Courtesy Photo
From left: Curt Kuriyama, Boom, and Yvette Kuriyama enjoy some time at Bricktown in Oklahoma City. They traveled to Oklahoma City so Boom could meet his American brothers and sister, the Kuriyama’s children.

By Melyn Johnson
Special Correspondent
Golfing and cooking is what drew Curt Kuriyama to choose to host Matichai “Boom” Boonyam of Khon Kaen, Thailand. Curt and his wife, Yvette, have opened their home to Boom and he and Curt have been regular golf partners since with the 16 year old Boom got here in August.. This 16-year-old high school student is attending Guymon High School during this school year.
Boom’s hope of getting to come to a school in the United States that had a golf team came true when the Kuriyama’s said they would host this happy, smiling student.
“Boom and I have been golfing together several times,” says host father Curt. “He is a very good golfer. I wish I could say that I have beaten him on most occasions, but that would not be true. Boom practices all the time to get ready for the high school golf team this spring. He enjoys practicing with the boys on the golf team.”
Boom had previously been on a five-day exchange to Japan, but this is his first time to visit the U.S. and, according to his host mom, Yvette, it is going very well. “I have enjoyed having Boom stay with us very much,” she says.   “All three of our children are out of the house, and Boom is just like one of our kids, but he listens a little better than they did. I have enjoyed coming home from work and visiting with him about his day. I also enjoy my suppers each evening with Curt and Boom. So far, this has been a great experience for both Boom and us.”
And even though the golf season hasn’t begun, Boom is enjoying his time here in Oklahoma. “I am surprised to find how different things are in Oklahoma than they are in Thailand,” he explains, “but I still like it very much. I really enjoy Guymon High School even though it is a much smaller school than I am used to. I have enjoyed meeting new people and making new friends. Alfonso from Spain and Nikola from Macedonia are two of my new friends I have enjoyed hanging out with. I really enjoyed the homecoming celebration last week, which was the first time for me to celebrate something like this.”
 The person responsible for making this match between Boom and the Kuriyama’s is CIEE Local Coordinator Stacie Reid, also from Guymon. And Boom has something to add about his host family. “I also enjoy my host family alot. They took me to Oklahoma City to meet my American brothers and sister and we had lots of fun.”
“It has been fun watching Boom and his host family,” says Reid. “They are both working hard to make this year a wonderful experience for both Boom and his family.”
Local Coordinators for the Council on International Educational Exchange work on finding homes for foreign exchange students. Reid has families in the Oklahoma and upper Texas Panhandle area. She has students placed this year from Germany, Spain, Thailand, Brazil, Slovakia, and Macedonia. They are attending Goodwell, Guymon, Texhoma and Yarbrough, Oklahoma, and Spearman and Perryton, Texas schools.
 
Council, founded in 1947, is one of the world’s leading operators of international exchange programs and related services. They are found on the web at www.ciee.org. If you are interested in learning more about the program, contact Johnson at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or Reid at 580-651-2157.