Our names are Rebecca and Vanessa Streiner. We are in the 8th and 9th grade at French Middle School and Topeka West High School. We were recently interviewed and accepted to participate as members of the People to People Student Ambassador Program to Italy, France, Switzerland, and Austria this summer. The objective of the program is to promote international understanding while building leadership skills among America’s youth. The 21-day experience includes meeting with government officials, interaction with other students our age, educational activities and home stays with host families.
We are currently seeking financial sponsors to help us with tuition, and hope we can count on your support. In case you haven’t heard of People to People, please allow us to share some history with you. President Dwight D. Eisenhower founded the organization in 1956. He believed that if people from different cultures could come together on peace and friendship, so eventually would countries. Since its founding, People to People has launched many international programs, including Sister Cities and Project HOPE.
People to People Student Ambassadors are carefully interviewed and evaluated before their acceptance, and we are honored to have been selected. Personally, we are looking forward to broadening our perspectives of the world and gaining a better understanding of Western European history. Upon our return, we can also earn high school and college credit because of the many educational elements on our program.
The program tuition is $6,499 for each of us, which includes all transportation, accommodations, meals and educational activities. We are asking sponsors to contribute as much as they can to help us reach our goal. We will plan to give a speech and share our journals, photographs, and experiences with contributors upon our return. Our program tuition is due April 17, 2009. We have enclosed a contribution form for your payment