Jesus Fontan

Spanish Foreign Exchange Student

Story by Anna Musarra

   There’s five minutes left in the first half of the game, and the Platteville-Lancaster boys’ soccer team is on the attack. In the lead is a new face: Jesús Fontán, fifteen year-old foreign exchange student from Madrid, Spain. Fontán, who also plays recreational tennis, isn’t the only one from Madrid on the team; coincidentally, one of his friends from his team back in Spain, Aurelio Fernandez, is also playing for the Hillmen this season. The two live only five minutes away from each other back home in Madrid, which is especially cool considering the population of Madrid is over 3 million people, and they both just happened to end up in rural Platteville, Wisconsin. 
   The two friends and teammates don’t live quite as close to each other in Platteville--Fernandez lives several minutes out of town, and Fontán is staying in town with the Custers. They do still spend a lot of time together, however, since they’re both in many classes together, although only Fontán is registered as a sophomore, and both are avid fans of the Spanish club team, Real Madrid.
   America isn’t the only place that Fontán has travelled to. He’s also been to France, and once visited Norway for about a week. He says the best part of his current extended stay, however, is getting to meet all the new people, especially the others in the foreign exchange program and his new friends on the soccer team.
   Although the soccer season is now over, Fontán’s stay in Platteville is only just beginning. Make sure to say hello to our new friend in the hallway!