Of the 114 international students attending Goshen this fall, 11 stay with host families.

According to Dan Koop Liechty, international student adviser, Goshen College has moved away from host families in the last few years.

Koop Liechty noted, “generally speaking, students who are now living off campus with families are related to them or had a relationship prior to arrival.”

This was true in the case of sisters Senper and Shalom Solomon.

The sisters’ father and Paul Shetler, son of Jan Bender Shetler, former director of global education, had a connection.

Through their familial relationship with Bender Shetler and her late husband, Peter, in Ethiopia, the Solomon sisters were able to attend Bethany Christian High School and eventually Goshen College.

Senper, the eldest of the two sisters, did not know what to expect upon her arrival to Goshen. The Shetler family’s connections at Bethany, GC and the church gave the sisters a community to start out with. However, moving into a new culture took some adjustment.

“My host family’s lifestyle is a different lifestyle than what I’m used to,” Senper said. “Back home we would not eat dinner until like eight or something. And here we would eat dinner [at 6:00]. And my host family wakes up a lot earlier than I do. The food was [also] something to get used to.”

Shalom noted the adjustment to a smaller town.

“The first thing I noticed,” she said, “was, I’m from the capital city in Ethiopia. So I came here and I was like, why is there no one around? Like outside, it was just empty. No one was walking. And I was like, well, where’s everyone? There’s a lot more public transportation available back home. But here, [almost] everyone has a car.”

The unique perspectives that international students have to share about Goshen have been enriching for the Shetlers.

“Hearing what’s happening at Bethany or Goshen College from an international student perspective is different,” Bender Shetler said, “and so you get a new look at things and how the U.S. feels to them, especially when they first come, so it’s just a widening of perspective.”

The Shetlers have hosted exchange students in the Goshen community for over 20 years.

“My husband and I; my family spent a lot of time abroad ourselves living in Ethiopia and in what was then Zaire and in Tanzania,” Bender Shetler said, “and we received wonderful hospitality there. And so part of it is like knowing what it feels to be on the other end and [being] ready to give back.”

Koop Liechty noted that part of the reason host families are used less by international students is that “the ability to connect and succeed at GC is improved if an international student is on campus, especially when they first arrive in the country.”

Shalom agreed; “I feel like for most international students, it is better to come to campus, like if they haven’t been here already.”

Since both sisters graduated high school in Goshen, they were adjusted to the culture “so it was easier for us to be commuters and live with a host family and still do college,” she added.

Bender Shetler mentioned that the financial assistance of living with a host family can be helpful for students to afford college, and that “sometimes when you’re coming here for the first time, it’s really nice to have a  home, more than just a dorm.”

Senper and Shalom both expressed gratitude for their situation, and the relationship they have formed with the Shetlers.

“It’s like a second family for both me and my sister,” Shalom said.

Bender Shetler felt similarly, saying, “It’s been a joy. I mean, especially Senper and Shalom right now. It’s a joy to have them there and it certainly enriches my life.”