PG&E donated three trees that the visiting students planted at the Torres Shelter in Chico. (Photos by Paul Moreno.)
For the past 24 years, students from Konkuk University in the Republic of Korea have been visiting California State University, Chico during January and February when they have a break in their academic year.
What started as visits by students majoring in education expanded four years ago to include students from a wide variety of majors. In all, nearly 1,000 South Korean students have come to Chico.
The students come to Northern California to learn about America, but they want to give back to their hosts in Chico, too.
That’s why this year’s crop of students planted trees and decorated a picnic bench at the Torres Shelter on Silver Dollar Way this week (Feb. 22). The emergency shelter serves men, women and families in need in the Chico area.
The trees, an orange tree and two dogwoods, were donated by PG&E. When mature, the trees will provide shade to the shelter building.
The students wrote a statement to express their appreciation to their hosts:
Students visiting from South Korean decorated a bench and planted trees to thank their hosts at Chico State University. (Photos by Paul Moreno.)
“We believe learning happens through sharing experiences and building relationships. We have a strong desire to know the American people and their lives. Before we came to Chico, we just knew about America from the media. For example, we thought the American people speak English, eat hamburgers, and have guns. We didn’t really know America.
“Through the Konkuk University—CSU, Chico Program, we learned more about America. We learned about the real America by building relationships with American people here in Chico—teachers, students, host families, tutors and the community. Most Americans also know about Korea, but they don’t know the Korean people. Therefore, the purpose of this program is to build relationships and share real life experiences.
“For this reason, Konkuk University in Korea invested $3,000 per student so we could come to Chico and learn about these ideas in this deeper way. We are the fourth group of Konkuk University students to come to this special program in Chico. There are now 109 of us who have come to Chico since January of 2010. The planting of these trees is the living symbol of the beautiful memories, relationships and experiences we have had together. We hope as these trees grow, our relationship will also grow bigger and stronger.
“Thank you to PG&E for the donation of the trees (an orange tree and two dogwood trees), to CSU, Chico for the wonderful program, and to the people of Chico for the way you have made us feel. Please accept this gift and our sincere thanks!”
Charles Zartman directs the Korean Program for CSU’s School of Education. His wife, Tencia Zartman, and a family friend built the bench that the students decorated.
“This gift to the Torres Shelter is a family affair—the students and their host families and my family,” said Zartman.