Every so often goAUPAIR receives stories from Host Families about their exceptional Au Pairs. We love hearing from families and their experiences with their Au Pairs. We recently received this story from a Host Family in Michigan about their family's Au Pair from the Philippines.

"Our Au Pair, Carren, is so wonderful I had to write in about her before her Au Pair time is up! She has come into our home, warmed our hearts, and most importantly lights up our children’s faces with a true love that is hard to find.
 
Before telling you why I think Carren is exceptional to our family, I want to start by telling you how exceptional she is to her own family. Carren is from a large family and grew up on a small island in the Philippines. She is number seven of ten children. Her father died of a stroke working on their farm when she was only ten. She tells stories of growing up in her province, having to fetch the drinking water daily for her family and living without electricity during the early years of her life.
 
Once she graduated from high school, she passed the entrance exam to enroll in a state university in Manila to study education. She worked as a tutor for young children to help pay her way through school. Her older brothers and sisters also worked to support Carren’s education. Once she graduated with exceptional grades, she was able to quickly find a job teaching pre-school at a Montessori school.
 
Her decision to become an Au Pair and leave her large family and home country was not an easy one. However, it was her turn to be the provider for her younger siblings’ education and the opportunity and income as an Au Pair provides for this. One of the first things she did upon arrival here was to coordinate how she could most economically send her salary back to the Philippines to pay for her two younger brothers university education.
 
We are the lucky family she chose! We have three old boy/girl twins and a 9 month old daughter. ... Carren has been with us two year and her Au Pair time is coming to a close next month.
 
Carren came in with open arms and an open mind. She was so excited at the opportunity to teach the twins and was here for baby Laurens arrival into our family. Carren’s positive and upbeat personality make her a wonderful caregiver. Carren comes to us with experience teaching 30 toddlers at once, all under her sole supervision. She knows what she is doing! And we don’t know what we would have done without her had she not come into our lives. Carren is an exceptional woman, selflessly dedicated to her family and to ours."

Thank you to our Host Mom in Michigan for taking the time to recognize Carren. Recognition like this means a lot to our Au Pairs, goAUPAIR and the Au Pair program. We enjoy hearing about the great experiences our Host Families and Au Pairs have together. Please feel free to send us comments about your Au Pair to marketing at goAUPAIR dot com.

President Barack Obama was awarded the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize in a surprise announcement early Friday morning. The Nobel committee noted Obama’s “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”

From his call for a rebooting of the United States’ image around the world, to his landmark speech to the Muslim world in Cairo, to his travels to Accra, Istanbul, Port of Spain, Moscow, and beyond, Obama has consistently sought a “fresh relationship” with counterparts around the world based on mutual understanding and respect. He has on several occasions made it clear that people-to-people engagement through international exchange programs is a key component of achieving this goal.

International exchange programs like the Au Pair Program have greatly benefited from Obama’s focus on foreign relations. As a cultural exchange program with a child care element, the Au Pair program is growing in popularity among many families, and Obama is helping with that growth.

After taking office in 2008, Obama quickly led out with the following regarding foreign relations. “Government can promote this cooperation, but ultimately individuals must advance this cooperation, because the greatest resource of any nation in the 21st century is you. It's people; it's young people especially.”

Controversies may rage about whether Obama truly deserved the Noble Peace Prize. Some say absolutely and other say absolutely not. Comments from Nobel committee members revealed they fully intended to encourage, not reward. Citizens in countries around the world hope that Obama takes the encouragement and accomplishes what he has promised. As Obama follows through with his "extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples,” there is no doubt that cultural exchange programs like the Au Pair program will be the fortunate beneficiaries.