Rotary Voices Podcast

Episode: 50 Years: Personal Stories from Rotary Youth Exchange

Date: December 23, 2025
Host: JP Swenson
Guests: Sabrina Barreto (Brazil), Simon (Canada), Holger Knaack (Germany), Diana Schoberg (interviewer)

Episode Overview

Celebrating 50 years of the Rotary Youth Exchange program, this episode explores the transformative impact of the program through first-hand stories from hosts and former exchange students. The conversation winds through the experiences of Sabrina Barreto and her mother hosting in Brazil, Simon’s year abroad from Canada to Brazil, and insights from Holger Knaack, past Rotary President and longtime host. The theme centers on cross-cultural understanding, personal transformation, and the relationships that shape lives across generations.

1. Growing Up in Rotary Youth Exchange: Sabrina Barreto’s Story

[01:09–10:07]
Guest: Sabrina Barreto; Interviewer: Diana Schoberg

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• Natal, Brazil, as the Setting for Exchange

  • Sabrina grew up in Natal, a beach city “the most beautiful place on earth” and an exchange destination with perpetual summer.
  • Quote: “It is a small city though in the exchange student perspective, it's definitely what you think about when you think about Brazil.” [01:36]

• A Childhood Surrounded by Exchange Students

  • Hosting started when Sabrina was a year old; it felt like a constant cycle of global siblings—joy at arrival, sadness at departure.
  • Quote: “Even though I was a single child, I definitely didn't grow up as one.” [02:01]
  • The rotation of exchange students tied family traditions, like Christmas at the beach, to bittersweet moments.

• Personal Impact and First-Hand Exchange

  • Sabrina herself experienced being an exchange student, motivated initially by an aversion to English class.
  • Notable Story: Her mother’s response—“No daughter of mine is going to grow up without speaking English. You have to go to my host family...Once they say your English is better than mine, then you can stop going to English class.” [03:14]

• The Deep Value of Youth Exchange

  • For Sabrina, it’s “the first best year of life” and lays a lifelong pattern of openness and adaptability.
  • Quote: “During your exchange, you learn how to see things different and you learn how to act different...If we just take that same approach...all of those are going to be the best year.” [04:13]

• Peace, Respect, and Third Culture Kids

  • She explains that cultural immersion begets respect for differences, not just tolerance.
  • Quote: “It's impossible for you to hate or not accept something that it's part of your culture as well.” [06:04]
  • She identifies with the term “third culture kids.”

• Advice for New Host Families

  • Do not treat students as visitors—inclusion and routine matter more than grand gestures.
  • Quote: “Don't make him feel like a visitor. We don't need to really shape our lives because someone else is coming.” [07:27]

• Special Bonds and Hosting Simon

  • Strong connections with students like Simon and Charlie; Simon remembered for quickly learning Portuguese and quickly blending as family.

2. Simon’s Exchange from Canada to Brazil

[10:07–24:46]
Guest: Simon; Interviewer: Diana Schoberg

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• Early Lessons About Cultural Difference

  • Simon recounts befriending Muhammad, a refugee in his youth soccer club, as an early model of cross-cultural friendship.
  • Quote: “Something that I kind of learned at a very young age is that we're all just humans...if you love something and someone else loves something you're most likely going to get along.” [11:33]

• Family Tradition and the Path to Exchange

  • Inspired by his uncle Steve (a former Thai exchange student) and aided by practical family experience.
  • Applying involved self-reflection and learning practical life skills like visa applications.

• Landing in Brazil

  • The thrill of selection: “I went downstairs and ran around the house and waving my arms and said, mom, I’m going to Brazil.” [14:18]
  • Arrived with minimal Portuguese, communicated via Google Translate and hand gestures with his first host family.

• Daily Life & Blending In

  • Became part of host family life—even helping in the furniture store and running deliveries with his host brother.
  • Quote: “It didn't feel like I was an exchange student. It felt like I was their son.” [16:25]
  • Memorable moments included “an old man with a big speaker on his shoulder, just dancing in the road.” [17:10]

• Universal Language and Bonds

  • Soccer again served as a way to integrate and forge friendships.
  • Quote: “At first they said, oh, gringo, gringo, foreigner, right? But then...oh, this kid's good.” [17:54]

• Tackling Challenges

  • Homesickness, especially during holidays. “There were a couple times that were specifically challenging, and that was around Christmas time...but...I was grateful for where I was.” [19:01]

• Language Breakthroughs & Pride

  • He, Charlie, and Ignacio pledged to speak only Portuguese, leading to proud moments such as being mistaken for locals.
  • Quote: “Are you guys Brazilian or what? That moment was just so, so great. We felt like we really were Brazilian citizens at that point.” [20:58]

• Everyday Family Bonds with Sabrina

  • Helping Sabrina prepare an English speech for Rotary in Singapore, playful exchanges, sibling-like teasing and affection.
  • Quote: “It was more so a sister than a host sibling. It was more of a familial bond.” [21:46]

• The Value of Ordinary Life

  • The most meaningful memories were in “the everyday things”—moving furniture, laughing at jokes, being included as family.
  • Quote: “It’s not really about going and doing all these fancy things. It’s about just going and getting a different perspective...” [23:20]

• Advice to Prospective Students

  • “Don’t set expectations, be willing to go way outside your comfort zone and be okay with that.” [24:05]
  • The exchange cultivates independence and a fresh appreciation for one’s own home culture.

3. Rotary Youth Exchange Through the Lens of a Lifetime Host: Holger Knaack

[26:21–41:00]
Guest: Holger Knaack; Interviewer

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• A Place to Call Home

  • Holger’s small city north of Hamburg is “on an island,” a serene base for 40+ hosted students over nearly 30 years.

• Origin & Fulfillment in Hosting

  • First drawn in almost by accident, but quickly embraced the enrichment youth exchange brought to life.
  • Quote: “Sometimes I’m saying, you know what, we are simply ordering some from Rotary.” [28:25]
  • His wife Suzanne’s perspective: hosting “raises our level of tolerance.” [28:34]

• Learning From the Young

  • Hosting bridges generations and cultures, and “keeps you young.”
  • Humor and humility: Recognizing that difference (“they are always late”) is normal, and adaptability is key.
  • Quote: “You have to pick youth exchange students up where they are. Some people say we always pick them up from the airport. No, it’s about picking them up from the other culture.” [29:24]
  • True arrival: “As a student, if you’re able to make a joke on the schoolyard and…others are not kicking you but laughing—that’s when you really arrive.” [29:24]

• Bridging Differences

  • Citing a parent who misunderstood exchange as a mirror of his own expectations; Holger stresses that “you have to deal with difference, and then you take it with a smile.” [32:14]
  • Quote: “There are no bad youth exchange students… don’t send anyone home… send him to us, and we made it. Always. Suzanne, my wife, always said, you know, it’s about love.” [30:54]

• Ripple Effects and Lifelong Connections

  • Many students still keep in touch; some call them “mom and dad.”
  • Attended former exchange students’ weddings across Europe, including the story of a former student whose grandmother had been a WWII forced laborer in Germany, and yet expressed gratitude that her granddaughter married a German doctor she met through the exchange.
  • Quote: “We are working really here for understanding among nations. This I still got goosebumps.” [35:56]

• Advice for Prospective Hosts & Parents

  • For students: “Be open minded. Don’t have too many expectations.” [38:43]
  • For hosts: First families must set a tone of clear rules, openness, and safety.
  • On safety: “The secret behind Rotary Youth Exchange is you’re a guest not just of the host family, but of the Rotary Club… It’s about trust… We have the highest possible standard among all youth exchange programs.” [39:23]

• Iconic Host Family Dynamics

  • Lighthearted story about kids always asking Suzanne for permission, knowing she’d say yes: “You very fast figure out what is the best person to ask questions… that was always Suzanne because she was amazing.” [37:26]
  • The long arc: recently hosted the child of their very first exchange student, cementing the legacy.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “During your exchange, you learn how to see things different and you learn how to act different.” – Sabrina [04:13]
• “My best memories of my exchange were definitely not the times that my host families took me out for a restaurant or made me feel more comfortable. It was really those small moments...” – Sabrina [07:27]
• “It didn’t feel like I was an exchange student. It felt like I was their son.” – Simon [16:25]
• “There are no bad youth exchange students… it’s about love. You have to love your students like your own children. Love and understanding.” – Holger Knaack [30:54]
• “We are working really here for understanding among nations. This I still got goosebumps.” – Holger Knaack [35:56]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:09] – Sabrina introduces Natal and her life as a host sibling
• [03:09] – Sabrina recounts her English-learning motivation and time in the US
• [04:13] – The impact of Youth Exchange on personal growth
• [07:27] – Advice for new host families
• [10:07] – Simon introduces his exchange background
• [11:33] – Early lessons about cultural acceptance via soccer
• [14:18] – Simon’s reaction to getting accepted for exchange
• [16:25] – Describing inclusion in daily family life in Brazil
• [20:58] – The “are you Brazilian?” Uber story—linguistic pride
• [23:20] – The meaning of ordinary moments
• [24:05] – Advice for future exchange students
• [26:21] – Holger Knaack’s segment: place, origins, and fulfillment in hosting
• [29:24] – Cultural differences and humor as integration
• [30:54] – “There are no bad youth exchange students”
• [35:56] – The wedding story exemplifying cross-nation understanding
• [38:43] – Holger’s advice to students: “Be open minded.”

Conclusion

50 Years: Personal Stories from Rotary Youth Exchange captures the spirit of the program: that true transformation comes not from grand gestures but from everyday inclusion, patience, openness, and loving persistence. The enduring message is that youth exchange broadens the mind, weaves together families and cultures, and brings peace by building “a network of global siblings” whose lives are changed—and who go on to change others—in turn.

For more about Rotary International and Youth Exchange, visit Rotary.org.