The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
A new language, a new culture and plenty of new faces await one Flin Flonner as she prepares to take part in the Rotary Exchange. Sandra Kritzer, a recent Hapnot Collegiate graduate, is ready to embark on the adventure of a lifetime as she will head to Brazil for the next 10 months. While there, she will attend high school classes, learn the ways of the community and, most of all, will make incredible memories to forever cherish. Kritzer will follow in the footsteps of many other Flin Flonners _ including a few family members _ as a Rotary Exchange student. She hopes by the end of her 10-month journey to have learned not only practical and cultural lessons, but a few personal lessons as well. To prepare for the trip, Kritzer has already taken big steps as she is no longer the shy, quiet young woman many knew. This past year she has worked at 'coming out of (her) shell.' 'I used to be shy and didn't like to talk, but now I don't have a choice,' she laughed. Kritzer's exchange will mark a fresh start for her as she has nothing but high expectations and hopes for her time in the South American nation. 'I don't know what I want to do with my life, so I hope to figure it out while I'm there,' she said, noting this trip will be the biggest she has taken to date. With personal expectations, Kritzer will also travel to Brazil with expectations of her _ from the Rotary Club. 'I have to be a good ambassador for Flin Flin and Canada, learn new things and have fun,' she said. Kritzer will not only be learning about the culture of Belo Horizonte _ the community in which she will live _ but will also be teaching people about Flin Flon as well as Canada. Recipes She has developed a PowerPoint presentation about Flin Flon and Canada as well as a few recipes to teach. Pointing out that wild rice is native to northern Canadian regions, Kritzer already has a some samples packed for her trip. 'And my Gramma taught me two cookie recipes that all my friends (here) know about and love,' she said. Kritzer hopes to show everyone she meets how different Flin Flon is from other communities in Canada and across the world. '...that's what's so great about Flin Flon is that it's so different from everywhere else,' she said. While in Brazil, Kritzer will attend a local high school, where she will have to learn to adapt quickly. Already confident in her ability to speak French, she says Portuguese is close to that language with similar core words. Kritzer knows there will be tough challenges ahead, but she is ready to take them on. 'The school will be just Portuguese, so I won't know what's going on,' she said, noting that she will need to pick up the language as quickly as she can. She adds that making friends could be a challenge as well. 'Sometimes it's harder to meet (friends) as an exchange student, but I've heard everyone there goes up to them and are friendly,' she said. Kritzer hopes to 'find herself' while on the 10-month trip and plan her future when she returns to Canada. 'I just want to learn new things,' she said. Down the road, Kritzer knows she wants to attend McMaster University in Hamilton to take courses involving sciences and maths. 'That's all I know right now,' she said, hoping to learn more in the next year. For Kritzer, there is plenty to look forward to in the meantime. 'I'm most looking forward to meeting new people, learning new ways, and learning how everyone is in the world _ not just in Flin Flon,' she said. Family Life While in Belo Horizonte, Kritzer will stay with a host family _ made up of a mother, father and 21-year-old son. The son has already completed an exchange while a second son _ a 17-year-old _ will be away on an exchange while Kritzer is living there. 'I've heard it's hard to leave and come home at the end of the 10 months, as you get a new family,' she said. 'I want to make a ton of friends while I'm there...and not regret (anything).' The trip means Kritzer will be away from her family for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. But with technology such as Skype, she and her family will be able to keep in close contact. Kritzer recalls when her cousins were on their exchange and were only allowed to make one phone call a month with the cost being so high. '...that will make things easier,' she said. Kritzer's family is very proud of her for the adventure she is about to embark on. 'They are all so proud of me that I have the guts to leave without them,' she said. 'It's hitting my mom pretty hard because I'm her baby. But they are all proud that I'm leaving (when) they didn't have the guts to do it,' she said. As of early last week Kritzer had not yet learned her date of departure, but expected it would be in the next couple of weeks.
