By Shenaya Hardjopawiro (YES 2016-2017, hosted by AFS in Bethesda, Maryland)

My name is Shenaya Hardjopawiro and I am forever grateful for my exchange year in the U.S. I learned about a new country, its culture and its people. Most importantly, I learned about myself throughout the year. During my exchange year, I lived in Bethesda, Maryland but went to school in Rockville, MD. I was fortunate enough to be only twenty minutes away from the nation’s capital. One of my main goals for the year was to achieve the 100 hours of volunteering. I searched for a number of volunteer opportunities and I am proud to say that I achieved my goal of completing 100 hours of volunteer work. Out of all the volunteer opportunities I took part in, one stands out the most. I tutored a middle school student for almost the entire academic year. It made me happy to see his confidence grow as he worked hard to earn good grades. I developed a particular passion for working with students and I wanted to continue to work with students when I returned to Suriname. 

When I returned to Suriname, I worked with another YES alumna to host my first volunteer project. I chose to hold my project in a small village at a former plantation called Laarwijk because these places are often overlooked. A close friend of mine who lives in Laarwjik told me that the people there often find themselves without much interaction with others unless they cross a nearby river. My cousin is a teacher at the village’s school, O.S Laarwijk, which only has five grades. She told me about her students and how much they loved to work. I decided to organize a day of creative learning for the students at the school. The theme for the day was "Traveling". Students from ages 5 to 12 years old spent the day learning about why traveling is important. The theme was inspired by my exchange year and I encouraged the students to think outside the box and to step out of their comfort zones. I also taught the students about the importance of volunteering and why community service is an asset to one's growth while brainstorming ways they can volunteer in their own community.

 We talked, we sang, we played games and we even made our own personalized passports together. I was only with the children for a day but I completely fell in love with them. I couldn't help but admire the way they worked and how enthusiastic they were to learn new things.

If asked if I would do another service project similar to the project in Laarwijk, I would definitely say..."Yes"!