Wolves come from all over, in fact we have 9 students who have come across the country to enjoy Timberline culture this year.
I got the honor of talking with one of them, Lucia Rodriguez Elesgaray. Let’s learn a bit more about her home and what she has experienced here at Timberline this year.

I started to talk with Elesgaray, she’s 16 and from Algorta, a town in the Basque Country of Spain. Elesgaray told me she misses her hometown and the ocean so much. “Each day I think about how I used to be surfing at the beach, I miss that,” said Elesgaray. She continued explaining how she used to do a lot of ocean activities with her friends, and that she was at the beach multiple times a month.

I learned a lot from Elesgaray about how it is to live with a host family. She really enjoyed it, but unfortunately, she had to change midway through, due to health problems within her host family. Elesgaray was sad about that, but she still visits her old host family, and she really enjoys her new one. One thing Elesgaray enjoys is that she now lives closer to Timberline. Elesgaray explained to me how much she loves Timberline. “Before I got here, I had never experienced a high school assembly before, which I found to be so much fun,” said Elesgaray. She continued explaining how she not only loves our school spirit but also loves her friends at this school.

To round up the interview, I asked her what the hardest part of being an exchange student was because I wanted to hear about that from her perspective. She explained that leaving her family and the things that made her feel safe was difficult. “It’s hard to leave, but I would never have done this, it’s going to be my life experience,” said Elesgaray.

It is truly such a privilege to have exchange students at Timberline, as they enrich the culture and social life. Thank you Lucia Rodriguez Elesgaray for the time, we appreciate having you here, and we hope you keep making amazing memories here at Timberline.