American student visits green country

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 5, Issue 7, 14 July 1987, Page 15

American student visits green country

Ruapehu College has a young American visitor in its midst for the next four weeks who is sampling the Kiwi way of life. Dara Decker, 16, an American Field Scholarship student from La Grande, Oregon is in Ohakune for a six week stay with her host family of Ron and Peggy Frew and their children. Dara is one of 150 AFS students from the United States for 1987, 40 of whom came to New Zealand on an outdoor adventure programme last month. She is in Ohakune for a period of six weeks and will spend three weeks at the Outdoor Pursuits Centre between National Park and Turangi. This visit is the first trip overseas for Dara who was urged to come to New Zealand by her Grandmother.

She is a keen skier and has already sampled the thrills of skiing on Mt Ruapehu. Her other interests include horse

riding, reading and sports. Dara said she is from a skiing family and has enrolled with the college's ski programme.

Dara is in Form 6 and has settled well into her new environment. Her first impression of New Zealand was that of fascination. "Everything is so green," she said. Ohakune is small when compared to La Grande which has a population of about 24,000. Dara is in New Zealand for the period of La Grande High School's summer holidays and will return in time to start school in September.