BY ANDIE L. BRYMER
Staff Writer
Ricarda Huelsmann is get-
ting a first-hand lesson in
American culture. The
German teen is a foreign
exchange student living
with Anna and Everette
Owen and their daughter
Selena.
Hoping to work in sports
medicine, Ricarda says liv-
ing in America for a few
months will help her with
college and career. The
immersion in English is
especially important.
“I have to speak English
here,” she said.
Despite six years of
English language instruc-
tion, when Ricarda arrived
in August she struggled to
understand the American
pronunciation style. She had
been trained in British
English.
Now four months later
she is holding her own in
family and school conversa-
tions.
One of the biggest differ-
ences between Ricarda’s vil-
lage and Kings Mountain is
size. Her home has around
1,200 residents compared to
Kings Mountain's 10,000.
In Germany, Ricarda and
Choral concert
set December 4
The Kings Mountain
High School choral depart-
ment will present its annual
winter choral concert
Thursday, Dec. 4 at 7:30
Auditorium.
All four choirs will be
presenting seasonal music.
The choirs include Women’s
Select, Ninth Grade Chorus,
Kings Revue and
Symphonic Chorale.
Symphonic Chorale, the 80-
voice award-winning choir,
will be the highlight of the
program.
Each chorus will present
pieces by well-known com-
posers. All of the choirs are
directed by Eugene
Bumgardner. The assistant
director is Sherry Young,
who will be accompanying
the choirs at the piano.
Masterpieces from G.F.
Handel's famous Messiah
will be presented by Justin
Smith, student accompanist,
before the concert begins.
For more information call
Eugene Bumgardner at 734-
5647 ext. 37.
Band concert set
for December 11
The annual winter band
concert by the Kings
Mountain District School
Bands will be Thursday,
Dec. 11 at 7:30 p.m. at B.N.
Barnes Auditorium.
The concert will feature
the KMMS 8th grade band,
the KMHS 9th grade band
and the Concert Blazer
Band.
Directors are Chris Cole
and Gil Doggett.
Admission is free and the
public is invited.
Turner earns
certification
Julie Turner of Kings
Mountain is one of 8,195
elementary and secondary
school teachers nationwide
who achieved National
Board Certification in 2003,
according to the National
Board for Professional.
Teaching Standards. This
achievement brings the total
number of National Board
Certified Teachers to 32,130.
Turner teaches first grade
at North Elementary
School. She has been a
teacher for five years and
holds degrees in
Elementary Education.
~ EDUCATION
her family live in a duplex
apartment. Like most fami-
lies, they share one car.
While German teens must
be 18 to get a driver's
license, they can drink alco-
hol at age 16. Driver's edu-
cation class cost $2,000.
Because Germany has many
bicycle and walking paths
and homes and businesses
are closer together, residents
can easily get along without
a car.
* Ricarda names pizza and
Wendy's frosty as her
favorite American foods. She
jokes that these foods are
much less healthy than the
typical German fare.
“We eat healthier but I like
the food here,” she said.
Sports are much more
important here than
Germany. Archery and vol-
leyball are the two main ath-
letic activities there. Ricarda
is taking advantage of the
American interest in sports
to pursue cross country and
basketball.
Huge displays of
Christmas lights are a new
experience for Ricarda. In
Germany the emphasis is on
live trees and greenery.
“I can’t wait to take her to
McAdenville,” Anna Owens
said.
Though the Owens live in
Kings Mountain, Selena and
Ricarda are students at
Shelby High School. Ricarda
says her classes are more
focused on individual work
here. In Germany there are
more group projects and
more writing assignments.
The Owens became a host
family after Selena befriend-
ed an exchange student from
South Africa. They met
Ginger Jeffcoat, a supervisor
with the American Institute
for Foreign Study, who had
placed the South African
student.
“She showed us Ricarda’s
profile and we said okay,”
Anna Owens said.
Now Selena wants to go
abroad as a foreign exchange
student.
“I'd love it. 1 think it
would be fun,” she said.
Host families and schools
benefit from foreign
. exchange students, Jeffcoat
said.
“Classes are given a global
perspective that’s not avail-
able in the text book.”
During her 15 years with
AIFS, Jeffcoat has watched
local host families gain cul-
tural awareness.
“It’s a learning experience.
Most host families are very
The > Kings Mountain Herald
December 4, 2003
ANDIE BRYMER / HERALD
Everette Owens (left), Ricarda Huelsmann, Selena Owens and Anna Owens pose for a
family photo. The Owens have two older daughters, Shena and Stephanie.
pleased they decided to par-
ticipate.”
The students bring their
own spending money and
have health insurance. They
go through a rigorous
screening process and must
be recommended by an
English language teacher.
They also must pass a physi-
cal exam before being
accepted into the program.
Jeffcoat coordinates activi-
ties with host families and
students. She supervises all
placements.
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In addition to coordinat-
ing host tamilies, AIFS
places American students
abroad, operates gifted and
talented, au pair (nanny)
and summer programs.
For more information, call
704-739-5623.
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