I am the father to five amazing sons. While these boys are no blood relation to me, they are my sons nonetheless. I am an International Exchange Coordinator (IEC) with EF Foundation, a nonprofit organization that pairs foreign exchange students with American host families for an academic exchange year. I have had the opportunity to not only supervise 21 students from 11 different countries, but have also served as the host father to Francesco (Italy), Simon (Germany), Jakob (Sweden), Henrik (Norway) and Nicolas (Switzerland).

While working with EF Foundation, I’ve had the opportunity to share my life with some amazing students and to learn more about their cultures. I get to mentor them and help guide them through their exchange year. I get to witness some of their first American experiences like trying S’mores, tasting peanut butter or watching their first college football game. It is truly one of the most wonderful and rewarding programs I’ve ever been part of.

I am seeking host families that would be willing to welcome an exchange student into their homes and make the student part of their family.

Phillip Reed is the choral director at Foley High School and also serves as the Regional Team Leader for EF Foundation for Foreign Study.

Host family qualifications

• Must have an open mind that is willing to learning about another culture while sharing their own
• Must provide a bed for the exchange student to sleep in; exchange students can share a bedroom with a host sibling of similar age and of the same sex, but they must have their own bed
• Must provide three meals a day and ensure transportation to and from school and a reasonable amount of extracurricular events
• All exchange students carry their own medical insurance and come with their own spending money for personal expenses, travel and school fees

Interested in serving as a host family?

Contact Phillip at 334-237-3994 or phillip.reed@effoundation.org. For more information on the program, visit www.effoundation.org or call 1-800-44-SHARE.