Yorkton high school hosts B.C. students as part of domestic exchange program

Twelve students from Abbotsford, B.C. are spending five days in Yorkton, bonding with YRHS through basketball, local events, and cultural exchange.

Twelve high school students from British Columbia are visiting Yorkton this week as part of the Experiences Canada exchange program.

The recreation room at Yorkton Regional High School (YRHS) was full of life on Thursday afternoon, as two girls’ basketballs teams were getting ready to enjoy a potluck. This time, the home team was Yorkton, hosting Yale Secondary School from Abbotsford, B.C.

“I thought it was going to be more different, but they’re pretty much like us,” said Charlie Szabo, a student at Yorkton Regional High School. “Some of the stuff that they do in their high school is probably a bit different than ours and where they live, but they seem like they’re pretty similar to us.”

Experiences Canada is a domestic exchange program funded by the federal government. Its aim is to allow “Canadians to explore their country in ways they never may have imagined through reciprocal exchanges.”

The group applied in September. Roby Sharpe, YRHS’s student activity advisor, said they’re happy to see everything come together.

“It’s one of those things where you apply, and then... we were hoping it was all going to happen. It’s a lot of moving pieces to finally put everything together. But we got it all together and they’re here now,” Sharpe said.

• Download the CTV News app to get breaking news alerts sent to your device

Sharpe said they chose the basketball teams for the exchange because they think it is the perfect size with 12 players on each team.

“We have a young team, so we thought it’s a nice way to team build for the future, for the younger kids,” Sharpe explained. “We have a couple of veteran Grade 12 girls, but only two of them.”

The program came to fruition on Thursday, when B.C. students landed in Saskatchewan.

“It was really flat. Like there wasn’t much to see, just lots of roads. You could see the distance, like really far,” Sloane Mason, a student at Yale Secondary School, described her prairie travel experience. “They said it would be -30 C, which is pretty cold. But today is not that bad.”

She told CTV News she is excited to visit Yorkton and meet with YRHS’s basketball players. The teams are going to spend five days together in Yorkton.

“We play basketball [on Friday] and Saturday. Then on Sunday we have an outdoor day to show them what Yorkton is all about. Probably skating, ice fishing, tobogganing, and a bonfire. We’ll do a roast, sleigh ride, stuff like that. And then it’s back to school on Monday,” Sharpe told CTV News.

Even though the B.C. team has just landed, they have already warmed up to each other. During the potluck, they surrounded a long table and cheered each other on as their peers took turns answering questions from CTV News.

In February, YRHS students will visit Abbotsford in B.C.

“I’m excited to be outside when it’s not -30 C out. I want to go hiking. And I love the mountains, so I feel like I just want to breathe that mountain air,” Evia McDowell from YRHS said, laughing. “I think it’ll be very fun to play basketball in B.C., because I’ve never done that before.”