Milton’s Rotary Club welcomed a very special guest this week, as former exchange student Mitsumasa “Mitsu” Nishimura from Japan returned to the town for the first time in 47 years.
Nishimura, who spent the 1977-78 school year in Milton as part of the Rotary Youth Exchange Program, was joined by his wife Yuka for the emotional visit.
On the evening of Monday, April 28th, the couple attended a Rotary Club meeting, where they were warmly greeted by Rotarians and the adult children of the Thompson and McNeill families – two of the local families who hosted him nearly five decades ago. The reunion was filled with heartfelt memories and laughter, as old connections were rekindled and new friendships formed.
Rotary members Carolyn and Ries later gave the couple a tour of Milton’s town hall and introduced them to Mayor Gord Krantz, Canada’s longest-serving mayor who was first voted into his role in 1980, just two years after Nishimura returned to Japan. He also revisited his former high school, Milton District High School, reliving memories of his time as a student.
Milton’s Rotary Club has proudly hosted or sent over 100 students through its youth exchange program since 1968. Nishimura’s visit stands as a powerful reminder of the lifelong bonds and global friendships formed through Rotary’s ongoing commitment to cultural exchange.
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