Contributed: Maykin Amorim

By Amandalina Letterio

Homestay Program

SD73 need more Kamloops families to host international students

Jul 15, 2021 | 4:14 PM

KAMLOOPS — Kamloops is in-demand for international high school students however School District 73 has been turning them down due to a lack of living spaces.

Robert Schoen and his family host international students through SD73’s Homestay program.

“We do it simply because international students really do provide us a routine and certain excitement in our life that is missing because all our children have moved out. So it’s a great addition to our family,” Schoen told CFJC News.

Students pay to live in local homes for two semesters and right now, SD73 is in need of more Kamloops families to host.

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Schoen said the program benefits not only the international students who can learn from Canadian students, but vice versa.

The program enriches the life of students from another country by teaching them about Canadian culture while providing them with the opportunity to refine their English language skills.

Maykin Amorim took the international program when he was 16 years old and lived with the Schoen family. He is now a medical student in Brazil and wants to become a physician.

“They were so important, they were kind, they were sweet, many patience with my English. I was discovering the world, I was just a teenager,” Amorim explained. “They gave me support, my country too, to dream. To want to win.”

Schoen, a former high school teacher, believes Amorim’s experience of learning in Canada had a positive impact on his academic career.

“I do know in my heart, through his conversations with us online, that the experience in Canada and in Kamloops in particular, was certainly a catalyzing experience that helped him get to where he wanted to be,” said Schoen.

Sign up to host an international student here.