8/21/2007 - So far, foreign exchange student has favorable impression of U.S.

Jennifer Raley
Cumberland Times-News

CUMBERLAND — Although he has only been in the United States for a week, Gustavo Patén has developed a favorable impression of the people.

“I’ve met very good people — the young people all say ‘hi’ and ‘where are you from?’” said Patén, a foreign exchange student from Chile who will be staying in Cumberland with Richard Maslow and Elaine Keane and their family for a year.

Patén will attend Allegany High School as a junior this school year.

“I’m a little nervous about my English,” said Patén, who began learning the language two years ago.

He has spent the last week at Allegany High band practice.

“I play keyboard and xylophone,” he said.

His exchange brother and sister, Benjamin Maslow, a freshman, and Natalie Maslow, a junior, also play in the band.

Natalie looks forward to showing Patén around school.

“I thought it would be fun having a sibling my own age,” said Natalie, who has shared her home with older foreign exchange students in the past.

“We had our first exchange student in 2001 — we’ve had two from Ecuador, one from Argentina and one from Thailand,” said Keane, who has stayed in touch with most of the students.

“It’s been a wonderful learning experience,” Richard said of hosting exchange students. “We learn about other cultures, but we also learn a lot about our own culture.”

While in the United States, Patén, who likes basketball and guitars, wants to see the Statue of Liberty. Through e-mail, he plans to keep in touch with his friends in Llay-llay, Chile.

Patén found out about the American Field Service International programs through his cousin, who signed up to be a foreign exchange student in Missouri.

Keane encourages other families to host foreign exchange students.

“People would be surprised by how much they learn from it,” she said.

AFS is a worldwide, nonprofit organization that has been in existence for 60 years. Each year, AFS sends more than 1,500 students abroad and welcomes more than 2,800 exchange students and educators into the United States.

For more information, log onto www.afs.org/usa or call (800) AFS-INFO. To learn more about becoming a host, contact Keane at (301) 722-5420.

Republished with permission.

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