I have been a volunteer for YFU ever since I came back from my summer exchange to Chile 20 years ago. At first, I licked stamps and envelopes and generally helped the regional office with big mailings and pre-departure orientations. Later, I volunteered to make phone calls to prospective exchange students. For the past 7 years, I have been helping out by reading applications from students who are applying for fellowships that YFU gives to exceptional applicants.

But the most interesting and fun way in which I volunteer is as a host parent. I always thought I'd wait until I had my own house, or until my children were teenagers before I'd host anyone. But I don't have a house, and my children are 4 and 7 years old. We hosted our first "daughter" last year (from Tajikistan) and have a "son" this year (from Uzbekistan). All three kids live in one shared bedroom, and you know what? They all love it! It has been such fun to host! I recommend it to anyone who's ready to make the commitment.

Debbie Felix  

YFU's international student profiles are now available on the Web. All you have to do is go to the YFU website,n type in your volunteer name and ID# and you will be able to gain access to all of the profiles!

No longer will you need giant profile bibles. No longer will student pictures and profile quality be an issue. Want to put a student on hold? You'll be able to do it yourself. You will also be able to sort by category and pick the profiles you want. Interested in Spanish-speaking girls aged 17, who play the piano? Just click those qualifications and up pop all the profiles that fit those criteria. Want to go on-line in a host family's house and look at students? You will be able to, and what a great selling tool it could be. Eventually all of our partners are going to be entering the profiles themselves. So, if you need another picture, or another Host Family letter, or the profile bio is wrong, we can get updates more quickly than before. And when we get the new info, so do you!

For more information about the new profile system and how it will be managed in your region please contact your regional office at 1-866-4-YFUUSA.

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