Faculty member speaks about Rotary experience in Brazil

He and four other Nebraskan Rotarians spent a month in Brazil with the GSE. Sealey stayed two additional weeks and toured Uruguay and Argentina.

“Over and over we were invited to come back and visit. The Rotarians were so caring - like a family. They wouldn't let us buy anything. I don’t know if they were so friendly because they were Rotarians, Brazilians, or both,” he said.

In Minas Gerais, the Rotary group was able to meet some exchange students who had visited Nebraska earlier.

“The Rotary folks took such good care of us. They made sure we ate, and ate, and ate. They balanced our schedule so our days weren't so full that we were exhausted and couldn't get up and go the next day,” Sealey said.

Since summer in the northern hemisphere is winter in Brazil, the temperatures were about 75-80.

Sealey said for somebody like him who grew up in rural South Dakota, it was amazing to be able to see the things he saw on the trip.

The first school the group visited, Instituto Methodista Granbery, was established by Americans. The students there wanted to have their photos taken with the group as proof that they had met the Americans.

“They loved to practice speaking their English. Their English was better than my Portuguese,” Sealey said of the hosts’ language skills.

The next school on the tour, Colegio Milita de Juirz, was a military-style academy. Although the uniforms and precision drills were impressive, Sealey said the overall feeling made the school his favorite.

The Rotary group’s visit coincided with an annual review of the school by a general. The Rotarians were honored to be invited to stand on the officials’ platform with him during the ceremony.

The third school, in Uba', was built by Rotary International and then turned it over to the city.

“Uba' was my favorite city. The young Rotarians there were amazing and I ate a hot dog from vendor working from the back of car. We met the mayor and were treated like rock stars,” Sealey said.

In Barbacena, the GSE members toured an arts school. The students sang to the Rotarians expressing their culture.

The group toured several schools in Congonhas including an arts and dance school. The elementary-aged children at another school hand-painted welcome gifts for Sealey and his colleagues.

In Lima Duarte, Sealey wore a soccer shirt supporting one popular team. However, the bar owner liked a rival team better so he gave him a shirt from the other team. This effort went back and forth between fans of rival teams until Sealey ended the night with five shirts.

The group members also studied various agriculture practices including the raising of sugar cane and attended a Rotarian conference in Caxambu.