By Stephen Smoot
“They make friends across the world. Many of them lifelong friends.”
Thus says Henry Krautwurst of the Lions Club and Capon Springs, West Virginia. He helps to administer the Youth Camps and Exchange program for the Mountain State. “It’s intended to bring kids from different cultures together to learn,” he stated.
Through the program, a young person between the ages of 15 and 22 can go abroad and reside with a host family for between two and five weeks. There in a close-knit family setting, they experience for two weeks what it’s like to live in another country.
Most areas also have a one to two week camp component in which youth from around the globe can gather together for fun and fellowship. The mission, according to the Lions Club website, is “to create and foster a spirit of understanding among peoples of the world.”
Another aspect of the program lies in West Virginia families hosting young people looking for a similar experience in America.
Krautwurst shared that “my wife and I hosted about 10 over the last 10 or 12 years.” He told of one experience when he hosted Ani from Finland. Not long before she had to leave, “we got a request from a student in Japan who wanted to come.”
The visit from Yuko overlapped with that of Ani by five days, but as Krautwurst stated “they had a ball together. They took the girls to a family reunion, on a helicopter ride, and more American good times.
But the friendship between the girls powered through a world of separation when they left the United States. As Krautwurst explained, Yuko later ended up living in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic. Ani invited Yuko to join her family in Finland for Christmas and stayed for a month.
On another occasion, the Krautwursts hosted a 15-year-old from Lima, Peru. They took her throughout the region, including Colonial Williamsburg. Her family offered a return invitation and hosted the Krautwurst couple in their country for a month, proudly showing them the sites.
Through the Lions Club program, it’s hard to predict where a trip and friends met will lead in the future.
As Krautwurst says “don’t be afraid to enter an experience.”
In his experience, unfortunately, too many are.
From West Virginia the Lions Club can send up to six program participants. Krautwurst related that in many schools, he will travel to recruit for the program. In recent years, interest in this and similar experiences among young people have declined.
“I went to a table in a high school and set up in a cafeteria,” he said, going on to relate that he tried to engage students throughout the lunch periods. “Every kid walked past the table and one stopped. That’s scary.”
Often what a family host gives, they get back in the most unexpected ways. Krautwurst in 2020 contracted COVID and spent nine weeks fighting for his life against the disease. “All those kids and families were emailing me,” he said, adding “I was just taken by that. It was more than just an experience to them.”
Qualifying participants will travel on a $1,700 grant provided to a student in grades 10 through 12 or a recent graduate. Possible destinations include Austria, Switzerland, France, Germany, Finland, Japan, Italy, Peru, or Australia during summer 2026.
The Lions Club engages with counselors at every high school to ensure that all high school students in West Virginia have the opportunity to learn about it and apply. Those with questions are urged to contact Michelle Harshbarger at (304) 588-7420 or jasonharsh@aol.com
