KAWARTHA LAKES-Jackie Snowden (Now Jackie Allen) left Australia as a wide-eyed sixteen-year-old looking for adventure and hoping to see more of the world. Looking back she says she gained far more than that.
“Everyone was so kind to me. The Rotarians, the people at the school, my host families. It was open arms, they just opened their arms and gave me big hugs. Canada is full of kindness, I have to say.” Snowden told Kawartha 411 News. “The growth that I personally had, to be independent and to go out and just be brave and be kind to others. The kindness that was shown to me throughout that whole year was something I have tried to emulate throughout my whole life. One of the things i learned is that being a good person is a really good thing.”
Jackie first arrived in Canada in January,1985, and quickly got a taste of an authentic Canadian winter.
“I got picked up from the airport in a snow storm. Three rotarians picked me up at the airport, my flight had been delayed because of the weather so we had gotten in late. It was Super Bowl Sunday and they were listening to the Super Bowl in the car and I’m in the back seat thinking I don’t know if we are going to make it to this town because of this wild weather and I had never seen anything like that.”
She returned to Fenelon Falls recently and got a chance to reconnect with three of her four host families and some counsellors from Fenelon Falls Secondary School.
“It was so nice to see everyone again. its a bit like old times but it’s a bit like a time warp as well
One of those families is Lori and Phil Baker who have kept in touch with Jackie all these years.
“Jackie is like a daughter to us.” Lori Baker told Kawartha 411 News. “We are close in age and we are more like family than anything. For us it’s nice because we don’t have children of our own so she is like our own child and her children as well.”
Jackie is now married with three kids. In 2015 she returned to Canada and broughther family with her.
“Canada holds a special place in their heart too. They got to experience a Canadian summer at a lakefront cottage with swimming and bonfires and it will stay with them for ever.”
The Rotary Youth Exchange program began in 1972. The experience is meant to help students discover another culture, and truly become global citizens. Exchanges for students ages 15-19 are sponsored by Rotary clubs in more than 100 countries.
Jackie says she would wholeheartedly recommend the program.
“Grab it with both hands and don’t say no to anything accept all the offers you get. People took me all over the county. I got to see a lot of places. It’s not easy sometimes being away from home, leaving your friends and family but the world is full of friends waiting to meet you so grab it and do it!”
And she will always be grateful to the residents of Fenelon Falls.
“I will always be grateful to Rotary for the opportunity but mostly to the people of Fenelon Falls who just opened their arms. I feel the hugs forty years later.”.
