From District Interact Co-Chair Erin Haye -

On November 10th and 11th, 48 Interact students representing 13 schools in District 7780 headed to the Big Apple. This year UN Interact Day was held in Geneva, Switzerland instead of NYC, but the Interact Committee decided to continue offering this five-year tradition to the city and take a tour of the UN instead.  Information was shared about the importance of Rotary in the UN to the students and, for many, it was the first time touring the building and very informative. The students and chaperones also toured the Empire State Building, Times Square, and saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory on Broadway.  The frigid temperatures, traffic and busy streets did not discourage these 15-18 year olds.  A survey conducted indicated that 100% of the students felt safe and would highly recommend the trip when they went back to their Interact group to other students.

A Big Thank You to all of the Rotary Clubs who supported these students.  While is  was very exciting to be able to see a show, the sites of NYC and eat some yummy food - the most important part of this trip was clearly the conversations and relationships that these students created in the name of Interact.  We hope that they will continue on with the 4 Way Test in their daily lives.  The highlight of the trip for me was when we were told by a manager in a restaurant that after 7 years of working at the Hard Rock Cafe, and serving groups from around the world, these were the most well-behaved students he has ever encountered. So proud of these students and looking forward to a great turnout at the Interact Conference in the spring.