Rotary Seeks 4 Adults for Exchange Program

As part of an exchange program to promote cultural understanding, the Valley’s Rotary District is seeking four people to visit Brazil in May.

The four participants can be from any professional background, including teaching, business management and law enforcement. They will live in the southern state of Parana for a month, said Paul Jacobs, chairman of the group study exchange of Rotary District 5620.

While abroad, the visitors will stay in Rotary members’ homes and meet with Brazilians who work in the visitors’ fields, Jacobs said. The travelers will also deliver presentations about their careers and receive some language training before departing, he said.

“[Participants] will be better citizens and more understanding of people with different cultures,” said Jacobs.

A Rotary member will accompany the four visitors during the trip, said Jacobs, and during the same period four Brazilians will visit the Valley. The Rotary foundation will provide participants’ round-trip air tickets, and Rotary members in Brazil will pay for the travelers’ meals, lodging and group travel expenses, he said. Participants must take care of other personal expenses.

The travelers cannot be Rotary members and should have been employed in their professions or businesses at least two years. Applicants preferably should be 25 to 40 and must live or work in the Valley’s Rotary district area, which extends from Eagle Rock to Woodland Hills and from the San Fernando Valley to the Bishop and Mammoth areas.

The deadline for applying is Feb. 26, and interviews with a Rotary committee are in early March. For an application or more information, call Jacobs at (818) 982-5222.