NORWICH – Members of the Norwich Rotary convened Tuesday introducing a new face to the Norwich community hailing from southern Thailand.

16-year-old Nattanun Hautavanija – Nein, for short – hails from the Songkhla Providence of Thailand and is a foreign exchange student participating in the Rotary International Youth Exchange Program.

The international organization tasked with Polo eradication also serves as on the worlds largest facilitators of exchange programs, fostering diplomacy and fortifying culture around the globe.

At the local level, the Norwich chapter exchange program has been on a temporary hiatus for at least two years for a number of reasons.

“It really has become a challenge to find host families that are both eligible and willing to take in youth exchange students,” said David Harris. “Circumstances have enabled the Norwich Rotary to accommodate a student this year in conjunction with the Bainbridge chapter.

While Norwich's exchange program has been dormant, a paperwork mishap brought an extra student to the Bainbridge Rotary, who then contacted the sister chapter to lend a hand.