Hosting / Life in the U.S.

Building a Global Family, One Student at a Time

Posted on by

For Kristen and Sharon, hosting exchange students is not just an act of hospitality, but a way to give back. Kristen’s own life-changing experience as an exchange student inspired the couple to begin welcoming Aspect students from around the world into their home in Colorado. Having hosted five students over the years, they welcomed Elsa from Spain and Adele from Italy this past August, adding to their growing family of exchange students. Through each connection, they continue to learn about and appreciate new cultures! From road trips through Colorado’s stunning landscapes to simple family moments, Kristen and Sharon’s hosting experience has become a treasured part of their lives!

Host moms, Kristen (right) and Sharon (second from right), with Adele from Italy (left) and Elsa from Spain (second from left) at a baseball game in Colorado. Go Rockies!

What inspired you and your family to host an exchange student?

In the 90’s, Kristen lived in a private exchange during her university years in Australia. This was one of the most formative experiences in Kristen’s early adulthood, and because of this, we like to “pay it forward” by hosting foreign students with us. We love to teach young people about our culture, our language, and help prepare them for adulthood much the same way we prepared our own biological children.

We also very much enjoy learning about their home culture and customs, some of their language, and becoming a part of their extended family for the rest of our lives. Since we’ve become empty nesters in 2014, we have hosted seven kids and enjoy it every single time. We still keep in touch often, and all of them have been back to visit us at least once. It’s been a very rewarding experience for both sides.

Kristen (left), Sharon (front), Adele from Italy (right), and Elsa from Spain (second from right) having fun at a hot air balloon festival

How has hosting changed you and your family’s life?

It changes us for the better every time! Being able to live in harmony with anyone can have its challenges! We have found all our students to be respectful, thoughtful, and open to new experiences. However, it always takes a few weeks for everyone to “settle in” and learn the house rules and the personalities of everyone within.

We have found we grow as parents and mentors with each new student with the personal history, perspective, and personality they bring. We enjoy teenagers and their big ideas, fearlessness, and ability to pivot. Their flexibility reminds us to be flexible ourselves, plus we find we do more local experiences that become core memories for our students to carry throughout their lives.

Left image: Elsa from Spain cooked Tortilla de Patata for her host family, a traditional Spanish dish
Right image: Adele from Italy during her first trip to Red Robin, where she loved trying new American food

What has it been like to host Elsa from Spain and Adele from Italy?

We are happy the girls have similar home cultures to grow from. We have found that having two students at a time really helps with the loneliness and culture shock oftentimes associated with the first couple of months of living away from home. This is the third double placement we’ve done, and we have found that choosing students with plenty of similar profile activities creates a tight “sibling” bond right away as they settle into their new lives in the U.S.

They started out with each other as friends, and though they have both made friends at their school, they remain excellent friends and “sisters,” and don’t experience any major issues if they don’t have plans with friends for the weekend. Both are content to hang out, cook, read, watch movies, and exercise together.

Host moms, Kristen (left) and Sharon (second from left), enjoying a beautiful hike with Adele from Italy (center), Elsa from Spain (second from right), and their former exchange daughter, Helle from Norway (right), at Arches National Park 

Do you have any favorite memories?

We have so many! We love road trips and have taken each kid on at least one big one. Here in Colorado and the Desert Southwest, we have so many wonderful (free!) natural places to hike, bike, see, and experience. We have traveled all over the neighboring states with our students and have seen a dozen National and State Parks together.

Our students are always awed by the vast openness of this area, the rock formations, the rivers and lakes, the mountains, the wildlife, and the striking scenery wherever we go. Many of our city-dwelling students have remarked on how the wilderness, mountains, and rock formations spark existential thoughts in them about how big our world and universe really is. It’s beautiful to see!

Are you interested in making a student like Elsa or Adele a part of your family? We are looking for American host families to welcome a student for the upcoming 2025-26 school year! Check out the profiles of our wonderful students! New profiles go online every Thursday!