North Massapequan Enjoys Living In Belgium
as Rotary Exchange Student
" it
Dow,
North
is all going so
16- year- old son
quickly — too quickly" writes Jeffrey
of Mr. and Mrs. Orrin B. Dqw of 110
Drive, North Massapequa. Jeffrey is an exchange student
of the Long Island District of Rotary International, who is living
this year in Huy, Belgium, with the Antoine, Walnier, and Dumont
families at different times. " It's great to have 19 brothers and
sisters, and Mother's Day and Father's Day will be really
celebrated this year seeing that I am so fortunate as to have
4 mothers and 4 fathers," writes Jeffrey.
" Everything is old and nice, or new and different. The charming
town of Huy, situated on the River Meuse, with imposing valleys,
beautiful surrounding countryside, with feudal ruins, has so
many things worth seeing. You can feel the mark of centuries
of history here, where resting side by side are the graves of
primitive hunters, and tombs of soldiers killed by the gunfire of
World War I and II.
" The Collegiate Church with its supberb rose window is one of the purest monuments
of gothic architecture. The first stone was laid in 1311. The church crypt
contains the tomb of Peter the Hermit, apostle of the first Crusade, who died here in
1115.
" 1 arrived in Luxembourg on September 3rd and was greeted by friendly faces, hugs
and kisses and a big yellow- and red sign which read ' Hi, Jeffrey'. This sign is now a
part of my collection of souvenirs. Fortunately, my sister Marie- Madeleine Antoine
was in Lindenhurst, Long Island, under Rotary auspices last year and knows ' American'
very well.
" My vocabulary was limited. My sentences were all in the present tense and very
slow. I soon learned that people of a different language will respect you more if
you try to speak their language, even if wrongfully. People are always willing to
meet you half way if you are willing to meet them. I also became quickly adept at
communicating with a look or a smile. I was to discover how much could be said only
with one's eyes.
" I attend le petit Seminaire et College de Saint Quirin in Huy. School is 4 hours in
die morning and 3 in the afternoon except Wednesday and Saturday afternoon are off.
' Monsieur Le Directeur wears a clerical collar, is a little short, and is very nice.
They call him ' Le Petit Chef behind his back. Most of my teachers are laymen.
' Saint Quirin is a college only because it has a number of boarding students,
otherwise it would be called e'ecole — an ordinary school. There are no females in
my school and in my sister's there are no males. This presented a problem when
I tried to explain our schools, but I soon realized there was no point to dwelling on
that for long because this is only a minor difference. I have courses in both French
and Latin. All homework is given for the week. 50 is passing and if 1 ever get 65,
1* 11 be doing good. The courses are difficult. All tests are questions requiring essay
answeres, no multiple choice or true and false. Everyone is here to learn, it is
not a social living course they are giving. The students and teachers at St. Quirin are
predominately Roman Catholic ( all except me). IhaveaFlvery/ nice teachers. They
all modify their language for me which makes it very easy for the rest of the class.
There are 25 to 30 students in a class. There is none of the American way of fooling
around. You are marked in deportment each week. All the note books are smaller
and there are no loose leafs. My first week here, Papa Antoine gave me a brief
case so that I wouldn't be the only boy at Saint Quirin who carries his books.
" I have lived with my first family, the Antoines, my second family the Walnier's
and now I am with my third family, the Dumont's. Life is a constantly changing affair.
It has had great influence on me: I have learned to eat with my left hand, to
like European cheese, to sleep on my side ( the feather bed sags), accept the fact
that the newspapers were in an incomprehensible language, to enjoy ' European'
football ( or American Soccer), to express my emotions in French using words-high
society doesn't use. I've learned not to expect to eat peanut butter, jello, or
popcorn, but rather ' sunkist' oranges, Belgian chocolate, and ' American meat'
( raw ground ' hamburger'-- highly seasoned.)
Jeffrey Dow of 210 North Drive, North Massapequa, a Rotary
Exchange student views this scene every day in Huy, Belgium.
On the towering cliff broods a fortress - a fort built by the
Dutch Government on the site of an ancient castle. The fort
dates from 1818. During the last war 8,000 Belgian and foreign
patriots were imprisoned there by the Germans. The Collegiate
Church in the center and the River Meuse in the foreground
round out this lovely scene of Huy, Belgium.
" I hope that in the future you will all have the opportunity to come to Europe as
I have had. It is absolutely wonderful.
Jeff addressed the Rotary Club of Huy on February 23, 1967 saying:
" Ce programme d'echange est un echange d'amitie, un echange d'avis, un echange
de nous - memes. Ce programme est magnifique; il se developpe avec les
circonstances, avec les influences, avec tout ce que nous'lui apportons, avec nou-memes.
J'amuse bien toujours."
Jeffrey Dow is finishing up his year as a Farmingdale Rotary Club exchange student
in Belgium. In return Farmingdale is hosting a young lady, Bette Hansen, from Virum.
Denmark. Bette attends Farmingdale Senior High and lives with her adopted family,
the David Allee's at 210 Conklin Street, Farmingdale.
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Page 10 Farmingdale OBSERVER Thursday, April 13, 1967
