Travel and exploring new adventures is a goal of many as they reach adulthood. Such was the case for Raffaella Lotito who has called Prior Lake her home since August.
Raffa, as she likes to be called, is part of Rotary International Youth Exchange Program and is being hosted by the Prior Lake Rotary Club. Three families have invited the 17-year-old to live with them for three-to-four month time periods prior to returning to her home country of Chile. Dan and Karen Stanley served as the first host family, followed by Bill and Roberta Schult. She will finish her stay with a third Prior Lake family following spring break.
Her parents supported her applying for the exchange program, and while Raffa is in the United States, they are hosting a student from Denmark. Program applicants are able to narrow down country choices as part of the application process, and Canada, the U.S., Italy and Denmark were on her short list.
When she first learned she would be living in Minnesota, Mall of America topped a short list of things she wanted to see. Since then, she has participated in many new activities, including learning to ski, ice fishing, attending a Minnesota Vikings game and visiting the Bentleyville Christmas light display in Duluth.
“It’s been an easy transition,” Raffa said. “Everything is similar, but still so new.”
For her, the size of Prior Lake High School was among the biggest surprises. In her hometown, class sizes generally run around 90 students, schools are much smaller and are neighborhood-based. In June, when she participates in graduation ceremonies, she will be one of approximately 700 Prior Lake students receiving a diploma. When she returns to Chile in mid-summer, she will finish her senior year and officially graduate with her hometown classmates.
“Going to school here and going there are not the same,” she said. “Prior Lake is so much bigger and has many more activities for students.”
Her home town of Santo Domingo is smaller with a population of approximately 20,000. Her mother owns a hardware store and her father was the former mayor of the city. Siblings include a teenage sister and brother. Being homesick was not something she often experienced, and when she did, she avoided calling home.
She says she really hasn’t had much time to miss family due to how busy she is on a regular basis. She has become friends with Prior Lake classmates and with students from other international programs who are attending Prior Lake High School. Raffa says she has always been very competitive, and has enjoyed competing in tennis, soccer and gymnastics. She likes working on puzzles and crafts, and in particular, being declared the winner when playing Yahtzee.
“Raffa has really embraced this experience,” according to Bill Schult, who with his wife, Roberta, hosted three other exchange students in recent years. “Students make it what they want it to be. She immediately got involved and made friends. Her time in Prior Lake will be something both she and us will always remember.”
The Schults say hosting a young person offers a win-win opportunity. They learned much about Chilean holiday traditions during a Facetime session with Raffa’s family on Christmas Eve, while during her stay with them she learned how to carve a Halloween pumpkin and build a gingerbread house. Her new favorite food list now includes jambalaya, goulash and tacos. And, yes, going ice fishing on a very cold day will probably be among her most memorable experiences when she leaves Minnesota.
Her international adventure will not end in Prior Lake. The Rotary International program offers students the opportunity to visit the east coast at the end of their stay in the U.S., including a stopover in New York City. Raffa will also join a group that will spend time in Hawaii before each going their separate ways and returning to home countries.
“My best advice to anyone who wants to be part of an exchange program is to have no expectations other than to have a really good experience,” she said.
