Jayla Wyant, daughter of Aimee Wyant and Dustin Wyant, will speak at 6 p.m. March 19 at the Hoisington Public Library, 169 S. Walnut about the month she spent in Japan in 2023 as part of the States’ 4-H International Exchange Program.
She will show a yukata, traditional handmade tea cups, a handmade Japanese fan, money from the country, and various Japanese games.
Wyant graduated in 2023 from Hoisington High School.
“The thing I enjoyed most about going overseas was learning about a new culture and making tons of new friendships,” Wyant said in an email. “I think the most unexpected thing for me was how kind and friendly everyone in Japan was.
“It was a positive culture shock for me.”
Wyant had to raise $3,000 for the program. P & S Security had a gift card raffle for her, and area clubs made donations. She had originally planned to go in 2022 but couldn’t because of Covid.
The program promotes positive interactions with the host family and involvement in their everyday chores and activities. It is a non-profit supervised by 4-H. While overseas, Wyant spent two days in Tokyo followed with time with the host family.
“I went to Kurashiki in the Okayama prefecture,” Wyant said. “My host family was the Ono family which consisted of host parents, three siblings, Yusuke, older brother, Misaki, 16-year-old younger sister, and Haruna, 10-year-old younger sister, as well as my host father’s parents, Gigi and Baba.”
She would like her family to host a foreign participant in the program.
“I would love to travel to Asia again,” Wyant said. “I really would like to travel to India and go back to Japan eventually.”