When Audrey Handelsman traded Manhattan's Upper East Side for the hills of Steiner Ranch in 2018, she brought along a thriving personal-training career — more than 30 years of it — and a quieter passion that has since become her heart's work: opening Central Texas homes to students from around the world.
By day, Audrey is the trainer you've probably spotted working with clients in her garage-turned-gym, cracking the whip and, to her clients' dismay, never quite letting the jump rope fall off the radar. But her “passion project,” as she calls it, is her role as a local coordinator for PAX — Program of Academic Excellence — a nonprofit foreign exchange program that places high school students with host families.
For about seven years, she has matched teenagers — juniors, usually 16 or 17 — from Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium, South Korea, Vietnam, even Bahrain, with families across the Austin area. A former exchange student herself, having studied in France during college, Audrey understands the experience from both sides. “I see the value of it from being the student,” she says, “but also the importance of having foreign exchange students in our community. They give us something we don't have — learning that the world is bigger than ourselves.”
The rewards, she says, sneak up on families. She tells the story of one host mom whose husband surprised everyone by crying at the airport when their student flew home. “You don't realize the connection you build with these kids, because they're living in your home.” Many families book flights to visit “their” student's home country before the school year has even ended.
What does a student actually need? Less than most people assume. A place to sleep — sharing a room is perfectly fine — a spot to study, reasonable transportation, and three meals a day. “They eat whatever you eat,” Audrey says. “You just need an extra bowl of pasta.” And who makes a good host family? “Any family that is loving. It could be empty nesters, two moms, two dads, a single parent. An ideal family to me is just people that love each other.”
Audrey's matchmaking is anything but casual. She combs through hundreds of applications, learns each family's rhythms — outdoorsy or foodie, soccer-obsessed or dog-loving — then lets the family choose their own student. Her care shows in the numbers: in seven years, she's had exactly one placement not work out.
For the students, the payoff is the full American-high-school experience they've only seen on TV — pep rallies, homecoming parades, Friday-night football, downtown murals, and their first real slice of pizza. For host siblings, it's the chance to become a big brother or sister and see their own hometown through new eyes.
If you've ever been curious — even mildly — Audrey would love to talk, and she's famously low-pressure. “If it's something you want to do, I want to make it a great experience for everyone.” Reach her through the Porch Project community directory under Foreign Exchange, or learn more at pax.org.
