Photo by Holly Allen – The Malone family (Nora, 9, Macy, 12, dad John, Megan, 14, puppy Lou, and mom Cindy) are preparing for the arrival July 24 of an exchange student from Japan, Satoka Suzuki.
by Holly Allen
The Malone family of rural Meriden is hard at work preparing their projects for next week’s Jefferson County Fair. With three daughters in the program, a new puppy, Lou, and a couple of kittens in need of attention, John and Cindy’s household is bustling with activity.
And it’s about to get a little busier. Next week the family will be welcoming a new face into their home — an exchange student from Japan. They will join more than 30 other families
from across the state in hosting 12- to 16- year-old students (and three chaperones) for a 3½-week summer experience as part of the Kansas 4-H International Exchange Program in partnership with the Japanese LABO program, an organization of cultural exploration, language expansion, and youth development whose core values and foundational beliefs are in line with those of the 4-H program in the United States.
Cindy, who works for Kansas Infinitec in professional development for teachers toward providing access for all in classrooms, became interested in the program during her time as a leader of the Valley Victors 4-H Club, when its future was uncertain due to COVID. As the program ramped back up, she became the driving force for her family in applying to host a student.
“It seemed like such an interesting opportunity for us,” said Cindy. “4-H is a program that continues to brings us together as a family, and this sounded like another way we could grow and learn together, expanding our vision of the world past our own
small community.”
Cindy spent her youth in Frankfort, a member of the Work to Win 4-H Club, where her projects included dogs, sheep, cooking, and sewing. Her husband, John, director of logistics and equipment for Mammoth Sports, Meriden, grew up on a farm in rural Oskaloosa. He was a member of the Fairview 4-H Club, raising and showing swine, among other projects.
The Malone children, three girls, Megan, 14, Macy, 12, and Nora, 9, are all active in their own 4-H club, Valley Victors. They raise and show swine, as their dad did before them, and each girl has several other projects in progress to be shown at this year’s fair: Nora — table setting, cooking, gardening, and fiber arts (she is just finishing up her first jellyroll quilt); Macy — baking, cupcake decorating, food preservation, and energy management (she can also change out a fuse in your microwave, if need be); and Megan — fiber arts, food preservation, and leadership. It was Megan’s leadership position which served as a catalyst for enrolling in the exchange program.
Each year in the leadership program is tiered, focusing on home, then community, before encouragement to become active on a larger scale begins. A global, international exchange experience fits the bill.
“Once we have been through the program, I’ll be able to go on and talk with others about it,” said Megan. “Maybe we can help to promote a positive relationship between the people of both countries.”
The application process included a background check, gathering references, and an interview and home check via Zoom. Once accepted, the family was sent a stack of student applications to consider. To be part of the program, they had to have a child the same gender and relative age to the exchange student, and, as such, Megan will serve as the host delegate
Knowing someone a bit more outgoing would be the best fit for their family, the Malones thumbed through the stack of applicants (Back in Japan, the applicants were doing the same of the host families. Both the student and the families would have to choose each other to be matched). They found themselves drawn to one in particular, Satoka Suzuki, 15, of the Chiba prefecture of Japan, for several reasons. But one line in her application stood out for the Malones. “I want to deepen understanding about foreign culture,” wrote Satoka. “I will ask many questions about my host family’s culture and life. And I will challenge everything, without hesitation.”
This bit of spunk was exactly what they were looking for.
The Chiba region is 6,182 miles from Meriden, were a crow to undertake such a journey. The prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 within a geographic area of 1,991 square mi. Once matched with Satoka, the Malones were able to correspond with her a bit through email. What they know about her comes mostly from her application. She is a movie buff and especially loves Harry Potter. She likes attending concerts with her family. Her father, Yusuke, works in an office. Her mother, Mariko, works within the very LABO organization which is sending Satoka to the states, as a tutor. Her sister, Asumi, loves to read. She rides her bike to school.
Satoka also mentions often that she loves to run every day, and is most looking forward to the “breeze and wide open fields of America.” Living in rural Jefferson County, those are things the Malones have to share, in spades.
“There are many reasons we decided to set out on this adventure,” said Cindy. “We are so very blessed with what we have here. We wanted to share that. We are definitely looking at it as an opportunity to broaden our experiences. And to give Satoka a chance to do the same.”
Satoka will arrive in Kansas July 22. She will spend a few days at Rock Springs Ranch, Manhattan, before joining the Malone family at home. The program involves an immersive experience for the exchange student. Satoka will be asked to not contact her family unless necessary in the weeks she is here and to be on her phone minimally, if at all. When Cindy inquired as to her favorite foods, she was instructed that they should eat and do just as they would normally do — the point of the exchange experience is to embrace the everyday American lifestyle.
And as the county fair is a part of the regular experience of the Malone household, Satoka will be partaking in that, as well. She has already planned a poster project about Japanese storytelling, which will be on exhibition, and hopes to be able to do a demonstration of sorts during the fair next week.
The Malones are anxious, awaiting Satoka’s arrival, but are keeping themselves busy with their own fair preparations and with their new puppy, Lou, a 14-week-old English cream golden retriever. They are looking forward to the experience which awaits them and are hoping Satoka is doing the same.
“It’s nice to be reminded that the world is a really big place,” said John. “But that we are all just people, regardless of where we come from. We are looking forward to learning about all sorts of new things.”
Those interested in learning more about the program should contact Pam Van Horn, Kansas 4-H Japanese Exchange Coordinator at (785) 826-8917 or email pvanhorn@ksu.edu.