Ponca City Chamber of Commerce host international guest

He’s like a foreign exchange student, but instead of coming for school he is here to observe the Chamber of Commerce.

Milos traveled all the way from Belgrade, Serbia in Europe to Ponca City this weekend.

Despite flight delays causing him to miss his flight and having to stay a night in Washington D.C., he is on his third day of work here.

“They placed me, but I think it was upon the things I would like to learn while I am here and one of the things I focused on was community development, and I think that is the number one reason I am here,” Milos said.

Rich Cantillion, Chamber of Commerce President is his mentor and said they have a full schedule.

Milos will be visiting the state capital and seeing all the sights in Ponca City during his five weeks here.

This is the first time Milos has been to America.

“It was really hard for me to process actually, everything that happen in the past two days," Milos said. "There is so many impressions. America is different geographically than Serbia. The people are a little bit different and everything is just a new experience, new impression for me. I was just trying to figure it out last night, because I really like to write a blog and present USA to my people back in Serbia, and it was just hard for me and it was so many impressions. I really love it here, so this is maybe my number one impression.”

The Center of International Private Enterprise is the program that coordinates these studies.

Seven executives from different countries were selected and have been placed in Oklahoma, Denver and Washington D.C.

Cantillion said this is the second time Ponca City has been chosen for the program, and by far the smallest Chamber to host an international person.

“It really speaks well of our community," Cantillion said. "What we did two years ago with Kipson and even getting selected the first time with Kipson from Zimbabwe, but than to be as successful as we were and for the U.S. chamber site program to ask us again to host another person, that really speaks well of Ponca City.”

Cantillion said although the focus is the same, Kipson and Milos are very different.