Mira Fakhreddin: December YES Student of the Month

Congratulations to Mira Fakhreddin from Beirut, Lebanon, the December YES Student of the Month!

Mira knows how to make things happen. She brought a whirlwind of energy and initiative to Littleton High School and her larger host community in Colorado. Mira has already logged over 50 hours of volunteer work. At school, she was elected vice president of the Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) club, co-president of Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), and an ambassador of the Student Council. She is active in Model UN, the speech and debate teams, and several other clubs. She also volunteers as a teaching assistant.
 
For International Education Week, Mira gave four presentations to her classes and organized seven activities highlighting Lebanese culture; these events reached over 500 people. Mira shared her culture through baking, dance and song as well as through discussions of Lebanese culture and Islam. She made a Lebanese breakfast for a community group, brought Lebanese desserts to the teachers’ lounge, and held a Lebanese Day Celebration that caught the attention of the U.S. Embassy back in Beirut, which featured Mira on its website.
 
Mira seeks out creative and meaningful ways to become involved in community events. She participated in a Trick or Treat for a Purpose event, in which she collected food for needy families and money to provide vaccines through UNICEF. She worked at an event to support children’s mental health, assembled food packets for children with the Kiwanis club, baked dog biscuits to fund dogs for child cancer patients, and volunteered to build retaining walls in a national park fire restoration project. Mira also staffs a booth during community events for a school fundraising project to benefit an orphanage in Uganda. Through her FCCLA group, Mira organized a breast cancer awareness campaign for the teachers in her school. She led students in baking 120 pink cupcakes that were distributed with informational fliers in teachers' mailboxes. The teachers and school staff loved this project that exemplifies her leadership ability and creative approach to service.
 
What an impact one determined YES student can have! Congratulations, Mira!

Haytham Mohanna: Honorable Mention

Congratulations also to YES student Haytham Mohanna from Gaza who has received an honorable mention!

Haytham Mohanna has already had quite an impact on Haines, AK, a rural town of 2,500. Living a ferry ride away from the closest YES students in Juneau, he has taken considerable initiative to make the most of his exchange year. Shortly after he arrived, he and his host father Ed, volunteered to play “victims” during a Southeast Alaska disaster drill that took place in Haines. Haytham did a radio interview about his home country and culture at a local station. He also worked with the Haines People for Peace to organize his main International Education Week presentation at a local library. Before an audience of 70 Haines residents, Haytham shared information about his home country of Gaza and presented his latest origami creation, an impressive Peace Peacock made with 2,000 pieces of paper. A local newspaper covered the event here. Most recently, Haytham won the International Education Week contest for his placement organization. The judges were struck by the initiative he had taken throughout his time in Haines as well as his maturity in addressing the delicate subject of the conflict in Palestine. In addition to acting as a junior ambassador for his country, Haytham has thrived at Haines High School, where he has joined in activities such as the swim team. His host family and local coordinator applaud this outstanding YES student and are sad to think of his departure at the end of the year.