Terri

Terri and Shadi, Texas State Fair, 2007

Terri and I were married in 1989. Our life has taken us from San Antonio to Fredericksburg, back to San Antonio, and finally to the great metropolis of Melissa where we have lived since 2003. She currently works as the budget director for one of the many suburbs of Dallas.

It was Terri who initially involved us in hosting exchange students. For the first few years of our marriage, she worked as a geography teacher and received a Fulbright Grant to spend six weeks in China. Upon her return, she spoke at a geography conference where she saw a presentation by an exchange student from Russia. Only a few days later we had chosen Olga as our first exchange daughter. Because we always host girls, Terri gets to take on certain responsibilities that only a host mom can…the ever-predictable drama of choosing a prom dress is one in which I only have to observe and not participate. Despite her bluster about being impatient and unwilling, she has never failed to spend whatever time it took to find the perfect dress.