Annika Baumgartner and Angel Xu were visitors and guest speakers at Tuesday’s Rotary Club meeting. President Bill Lacy presents a book that will be donated to the Troup library in their honor. Troup’s Rotar y Club played host to two international exchange students attending Troup High School. The girls are living with Jean Howard.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve had teenagers,” Howard said. “These girls are just a delight to have in my home.”

Annika Baumgartner is from Pfeffingen, Switzerland, a small village near Basle.

Her parents are Hans and Barbara and her brother’s name is Pascal. She speaks German, French, Italian and English.

“I have always dreamed of coming to the United States as an exchange student,” Baumgartner said. “My parents really encouraged me to do this as well.”

She shared with the group about her country and many of the differences in their school days and schedules.

“We just go to school to study,” Baumgartner said. “There are no sports clubs or other activities. I really enjoy the cheerleaders, the pep rallies and the school spirit here.”

Angel Xu is from Beijing China. She enjoys reading, playing the piano and listening to music. Her mother is Zhang Mei.

Xu speaks Cantonese, Mandarin and English.

She too is accustomed to school without the additional activities of sports or fun activities. A typical school day for her in China is 13 hours long.

“The school schedule here is like a vacation for me,” Xu said.

“In China, this is the year of the cow,” Xu said. “I came to Texas. I think that is a perfect match.”

The girls have acclimated to Troup High School very well. During the last home game, Annika served as mascot with the cheerleaders for part of the game.

Next week’s Rotary program will celebrate past president’s day.