Joyo, Japan, exchange students visit Vancouver

Esther Short — Joyo, Japan, is Vancouver’s sister city. In April of this year, four local students were selected by Vancouver Rotary to spend seven days in Joyo with host families. They were Hollyn Belt, Paige Wilson, Bridget Kilbride and Jared Gillingham. In August, Joyo returned the favor by sending four Japanese students — Ayaka Oku, Ayumi Kobayashi, Zenta Nishio and Risako Ofuji — to stay with Clark County families and to explore the Pacific Northwest. The Japanese students attended the Aug. 20 Vancouver City Council meeting and met Mayor Tim Leavitt. All was organized by the Vancouver Rotary.