States 4-H International Exchange
We are seeking host families for the 4-H International Exchange Summer Inbound Program. Students from Japan will be hosted in Washington State, Friday, July 25th through Sunday, August 16th.
Please review and complete the Application to be a Summer Host Family. The screening process involves background checks, references, and a home visit. Delegates are placed with a youth host sibling in the home of the same gender and up to a four-year age difference. Volunteer host families must speak English in the home.
Japanese and South Korean delegates will be experiencing their program orientations in Ellensburg. Host families will need to pick up/drop off there.
We are still seeking host families for the following youth in our Summer Inbound Program. See biographical sketches below.
Male age 14 (WA#: 42)
What are your hobbies? I play soccer every day. I like origami, I can make Modular Origami. I like playing outside. I also like playing with kids. What activities do you enjoy?: hiking, nature/outdoors, arts/crafts, video games, camping, movies, animals (dogs) What is your goal for participating in this program? I want to improve my communication skills with foreigners. I want to be friends with my host. I want to teach how to make origami. I am very good at making origami. Favorite school subject(s): PE Sports you play: soccer, skiing Favorite Music: rap Personality Characteristics: sociable, curious, talkative, loves to laugh, energetic, considerate of others, outgoing Swimming: delegate is a beginner swimmer and likes to swim Allergies: dust mites (very mild)
Male age 15 (WA#: 28) Korea
What are your hobbies? Singing, physical activities
What activities do you enjoy?: animals, hiking, dancing, shopping, singing, studying, camping, computers, trying new food, nature/outdoors, video games watching golf, soccer and volleyball.
What is your goal for participating in this program? To improve my English skills. Sports you play: soccer, volleyball, golf, basketball Favorite Music: disco, popular Personality Characteristics: considerate, curious, talkative, loyal, laughs a lot, tidy, energetic Swimming: yes, intermediate level Allergies: none
Have you ever considered opening your home and hosting a student from another country? Below are several students from Japan seeking host families. Host families in the Academic Yearlong (AYP) program do not need to have children in their home in order to participate. What is required is an open mind, a heart willing to accept and the desire to share your life. All the students below are from Japan.
These delegates will arrive in August and depart in mid-June 2027. Their student visas require they be enrolled in public high school. Please take the time to read the brief biographical sketches below. Families do not need to be 4-H families in order participate. If you would like to start an application, you can find the host family application here.
If you would like more information, please email me at carolyn.russo@wsu.edu
Akitomo – male age 15
Sports: basketball (10 hours a week), camping (10 hours a week), Soccer (20 hours week), badminton (10 hours a week) and volleyball (10 hours a week)
Art and Entertainment: attending sporting events (20 hours a week), listening to music (20 hours a week), Playing musical instruments (20 hours a week), Photography (10 hours a week) and singing (20 hours a week).
Other Activities: School clubs (10 hours a week), Travel (10 hours a week), Computers (5 hours a week), cooking (10 hours a week), video games (20 hours a week)
4-H Activities of potential interest: Public Speaking, volunteering, entrepreneurship and leadership.
I enjoy badminton and weight training. I play video games and sports with my friends. I play the guitar.
Total daily screen time (video games, computers, texting) 4 hours
Spend 2 hours a day doing solitary activities and about ten in social or group activities.
Student does not really enjoy reading. He can swim at an intermediate level.
Personality Traits—active, charming, curious, sincere, friendly and open.
Favorite school subjects are PE and English.
Home chores are washing the dishes and cooking 2-3 hours a week.
Participates in the badminton club.
Allergies: dust and tries to avoid eating shellfish and clams (not a serious allergy)
“I hope to improve my English skills. I hope my host family will treat me not a s a guest but as a real member of the family.”
My unique strength is an ability to find enjoyment in almost anything I do. Attitude is important.
“Hello I am Akitomo. I am 15 years old. There are four members in my family. My father, mother, sister and me. My Father works at a beer brewery. I respect him because he has kindness and wisdom. My mother is a Labo Tutor, she is usually strict but she always thinks about me and my sister. My older sister is really good at playing handball. I mainly study English in International Liberat Arts course. Through this course we have had the opportunity to experience cultural exchange with international students who are the same age. We have experienced many different cultures and have interacted with people from various countries. I like playing sports and go to the gym to work out a bit. Recently I participated in a local badminton club. I used to play soccer for 10 years but I am not doing it right now. I have two hobbies, first is singing and listening a song. Music makes us emotional. I love how upbeat songs make me feel happy, while sad song makes me feel sad. It is fund for me to sing a song because my friends say I have a great voice. Also, I am practicing the guitar to play and sing at the same time. I am not Ed Sheeran so I have been working on his songs lately. When I go to America, I will show you the result of my practice. Second is looking at beautiful scenery. I will never forget the ocean I saw in Australia and the nature in Oregon. Japan does not have much untouched nature so those sights were very rare and special to me. I am thinking of buying a camera so I want to capture those beautiful scenes in America.
I often play board gams with my family at home. We play traditional Japanese board games. When I go to America I can tell and play games with my host family. I also hang out with my friends by playing sports such as badminton, table tennis, basketball and soccer. Sometimes we play mobile games or go shopping.
What I really want to do in America is to interact with as many people as possible and share Japanese culture, not just the food. To achieve these two goals, I want to organize a cultural exchange event in America I am not sure yet if I can actually make it happen but I want to try by using my friendly personality to build many supportive friendships and work together with others.
Harutaka – male age 17
Sports: Bowling (8 hours a week), basketball (15 hours a week), table tennis, fishing, tennis, badminton, gymnastics and volleyball.
Art and Entertainment: Watching TV (15 hours a week), going to the movies, playing indoor games, listening to music,
Other Activities: Computers (10 hours a week), video games (35 hours a week), cooking
4-H Activities of interest: Robotics, Veterinary Science and science experiments
Total daily screen time is about 5 hours.
Delegate reads about 20 minutes a day.
Delegate is an intermediate swimmer.
Delegate claims to spend 6 hours a day doing solitary activities and 8 hours a day doing social group activities.
Personality Traits: flexible, charming, relaxed, respectful, considerate, independent, adaptable, reliable, sincere, communicative, friendly, smiling and polite.
Household family chores is cleaning the bath five times a week.
Favorite school subject is math.
“I have two main reasons shy I want to study abroad. The first reason is that I want to broaden my perspective. The United States is a country where people from many different cultures live together. By living in such a place, I can learn that my way of thinking is not always the same as others. I want to respect different ideas and become more open-minded. By talking with local people and my host family every day, I hope to learn new values and understand the world better. I also want to share Japanese culture. Japanese anime and manga are popular around the world, so I want to introduce them and help people learn more about Japan. The second reason is that I want to become more independent and prepare for my future. I want to study science because it is important for my future goals. By studying abroad, I can learn science in a different way from Japan. Living in a foreign country with a different language and lifestyle will be difficult, but I believe it will help me learn to think and act by myself. I also want to learn how to make good decisions in different situations. I believe that the experiences and friendships I gain through studying abroad will be very important to me. By spending time with my host family and new friends, I want to learn not only English but also the importance of understanding others. Even though there will be some difficulties, I am sure this experience will help me grow and become more confident in the future.
I would like to build a friendship like relationship with my host family while always keeping feelings of gratitude and respect in mind. To me, a friendship is not just about talking casually, but also about caring for each other, helping one another and growing together. To achieve this, I want to value communication and also actively participate in daily life by helping with chores and doing activities together. For example, I can help with cooking and cleaning and enjoy walks or games with them. Through these actions, I hope to show my gratitude through my behavior. Through these shared experiences, I hope to deepen mutual trust while maintaining respect, build a warm friendship with my host family and have a fulfilling and enjoyable study abroad experience.
“Dear Host Family, Thank you very much for welcoming into your home. I am truly grateful for this wonderful opportunity and I am really looking forward to spending time with you. My town is a comfortable town were nature and convenience are well balanced. There are many parks and green spaces, so the atmosphere is quiet and relaxing. At the same time, there are shops and facilities near the station, which makes daily life very convenient, I feel that it is a safe town where people are kind and connected to each other. At home, I value spending time with my family, during dinner we often talk about what happened during the day. Sometimes I show my family funny videos that I find and we laugh together. Those moments help me relax and make me feel happy and they are very important to me. I also enjoy spending time with my friends. We often talk about games and anime and even when we have different opinions. We usually laugh and feel closer. My friends give me energy and sense of comfort. I like sports and basketball is my favorite. I enjoy working together with my friends and feeling a sense of achievement when we do our best as a team. During my stay, I tope to communicate a lot and build a good relationship with you. I am looing forward to becoming a part of your family and making many wonderful memories together. Sincerely, Harutaka.”
Harutaka likes mathematics, pizza, and has liked basketball from a young age. He wants to be a pharmacist when he is older and looks forward to studying chemistry in a US high school.
Yugo – male 15
Sports: Bicycling (50 hours a month), soccer (45 hours a month) running/ jogging (10 hours), swimming (5 hours)Baseball, hiking/backpacking, martial arts, table tennis, basketball gymnastics, badminton, boating, camping, golf, track running, softball, volleyball, tennis, horseback riding, downhill skiing
Art & Entertainment: Attending sporting events, listening to music, calligraphy, painting/drawing, reading, singing, going to movies, watching television (20 hours a month) and playing indoor games
Other Activities: school clubs, travel, computers, cooking, video games
Like eating ramen and going to the hot spring
Spends about 3 hours a day on screens
Intermediate swimmer
Generally spends half an hour in solitary activity and 1 hour in social activity
Personality Traits: active, curious, adaptable, bright, friendly, reliable, polite, responsible, sincere, organized, sense of humor, independent, tolerant, well-mannered
My favorite school subjects are Math, Chemistry, Physics, PE, History, Geography and Art
Student has studied English for 10 years.
Would like to enroll in the 10th grade at a US high school
“The first reason why I want to go the US is to try some new sports and classes that I can only do in the US. I play soccer in Japan so I’ll see how much soccer is popular and try American Football, basketball, baseball. Second, I want to connect with people of various backgrounds and perspectives. I know that there are people with various religions, backgrounds in the US. By talking with them, experiencing their culture, I think I can see my daily life from their point of view and I could overturn my narrow common sense. I want to understand the wide world and make it an opportunity to think about my life and what I want to do in the future. Third, I want to think more deeply about what true independence means to me. By experiencing a new environment, solving problems on my own and receiving help from the people around me. I hope to become able to take responsibility for my own decisions. While staying in US I want to learn American norms that are different from Japan. How people in the US think for different backgrounds of people live together. How people express their opinions openly and at the same time as good relationship between friends, teachers and family. Also the way they stay safe in daily life. ON the other hand, I would like to teach Japanese culture to American people. For example, I can share how we celebrate festivals, enjoy traditional food, manners and customs. I hope to explain not only the customs but also the values behind them.
Living in the United States, I think I may face several challenges. First, cultural differences in daily life, school and social behavior may be difficult for me. To solve this problem, I will observe carefully, ask questions politely and try to adapt while respecting local customs. Second, language can be a barrier especially in class discussions or causal conversations. I plan to practice English every day, speak actively with my host family and friends, and not be afraid to make mistakes. Finally, being away from my family and friends may cause homesickness or loneliness. I will make new friends and participate in school and community activities to stay connected.
My dream is to be a doctor. During my soccer practice matches, I often saw how injuries affect players and I became interested in the medical care that helps athletes recover. I want to study medicine so I can support people’s health, just like coaches and trainers have supported me. I’m looking forward to my job connecting with sports.
When I want to relax, I read comic books or watch videos or play games.
I believe that communicating openly, helping each other and respecting our differences will help us build a good relationship. Thank you very much for accepting me into your home.
His Lex Regional Coordinator describes him as having a strong sense of purpose and very hardworking. He gets along with everyone and is very kind-hearted.
He likes to play soccer and listen to music. He likes hamburgers.
Favorite subject is math.