Abbotsford, British Columbia

City of Abbotsford

75 kms Outside Vancouver
60 minutes from Vancouver International Airport
Population: 140,000

The word is out, Abbotsford is a great place to live, work and raise a family. As one of the fastest growing economic centres in B.C. Abbotsford enjoys a unique blend of family, community and work environment. Abbotsford is a growing city with a population of over 106,000 inhabitants.

Surrounded by majestic mountains, it has a strong agricultural core, a busy airport, a booming commercial and industrial sector. Because of its proximity to the mountains, lakes and the ocean, the residents enjoy a wide variety of recreational activities including swimming, water-skiing, ice-skating, skiing and hiking.

Abbotsford residents have access to 315 hectares of municipal parkland. This does not include golf courses, underdeveloped parks and open spaces, which account for more than 50 percent of green space. The friendly people represent many diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds.

City of Abbotsford website.

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Homestay Profile

Most homestays are located close to the school. Typically, students either walk or take the bus to school. On average it takes about 30-45 minutes to get to the school.
There is no typical Red Leaf homestay family! It’s no surprise these days that there are wonderful families who are made up of single mothers, older couples, and the usual Mom and Dad with Children profile.

Local Coordinator

Marilyn has taught English as a Second Language for over 25 years, to a wide variety of students. Marilyn has been working with Red Leaf Student Programs since 1999, and has coordinated numerous programs.

She has been responsible for hundreds of students over the years, and has a large group of loyal host families as well.

Professionalism and high quality programs are very important to Marilyn and she strives at all times to provide the best experience possible for each and every student and volunteer for whom she is responsible.

She enjoys the opportunity to connect with people from many different countries.

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