Lori Corrigan represented Schaumburg A.M. Rotary when two inbound Rotary Friendship Exchange (RFE) teams from India's Rotary District 3040 and Taiwan's Rotary District 3460 visited northern Illinois in June.
Specifically, both Rotary Districts 6420 (northwest Illinois) and 6440 (northeast Illinois/Chicago suburbs) hosted the team from India and District 6440 the team from Taiwan.
Schaumburg A.M. Rotary, located in District 6440, was one of several northern Illinois clubs whose members warmly welcomed our international visitors to their communities by providing housing, hospitality, transportation and sightseeing experiences that will long be remembered by our guests.
Corrigan and her family hosted Jinendra Jain and Rashmi Tongya in their home for several days during the India exchange. Jain and Tongya represented the Rotary Club of Bhopal Shahpura. Bhopal is a city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.
Corrigan served as chauffeur for members of the Taiwan team during their final day of touring in District 6440. She also attended a farewell picnic held in their honor at the Schaumburg Park District’s Volkening Heritage Farm at Spring Valley.
Our international guests attended many local Rotary club meetings in the communities that hosted them. They also visited notable Chicago based Rotary landmarks in addition to well-known downtown Chicago, suburban and northwest Illinois cultural sites, attractions, businesses and educational institutions unique to and representative of each Rotary District. Jain and Tongya also stopped at the Jain Society of Metropolitan Chicago temple located in Bartlett while our Taiwanese guests visited Wilmette’s Bahai Temple. Representatives from the Interact Club of Robert Frost Jr. High School were on hand to welcome our Indian visitors when they toured Schaumburg’s farmers market.
An outbound Rotary District 6440 exchange team traveled to India in late January/early February 2017. A different outbound team will visit Taiwan in November.
The RFE program is one where Rotarians and friends from one Rotary District in the world travel to another district for fun, fellowship and possible participation in a local service project during their stay in the host region. Host Rotarians use this program as an opportunity to showcase their communities, clubs, service projects and cultural attractions.
The exchange is usually reciprocal with participants take turns hosting and visiting one another and forging friendships that last a lifetime. All exchanges are funded by the participants and their districts. Hosts are not expected to assume a significant financial burden.
Benefits from participating in an exchange include networking with fellow Rotarians, building international understanding and awareness, experiencing the host’s culture, cuisine and customs, in addition to learning about local history and unique business operations, while at the same time enjoying friendship and fellowship.