Judging by Jeanne and Ed Fox of Rehoboth Beach and Jean and Tom Reale of Lewes, sharing your home with international students means that you expand your family. You aren't just taking in "boarders." And some of those students work here, all summer long, into the month of October.

You are there for them in good weather and bad. You get them to places such as doctor's offices, Social Security, banks and other places where they have to go, and you show them, despite their heavy work schedules, the fun side of the beach area. You even take them or get them in on local and distant sightseeing trips with the help of neighbors and other friends. And, when it's time for them to leave, you know that you will miss them. And hope that they come back.

Jeanne and Ed Fox are both retired teachers with full lives here. They are the parents of four children with four grandchildren and another on the way. Jeanne is a VIA (Village Improvement Association) member and, as such, agreed to meet students as they arrived by bus in Rehoboth Beach this year as the summer was beginning. On Friday, June 15, Jeanne gave introductory packets to three Bulgarian students, two young women (Milena and Annie) and one young man (Oggie). They spoke excellent English. "They were so travel-weary after traveling and spending the previous night in the Washington, D.C. bus terminal," Jeanne said. She found herself telling the students that, even though they had no housing at the moment, something would turn up.

"Our church, New Covenant Presbyterian Church, rents out two houses for the students, one for young men and one for young women," Jeanne said. "But these students wanted to stay together." Word came that housing would be available for them by Sunday. To wait for that, Jeanne took them to her home for the weekend. "We went to the Super Fresh, one of their employers, and then we went home so that they could rest and get a shower," she said. "Then, I took them to Grotto's Pizza for supper and gave them a tour of Rehoboth Beach. We stopped at some restaurants to seek other employment. And, we went to Wal-Mart where they got bikes, head lights and tail lights."

Saturday was another busy day, getting the bikes ready for riding, visiting the beach and discovering the pool in Jeanne and Ed's development. They also looked into other employment. Then, Sunday afternoon, Jeanne took them to their housing which proved to be disappointing. "It really smelled bad," she said. "There were two dogs and two cats. The students all had to sleep in one small room and the rent for that room was $90 per week per student. No food. That was extra," she said. Nothing else was included.

The students tried the new housing one night and couldn't sleep. Milena woke up with a rash and later said she slept the night on top of her opened suitcase. "We couldn't sleep that night either, worrying about the students," Jeanne said. "So, we figured ways and means and decided to offer the students our home as a place to live. We couldn't have done this last year, but, now, with the big suite over our garage that we had built, we had room there for our own beach company. We could have the three students in our home. They were so relieved."

"Our friends and neighbors all pitched in, too," Ed said, "especially after they had a chance to meet the students." The three students go to the University of Sofia in Bulgaria and they are studying the economics of tourism.

Oggie has had three jobs this summer. The other two are working two jobs each. While it's hard to schedule things, Jeanne and Ed have taken the students out on a boat trip and helped to arrange local sightseeing trips. Their church sponsored trips to Washington, D.C. and New York City. This month, they have rented a 12-passenger van and are taking the students and some friends to a tailgate party at a Penn State football game. Jeanne and Ed are from Pennsylvania and two of their children graduated from Penn State. "The students want to go to Hershey while we are up there," Jeanne said. "They love chocolate."

The students each pay Jeanne and Ed a nominal sum each week to cover expenses including food. "They aren't here for many meals but we do have some expense there, plus water and electric expenses and other costs," Ed said. "When we can, we take them out to meals so they get an idea of what living here is really like with so many options for food and entertainment."

Jeanne and Ed's young people may be back next year. "We are going to store their bikes," said Jeanne. Ed added, "If they want to come here, we want them here."

Jean and Tom Reale also took in students this summer. They are not retired; Jean is a part-time nurse now training lay people in how to administer medications in developmentally disabled group homes and Tom is a consultant for small businesses. They have one daughter and a grandson.

"This is our third season for Francisc and Raul (both young men)," Jean said. "They are from Rumania."

"I saw them on Route 24 two years ago, pulling their luggage behind them on a hot June day," Jean said. "I passed them and then I went back and I said to them, because they were hesitant to get in the car, 'Look, you are tired and hot. Get in the car. If you trust me, I'll trust you.'"

Jean took the young men home and they emailed their parents. Again, they had housing but it wasn't acceptable. "So, we took them in," Jean said. "And they have returned to us. It wasn't long this year before we also had five young men from Turkey. Their English is also good. They think in English," she said.

Because they have a finished recreation room downstairs with kitchenette and bathroom and an enlarged house that was built to accommodate Jean and Tom's mothers, they have plenty of room for the seven young men.

"Our church, St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Lewes, has been supportive," Jean said. "We asked the congregation for help with bikes for the students and they provided nine bikes!"

Church and other friends have helped Jean and Tom see to it that the young men living with them have gotten around to sightsee locally despite busy schedules. "We even took some of the students studying wastewater management to see a wastewater treatment plant," Jean said. "And we try to help them get to the places they need to go to, many of which are not good bike rides."

"We live like a family, using the whole house," Jean said. "We stay in touch during the winter, sending holiday cards and gifts. It's hard to say goodbye." The Reales also charge the students a nominal fee per week. Like the Foxes, they hope that at least some of this year's students will return next year.

Having had the experience of housing international students, both the Foxes and the Reales have ideas on what might help next year's students have an easier time of it when they arrive and live here. For example, they see the need for people to visit homes that have been offered in advance to inspect them before students go there to avoid disappointment and a bad welcome to the area.

The free weekly meals provided by local churches through LRAC, the Lewes-Rehoboth Association of Churches, are a great help to students, according to their host families. "They can network there with other students as well as get a good meal," Jean said.

One of the Turkish students went to the Reales' church with Jean and Tom. "We were touched by that," Jean said. "He's a Muslim. He's used to taking his shoes off before he enters the mosque. Everyone clapped when he was introduced."

Based on the Reales' positive experiences, several neighbors in their development have also taken in international students. "We kid and say this is 'International Boulevard,'" Jean said.

source: delmarvanow.com