By Sharona Raghoebir (YES 2017-2018, Suriname, hosted by AFS in Oakland, NY) 

My amazing host mom’s name is Ann Ford. She has the biggest heart of anyone I know! She is kind, loving and thoughtful. She will always put other peoples' needs first, and she goes out of her way to help people. She is such a wonderful person who is incredibly involved in her community. She opened her home and her heart to me. She has a beautiful, loving soul. I admire how my host mom is able to balance order and routine while still having an adventurous side.

I keep wondering how one individual could be so strong, smart, loving and caring. She has helped me through a lot during my exchange year. I love making jokes around my host mom because I love her laugh. Her love helps me stay motivated and happy while I am in the U.S. She treats me as her own daughter so that I can comfortably call Oakland, NJ my second home. She works hard every day to help me in any way that she can. She invests a huge amount of time in making sure I am doing well in school, socially, and that I am healthy. To me, my mom is always smiling and positive. To be honest, I often think about how she always projects this happy and positive energy. Even when there are problems, she maintains this composure and you just have to admire her for it! And I think I discovered the answer -- because she’s the mom! If she falls, I’ll fall, too. Her strength and happy demeanor gives me the strength and courage to confront any problems I may encounter.

I could never ask for a better host mom and family, because it’s impossible to find better ones. I want to say thank you or dankjewel (thank you in Dutch) to my host mom!

If you're reading this Mom, "I love you!"