Living on the Irish Riviera and being a resident of “the most Irish town in America” has its perks: great stories, good food, and a “Sister City” in West Cork, Ireland. This international connection provided 15 SHS students with a chance to go to Ireland last spring and host Irish students this past fall through a student exchange program.
In October, 16 Irish exchange students visited Scituate and had the opportunity to stay with local families, sight-see in Boston, and attend high school classes with their American hosts. Sitting in SHS classrooms, Irish students could be spotted reading The Odyssey or learning about psychology.
Senior Stella Bulman, who went to West Cork on the American exchange last April, hosted one of the exchange students in October. She expressed how “fun-loving” the Irish students were: “They were all really optimistic people. They were really, really nice–and they were funny, too.” Bulman enjoyed showing the students around Scituate–especially the beach and the Harbor since they don’t have the ocean in their hometown.
In addition, Bulman remembered the kindness Irish students extended to her when she visited them while recovering from a dislocated knee. “I was supposed to stay upstairs, but the family adapted, and the little sister gave up her room for me. They were all so nice.”
Beyond attending school, the Irish students learned about Scituate’s Irish roots during a field trip to the Irish Mossing Museum on the Driftway. Students learned how the mossing industry attracted many Irish immigrants. Before 1847, when Irish immigrant Daniel Ward discovered seaweed and algae that covered the rocks of Scituate’s shoreline, there were no Irish people in Scituate. But now, about 50 percent of Scituate residents claim Irish ancestry and a strong connection has been developed through the Sister City program.
Bulman described the exchange as “a great opportunity to learn about another culture.” She added, “It was cool to see how different cultures operate. Being in Ireland was so different–you couldn’t see your neighbors for miles, but teenagers were still the same.”