<I>The Eagle/Cheryl Jessup</I><BR>Students from around the globe are calling Long Creek home this school year. From left, Betty Arizpe, Mayte Luviano and Oscar Nova, all from Mexico; Hermann Hammermeister and Philipp Schandelmeier from Germany; Chi Guk Sung from South Korea; Diep Nguyen from Vietnam; and Willie Chang from Taiwan.

LONG CREEK – “It’s not possible that there’s a town that small.”

That was Oscar Nova’s first thought when he found out that the town he was headed to for his year-long stay in the United States had a population of only 228.

“I thought there must be some zeros missing at the end,” said the 17-year-old from Mexico.

“Surprised,” was all Willie Chang, 16, from Taiwan could say about his first look at Long Creek.

In fact, none of the eight students living in and attending school in Long Creek had even been in a town that small before.

But all are reporting positive experiences and new adventures thus far, and are eager for more.

The students are here through International Student Exchange (ISE), which provides opportunities for students from countries around the world to experience the American way of life. While here, they live in host family homes, attend school and are members of their local communities. ISE has programs for both semester and year-long stays.

The group in Long Creek agreed that the snow is the most obvious new experience, although Nova said he had been in snow on a prior trip to Colorado. His host parents are Mike and Myla Corley.

Also staying with the Corleys, Philipp Schandelmeier, 16, from Germany said he is eager to try snowboarding. Diep Nguyen, 16, said, “I was so excited when I first saw some snow falling.”

She said it never snows back in her home country, Vietnam.

Other outdoor activities have been a hit too. Chang has been on a few hunting trips already with his hosts, Mark and Tammy Manning, and is looking forward to more. Nova added that cutting wood and cutting down a Christmas tree in the snow was a fun new adventure.

Betty Arizpe, 18 and Mayte Luviano, 15, both from Mexico, said they had done some crappie fishing, too.

For some, simple daily tasks are new. Nguyen, who is staying with Long Creek teacher Andrea Skiles, has enjoyed helping out around the house, especially with the cooking. Back home, her family had a maid for most of those chores, she said.

Items on their to-do lists run the gamut. Arizpe, also staying with Skiles, and Luviano, who is staying with Kelly and LeAnne Brown, are on the lookout for a place where they can try some good chili.

Other students want to travel. Schandelmeier said he would like to see the coast, and he and Nova are hoping to go to Las Vegas for spring break.

Long Creek prinicipal and superintendent Brian Gander and his wife Sarah are host parents to two students, Hermann Hammermeister, 17 from Germany, and Chi-Guk Sung, 17, from South Korea. Sung, who was part of last year’s group, has been here since January.

Myla Corley, who serves not only as host parent but regional manager for ISE, said that Sung will head back to South Korea by Dec. 31. A new student will arrive to stay at the Ganders’ home and provide Hammermeister with a new “brother.”

All the others are here for the school year.

Some among the group talked about plans to return to the United States someday. Nova is interested in joining the U.S. Army. And Nguyen said she might not got back right away; she wants to spend the summer in California and then head to New York.

Asked to compare American education to that of their home countries, the students said it is easier here.

But they also all agreed that they enjoyed the cozy and personable atmosphere at a small school like Long Creek’s. As Schandelmeier said, “We can actually have close relationships with our teachers here.”

Being able to play school sports ranks high too, and without having to go through tryouts. Many of the boys have played soccer before, but not football or basketball.

“Here you can play all sports,” Nova said.

Sung, as the “veteran” of the group, greeted some of the others as they arrived last summer and helped them acclimate to not only American life, but that of a small town. Hammermeister, like some of the rest, arrived during the night and didn’t have a good idea yet of Long Creek’s size. He recalled asking Sung the next morning to “show me the town.”

He said it didn’t end up taking very long.

But, all in all, as Nova put it, “There might be more things to do in a big city, but in Long Creek, we have more friends.”

Schandelmeier backed that up, saying, “It never gets boring here.”

For more information about International Student Exchange, visit www.myeaglenews.com for a link to the agency’s website.