A Taiwanese 4-H club member recently returned home after completing a month-long 4-H exchange.
Hsu Ning Jui of New Taipei City, Sanchung arrived in Canada on Aug. 8 to begin a 4-H leadership exchange.
Sharon and Walter Grose and family of the Alma area spent the next month travelling 10,000 kilometres with Hsu, exploring Canada and the United States.
“I live on the ninth floor of an apartment building and had never been to a farm before,” Hsu said.
“4-H in Taiwan focuses on leadership development. We do not have livestock clubs and projects like Canada does.”
The 22-year-old is fluent in Mandarin and English and majored in music in Taiwan. 4-H in Taiwan has the same motto as 4-H in Canada, but focuses on, “To Be Best and Better.”
“The exchange was something I wanted to do. I was curious about how different clubs connected and worked together in Canada with such a long distance between each club. Experiencing new things is something I want to do,” Hsu said.
Unaware of the distance between Manitoba and Ontario, Hsu asked if she could see the birthplace of 4-H in Roland, Manitoba. With gifts from Taiwan to present to the Manitoba 4-H association, her host family, the Groses, decided to make that possible. They also took Hsu to visit with their family in South Dakota.
Between these two trips and visits to Ottawa, Stratford and other centers in Ontario, Hsu enjoyed many first-time experiences. Horseback riding, canoeing, kayaking, sleeping under the stars, fairs, judging sheep, showing livestock and tractor pulls were all new experiences for Hsu.
A major part of the Taiwanese 4-H leadership exchange was to meet with leaders of government, industry and volunteer organizations.
On Sept. 1, Hsu was given a tour of the Mapleton council chamber by Mayor Neil Driscoll, who shared information about the township and its agricultural base.
Of particular interest to Hsu was Driscoll’s passion for tractor pulls. Hsu presented Driscoll with a handmade decorative cylinder containing rice that Taiwan produces and lavender that is a symbol of love, luck and positivity. Hsu was given a gift package from the township.
“I learned a lot of leadership skills and have learned to find the common denominator in everything when talking with people, “Hsu said. “When I go home I will be teaching piano and marching bands in China. This trip has been very helpful in teaching me new things.”
Andrew Grose, son of Sharon and Walter, previously visited Taiwan as part of the exchange program.
“I stayed in apartment buildings in Taiwan with my host families. It was a real learning experience for me. I attended three different leadership camps. It was very different not having 4-H projects to do and not being involved with livestock,” Grose said.
While in Taiwan, Grose toured a tea plantation, food packaging plant, wholesale flower market and visited local farms that produced rice, sugar cane and peanuts. He tasted various Taiwanese foods and noted that all foods were cooked, even lettuce.
“Of interest to me was that after the peanuts were harvested, the peanuts left in the field were there for anyone who was willing to harvest them,” Grose said.
“It was also okay for anyone to walk out in the peanut fields before harvest and taste test too. That just doesn’t happen in Canada.”
The Groses have hosted a number of 4-H members from around the world. The family enjoyed Hsu as she was willing to try many new things.
For more information on becoming a host family in the 4-H program visit 4-hcanada.ca.
