WINDSOR, Ont. -- It’s a holiday that somehow revolves around turkey — that much Chloe Zheng knew.

But as students packed their bags to return home for the long weekend, many international students who would otherwise be left to wander the barren campus were greeted with open arms by Windsor families for the Thanksgiving holiday.

“I’ve done extensive travelling through the university and I know what it’s like to be away for the holidays,” said University of Windsor business professor Mitch Fields, who welcomed Zheng to his family’s Thanksgiving celebration.

“Thanksgiving is supposed to be about sharing something so that’s what we wanted to do.”

Fields was among a collection of families who opened up their homes to about 80 international students for the University of Windsor’s Host for the Holidays program over the weekend.

With the turkey fresh out of the oven, mashed potatoes, stuffing and asparagus, Zheng’s eyes lit up Sunday when Fields passed the knife to let her attempt carving the bird.

“This is the first time that I’ve ever seen this,” the 23-year-old from China said of the turkey.

With some instruction and after some fumbling she was confidently slicing away the family’s dinner.

When asked what she was looking forward to most, Zheng laughed and said she was “very excited about the stuffing.

“I’ve already eaten some and it tasted very good.”

The University of Windsor has just under 2,000 international students and participation in the holiday program has almost doubled since it began in 2009.

Zheng has only been in Canada for two months and said she signed up for the program to learn more about Canadian culture.

The program was in jeopardy last week after only nine host families had signed up to accommodate the 80 students who wanted to try a Canadian Thanksgiving.

It was after hearing about the shortage that Fields and his wife Terri decided to invite a student in.

“We missed the first call so we thought this would be a good time to step up and try and meet some new folks,” Fields said.

“Whenever I’ve travelled people have always been gracious to us, the whole family really, so this is our way of giving back.

Complete with the Pittsburgh Steelers — Tennessee Titans game on in the background (“a must” for a Thanksgiving meal), Fields, Terri, their two daughters Abbey and Chelsea, and Zheng sat down at the dining room table to celebrate their new friendship.