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Dommer breaks barriers through People to People |
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Wednesday, 05 December 2007 |
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Page 1 of 2 Special to the I-O by Chary Majerus
 HEIDI AND FRIENDS – Heidi Dommer (second from left) is shown here with members of her home-stay family from Marseille, France. Standing next to Dommer are Imene Meziane (third from left) and her cousin Mehdi Beroual. Photos courtesy Heidi Dommer
“I wanted to see a country in Europe my brother hadn’t been to,” said Dommer, currently a junior at Conrad High School.
But in the process of stepping outside U.S. boundaries, her personal boundaries also expanded. The year-long preparation process helped Dommer build self-confidence, allowing her to overcome extreme shyness.
“The leader said she was really coming out of her shell by the end of the trip,” said Dommer’s mother, Jolene Dommer. “Heidi is going to Close Up this year, but probably wouldn’t have before.”
And she is now venturing out more with local opportunities like the Montana Lutheran Youth Organization in Lewistown where she helped and sang with the worship team.
While the nearly 600 pictures Dommer took during her 20 days in Spain, France and Italy preserved the trip experience, on-going communication with her home-stay family preserves the learning environment – for both families. And that is exactly why President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the program in 1956 when he was searching for an alternative to war.
During the last 50 years, student ambassadors have been to all seven continents in order to “promote peace through understanding.”
According to Wikipedia, the international travel opportunities open to elementary, middle school and high school students through People to People offer itineraries that include hands-on experiences and sight-seeing in areas not always open to tourists.
“The program doesn’t make you do something you don’t want to do,” said Dommer. However, she participated fully and learned the truth in Helen Keller’s statement, “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” In fact, she was awarded the “Taking the Chance Award” by the group of 38 Montana students with whom she traveled.
“I was the only one who jumped off the sidewalk into the sea,” said Dommer.
And while others in the group chose not to climb the six stories to the top of the castle at Assisi, Italy, she marched up the six flights, donned a helmet and gear – and then stepped out over the edge, prepared to rappel down the rock structure. “I got over the edge but didn’t go all the way down.”
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