.
My Youth Exchange experience enabled me to become more open-minded about other countries, and because of that I could help other exchange students whom I met in university.
All the sports games (Red Wings, Pistons games), Detroit Auto Show, I can not choose simply one memory, All the memories are very huge experiences for me and I wish I could go back.
Congratulations to RIPE Jennifer Jones, from the South Korean Kid…Well not a kid anymore!
Mirella Amaral 2009-2010
Rotary Club of Belo Horizonte Mangabeiras, Brazil
Rotary District 4520
My YE year has definitely impacted my life and career path in a positive way. I came back from Canada in 2010 and started my International Relations degree. I've also decided to learn Spanish thanks to the many latinx friends I've made. I graduated in 2015 and moved to Argentina, where I still live to this day. Throughout my university years, I was always involved in their exchange program, which gave me the chance to remain in touch with different cultures. I guess I've always wanted to re-live my YE year in a way. Learning English has also opened some doors for me. I work for a North American company now and even got the chance to volunteer as an English teacher in a comuna in Medellín, Colombia in 2017.
My best YE memories definitely involve either my host family or my fellow YE students. My Canadian family always treated me as a daughter and one of their own. I'm still in touch with my family to this day. The other students were also a big part of my YE year, I'm still in contact with some of them who have become great friends of mine. It's crazy how much a year can change your life!
YE Inbound Alumni
Year Name Country
2019-20 Severin (Sevi) Leuthard Switzerland
2009-10 Mirella Rodrigues do Amaral Brazil
2008-09 Woo Bin Choi South Korea
2007-08 Ludivine Caron France
Christian Bolding Jensen Denmark
2006-07 Anita Chen Taiwan
Juan Carlos Cajerville Argentina
2005-06 Aurelie Roisin Belgium
2004-05 Ismelda Alvarez Venezuela
Khareen Sosa Philippines
2003-04 Emma Ljungkvist Sweden
Julie Ravella France
2002-03 Maria Jose Moreno Rodriguez Mexico
2001-02 Sarah Baumann Germany
1999-2000 Leonardo Medina da Fonseca Brazil
1997-98 Marie Leruth Belgium
1996-97 Yoshimi Kawano Japan
1995-96 Sarah Page Australia
1994-95 Paula Aquino Brazil
1993-94 David Diez Spain
1992-93 Claudia Kranabitl Austria
1991-92 Marie Ange Chacornac Gilliard France
1990-91 John Robinson Australia