Youth Cultural Exchange
Background: The First Universalist Youth Cultural Exchange (YCE) program provides an early opportunity for our UU youth to gain a deep understanding of how to make a difference in the world by taking the first step of learning how to be friends with youth from another culture. Perhaps one of the most unique aspects of the program is the fact that YCE families work to bring the youth from the host countries to our country, making this truly an "exchange" of cultural understanding and friendship. By experiencing what it's like to be part of a language minority, they have greater empathy with immigrants in our own community. Finally, UU youth and their families build strong and lasting connections among themselves and with many people in the church during the course of the exchange and fundraising efforts, the most visible of which is selling eggrolls after church services!
YCE was started by member Barb Benner in 1993 and since that time the program has enabled over 60 youth from our church to have life-changing, cross-cultural experiences in Poland, Ecuador and Nicaragua. YCE worked in partnership with Project Minnesota Leon, a local people-to-people sister state organization, for the exchanges held in 2008-2009 and 2005-2006 and is working with the wonderful organizationagain for the current exchange.
For more information contact: Emily at emilyanddavid@comcaast.net or 952-922-0476