Brendan’s Eurotour 2019

My senior year of Highschool I wanted to do something truly unique that would set me apart from others when applying for college. In searching for the thing that would give me that edge I came across the Rotary Youth Exchange Program. The premise was simple: Study abroad in a foreign country to learn a new language and saturate yourself in a culture completely different than the one you were raised in. In turn, I would mature and grow in ways that couldn’t I imagine. I jumped on the opportunity and quickly applied. Within a few months, I had been accepted and found out I was going to Croatia for 9 months, my entire senior year. It wasn’t as easy as that, though. There were costs involved which I had to earn. After a full summer of working, and plenty of assistance from my wonderful hardworking parents, I was barely able to purchase the plane ticket to depart. At the last second, everything together and as of this weekend I will have been in Croatia for 4 and a half months, with 4 and a half more to go. The intelligence, maturity, and culture I will be able to bring back to my community in America is more than I will ever be able to put into words, and I’m so glad I have the supporters in my life that allowed me to participate in this program in the first place.

This brings me to why I’ve started this GoFundMe campaign. There is an optional trip offered by the rotary program at the end of the year, known as the Eurotour. Ever since I started with the program I didn’t think this would be possible, I thought it was too much money, that I wouldn’t be able to afford it, as well as other reasons why I couldn’t do it. However during one of our trips we traveled to Salzburg in Austria where I met a young man who had fundraised ALL of his exchange fees and the Eurotour price before he left. This inspired me to give it a try too. In addition to the growth and intelligence I’ve obtained from Croatia and the few surrounding countries, the Eurotour will allow me to learn about France, Spain, Italy, Monaco, and Germany. This is an opportunity for me to obtain even more cultural knowledge than I have from Croatia, and to bring that back to the community of my hometown would be a blessing.