The International Enders Family

The Enders Family takes inspiration from a lot of different places and people, but probably the biggest impact on our lives has been the countless exchange students that have lived in our home over the years. Whether they stayed for a month in the summer, or a whole school year, the students we hosted have created what we like to call the “International Enders Family”.

Because of Tracy’s involvement in exchange organizations as an area coordinator in Connecticut, we experienced many different cultures, represented by these students from all over the world. Over the course of about 20 years, there were students from 22 different countries that lived in our “Big Yellow House” house in Coventry. While we are a family of four by blood, our family by heart has grown to include dozens of people from all over the world. Having kept contact with many of our students over the years, our family includes not just those students that stayed with us, but their families and friends that we have had the privilege to meet as we travelled to their homes abroad.

Keeping these connections is not easy, but it is absolutely worth it. The time the students spend at our home, they become family through and through and the bonds created are lasting. We gain daughters, sons, brothers and sisters and now have the joy of meeting our grandsons, granddaughters, nieces and nephews. Mary Leigh and Josh have been travelling since they were young thanks to Michael and Tracy’s initiative and the connections we have made around the world. After years of visits from previous exchange students, many of them have met each other and now we can watch them on Facebook as they travel to see each other in Germany, Denmark, Vietnam, Australia and more. Our family continues to grow and flourish, and it is amazing to witness the progress that everyone has had since we first met them. The feeling is indescribable to be such an important part in so many people’s lives and to know that opening your home to so many has led to such beautiful relationships.

The video above is a gift that Mary Leigh and Josh worked on for Michael and Tracy’s 25th wedding anniversary. Knowing the party just would not be the same without all of our exchange students, all of the kids collaborated over Facebook to create videos from their corners of the world. Our talented Brazilian exchange student, Marina, then put them all together to create this incredibly moving tribute to the parents that made the International Enders Family possible! You can really feel the love coming from everyone in this video, but it barely scratches the surface of the connection we share with all of these wonderful humans!

Love,

The Enders Family