Students from Waterloo and its German sister city of Porta Westfalica once again participated in an exchange, strengthening ties between the communities, sparking new friendships and enjoying an experience that’s sure to continue for years to come.

This year, Waterloo – as well as St. Louis and other areas in Monroe and Randolph counties – played host to Georg von Lochow and Josephine Beckmann of Porta Westfalica as they spent a month experiencing much of what the area has to offer.

The pair spent their four weeks in the U.S. with a number of host families, acting as tourists while also becoming just another member of the family.

Lochow and Beckmann spoke about how they became interested in the student exchange program, having recently served as hosts for previous visitors from Waterloo.

“I hosted the first time this year, but I’ve always loved seeing new culture and visiting new places, meeting new people and getting to know their culture,” Lochow said. “That’s something that really interests me. I just signed up and wished for the best, and it happened.”

Beckmann said every day of her local visit was a highlight, having participated in a float trip with one of her host families.

She also noted that, as she and Lochow were here during the recent Monroe County Fair, they got to experience a true taste of the Midwest at the Figure 8 Race.

“It was so nice to be here for fair week and the Figure 8,” Beckmann said. “We don’t have that in Germany, so it was something new, and it was crazy! We also had some relaxing days. We were at a float trip, and that was relaxing.”

Lochow spoke about visiting St. Louis a number of times and attending some soccer games.

He was very positive about getting to experience both the city and countryside during his visit, particularly as his first few days were spent visiting the farm of Sister Cities of Portaloo Exchange Coordinator Angela Stratman.

“I think being so close to the city here is really cool,” Lochow said. “Having the city here close and getting to experience the city life and also being here, experiencing the farm life here. Being out in nature, that was really fun.”

They both also spoke on getting to briefly attend school, with Lochow describing the experience as “overwhelming.”

There was also a bit of culture shock, Lochow noting how everything is larger in America and further speaking about issues he encountered going without the metric system.

Both Lochow and Beckmann spoke very positively about their experiences, from getting to know host families to generally growing as individuals.

Beckmann mentioned how being surrounded by native English speakers really pushed her foreign language skills.

“I was prepared, but you know at first I was not that confident to speak English, but now I am,” Beckmann said.

She also emphasized how sad she was for the experience to finally come to an end.

Lochow summarized his experience quite highly.

“I’d say it was one of the best summers I’ve had,” Lochow said. “It was amazing. Meeting new friends, meeting their families, being here, living their life, basically. That was amazing. I’d really recommend it to everyone wanting to try something like this.”

A similar sentiment was expressed on the American side of the exchange, as local twins Maya and Sydney Woodard returned to Waterloo just as their German counterparts were celebrating the end of their stay.

Sydney spoke about how she became interested in the exchange, having heard about it in German class during her sophomore year at Waterloo High School.

The Woodard family also served as hosts for one of last year’s students, which led to an ongoing friendship with 2023 German visitors while also solidifying the sisters’ interest in participating in the exchange themselves.

Maya spoke about a number of highlights from the trip – including visits to Berlin, Hamburg and Hanover.

Sydney discussed stopping by several historical German sites, also stressing the experience of seeing Berlin in person.

“I had never been to such a big city, and the environment was truly awe inspiring,” Sydney said. “I also valued visiting several historical sites such as the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp and the DDR Museum as I feel that it is impossible to visit a country like Germany without fully understanding the nature of the history.”

Both Woodards had excellent things to say about their host families and the other individuals they encountered during their time in Germany.

Maya stressed the importance of these relationships, also summarizing the positive impact the trip had on her as a person.

“My time in Porta Westfalica allowed me to form lifelong connections with incredibly kind individuals,” Maya said. “I thoroughly enjoyed immersing myself in the rich German culture and expanding my understanding of the German language.”

Sydney, like Lochow, described the experience as a major life highlight for her.

“The opportunity to go on this exchange was the highlight of my year and quite possibly my life,” Sydney said. “I feel more confident in myself as well as my German abilities… Immersing myself into another culture has truly made me into a better person and a more globally-minded individual.”

While the students are the ones who do the actual traveling, the exchange program wouldn’t be possible without the support of host families on both the American and German sides.

Along with Stratman, several families served as hosts for Waterloo’s German visitors this year, including Becky Popejoy.

She noted how this was her family’s second year participating, having had a tremendous time in 2023.

“Last year, we were asked to participate by someone familiar with the program, and we just kind of on a whim said yes,” Popejoy said. “This year, we knew we definitely wanted to participate because we had such a good time last year.”

Popejoy offered a brief overview of the time she and her family spent with Beckmann over two weeks, from the aforementioned float trip and other water activities to beat the summer heat to providing a taste of St. Louis with a Cardinals game, a trip to The Muny and a stop by Ted Drewes for frozen custard.

She also noted how board and card games served as an excellent activity that managed to push beyond any cultural barriers.

Beckmann also became another member of the family during her stay, with Popejoy’s three daughters all giving her a taste of what little sisters can be like.

Popejoy mentioned that the family still keeps in touch with the student that stayed with them last year, and she and her husband are happy to continue participating in this exchange for some years to come.

“It was very out of the blue that we got involved with it, but it is just our favorite part of the summer,” Popejoy said. “We were looking so forward to it. The two weeks on one hand flew by, but on the other hand we did so many different things. I already texted Angela and said, ‘Sign us up for next year.’”