We had the pleasure of welcoming two younger visitors to our club the other day – Charlie Jago-Brown and Halle Mills. Both spoke about their interaction with Rotary, with Halle giving us a presentation about her experience as an MGSE ambassador in Lüdenscheid, Germany last year.
Charlie, an A level student currently waiting for his exam results to come out, is the son of one of our newer members, Aruna Jago-Brown. He briefly described how he had Rotary in his blood – thanks to both his mother (who has mixed Sri Lankan and Brazilian Heritage) and grandfather being Rotarians. He will now be visiting Brazil in a trip planned and organized by Brazilian Rotarians and is sure he will find the experience culturally enlightening. We wish him well in the trip and hope perhaps he will come back and share his experiences with us.
Halle was selected by our club to be the ambassador for our MGSE exchange scheme in 2024 – the exchange scheme is an initiative that provides young people aged 18–25 with the opportunity to take part in a week of cultural and vocational activities. Organised in collaboration with one of our Pentangular partner clubs, the programme is designed to promote peace, understanding and friendship between young adults from different backgrounds, with each club selecting two local delegates to visit the host club. Last year the host Club was from Lüdenscheid in Germany. {You can find more details about the MGSE on via our activities section.)
Halle is the Creative Director of a recently formed indie development studio, and completed her degree in video game design at Canterbury Christ Church University. She’s now looking ahead to pursuing a master’s degree in the same field.
Unfortunately, Halle’s talk was beset by technical difficulties, and she was unable to show her photographs and videos on the projection screen. But with a professional attitude she did her best to share them with us using her iPad. She gave us an engaging account of her short experience in Lüdenscheid – the first time she has ever travelled abroad aside from school trips.
The programme kicked off with a garden party organised by the host club where Halle was introduced to her host family and met the other young participants from Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and France. We heard that before this, there was also a tango lesson!
On Day 2, the group visited the local parliament – a trip which Halle described as “delightful”. The group’s visit was even featured in the local newspaper. A walking tour of the town followed, offering the participants insight into the history and character of the area.
On Day 3 the group had a tour of the Landtag of North Rhine-Westphalia. There they met with finance minister Marcus Optendrenk and discussed issues about the main bridge in Ludenscheid after hearing about how its disrepair has impacted local residents and businesses.
Day 4 took the group on a tour of Erco (a renowned lighting company). Unfortunately, they weren’t allowed to take photos, but the trip was interesting to all – especially the two engineering hopefuls in the group. Later, they visited a food kitchen for the homeless, where Halle had moving conversations and learned more about people’s backstories. The day ended with an evening of golf with a former Olympic coach. Halle claimed her golfing skills weren’t that great: “I would have shared a video of me showing my skills – but it was erased on purpose!” joked Halle, with self-effacing humour.
The following day included a visit to WIDI, a firm that provides hospital cleaning services – a treat for those that had declared an interest in healthcare. Halle showed a picture of the group in hospital scrub caps (see picture). As a keen gamer, Halle also enjoyed the group’s outing to a popular gaming convention, Games Com, later in the day and noted its benefit for her professional development.
Day 6 brought new and memorable experiences – shooting clay pigeons (“something I’ve never done before!” said Halle) and an intriguingly titled session of “wine yoga” at the Bautz festival where the group also enjoyed a backstage tour before it began. Once again, the group found themselves in the local press!
Day 7 involved returning to the Bautz festival, though a thunderstorm ended the day early, and Day 8 was an emotional farewell to the other young people as they returned back to their countries, finished with a tour of the local cities with one of her new friends. Halle’s last day ended with photos of the host family who had warmly welcomed Halle into their home, and a sad goodbye to the town where she had made so many good memories in such a short amount of time.
Halle was delighted to share news that three of the German friends that she’d met during the exchange will be coming to the UK this year as part of the upcoming MGSE – which we will be hosting here in Canterbury in August. It will be wonderful to offer them the same warmth and hospitality that Halle received.
Reflecting on her experience, Halle said, “I can’t even express my appreciation.” She spoke warmly of the knowledge she had gained, her increased confidence with travel, and – most importantly – the friendships she formed. She also mentioned that visiting the gaming convention aligned perfectly with her career aspirations and was a real bonus.
When asked by the audience about her personal highlight, she fondly recalled meeting everyone at the first garden party. Though nerves were inevitable, each host family, ambassador, and rotary member welcomed her with open arms. She also felt the local festival was one of the best parts of the trip, as it brought everyone together with a shared love of music, to celebrate and have fun.
We thank Halle for her insightful talk and wish her the best for her master’s degree, which is contingent on the success of her company. We look forward to welcoming her new international friends to Canterbury very soon!
Picture: Halle (left and inset) and fellow MGSE ambassadors pose in hospital scrubs. Picture credit: Halle Mills/Rotary Club of Canterbury.
