One girl and four boys. Three students and one teacher. All four from Gibson Southern. A small faction of Titans experienced a trip this past summer. Recently sophomores Grant Arbuckle and Elijah Ortiz, senior Regan Wolak, and computer sciences teacher Ryan Osborn were Gibson Southerner’s chosen to say “Konnichiwa” to various cities in Japan.
The Gibson County Economic Development Corporation, along with Toyota Motor Manufacturing of Indiana, gave students and teachers in Gibson County the opportunity to experience life in Japan with the Friendship City exchange with Tahara City, Japan. Three students from each of the local high schools, one teacher from each high school and economic leaders in Gibson County were part of the exchange.
The southern Indiana group had no clue what to expect. Some thought watching movies set in Japan would help, but unfortunately, it was nothing like the many movies available on various streaming platforms. Everybody was completely different but very nice.
“I watched a few movies before I went over there, but it was nothing like the real deal,” Ortiz said. “You can watch a movie to help yourself to embrace the culture.”
Many teachers and scholars agree the best way to learn is through firsthand experiences. The Titans were homed with host families during their stays in Japan, families who took care of them for a time. The Titans said they enjoyed staying with their host families over staying at the hotel.
“I really enjoyed staying with the host family more,” Arbuckle said. “They brought you in and cared about you. Being in a different country for the first time and you being alone, it was just nice to have someone there. They were all really nice people, and I don’t think I could have asked for a better host family.”
The families took their guests out for dinners and to do things around the town so they were able to experience life in Japan for the time they were with them. Although the language barrier was there, it did not stop them from communicating with their families as much as they could.
The Titans visited Japanese schools, where they ate lunch, participated in basic classes and even helped clean the school after the school day was over, the way things are done over there. They did their best to communicate with people their own age.
“They (the students) were very welcoming and helped me get to where I needed to go, even when I couldn’t understand them,” Arbuckle said. “They pointed and motioned for me to head somewhere; it worked out.”
The trip had its ups and downs, and the students had their favorite parts and their least favorite parts. Surprisingly, traveling was not the worst part.
“All the walking we had to do [was difficult] because we didn’t have the bus sometimes,” Wolak said. “In the end, it was worth it for some of the things we did, though.”
With the title of Friendship City exchange, students were able to travel and see just how similar a city on the other side of the world was, exposing the travelers to a culture far different to what they were accustomed.
“It’s a smaller town, so it did remind me of Princeton,” Arbuckle said. “Japan and American see each other in very high regards, and I think they would be good friends if they would meet more often.”
More than just experiencing a different way of life, there were many things each traveler learned. Some things they feel could be implemented within our own school community.
“Something we should implement here would be to make students take more responsibility,” Arbuckle said. “At the other school, the students would serve each other lunch and there were no janitors. So, they spent the last 30 minutes or so of the school day to tidy up the classroom and the halls. I’m not saying we need anything that drastic, but I don’t think it would be too much to ask for us to clean the classrooms before we leave each period.”
Tahara City’s Toyota plant served as the “mother plant” to Princeton’s plant in its early years. Local plant leaders were trained there and learned how to operate Indiana’s new Toyota plant. Toyota broke ground in Gibson County in 1996 and began production in 1998 with the full-size pickup, the Toyota Tundra.
The Gibson County Economic Development Corporation plans to continue this experience for local high school students every other year. The program is open to high school students who will be sophomores, juniors and seniors the next academic year.
