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YES Students Attend President Obama’s Speech in Arizona

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On January 8, 2015, President Barack Obama visited Central High School in Phoenix, Arizona to speak about the nation’s housing recovery and unveil a new plan to boost homeownership. Five YES students, placed by AYUSA, are currently attending Central High during their exchange year and had the honor of being a part of President Obama’s audience. The students shared their thoughts after this exciting event.

Roopesh Badloe, YES Suriname, 2014-2015:
It was big news all over Central as we attended school again after fall break. The president of the United States was coming to visit our school. I was so excited about this and even more when I received a ticket the day before he was coming, which meant that I had gotten the opportunity to see him in real life. I told this to my friends and family back in my county and they were really happy as well.

At the day of his arrival itself, we waited for 4 hours in the same building at the same place. Security was pretty tight, but in fact, I liked being around all the special agents as I admire them a lot. Then he finally arrived.

There was a lot of energy present at that moment. What I personally think of this is that the president is very captivating with his words, and he had an amazing personality too, which was perfect for giving a speech at a high school. I appreciate the fact that I was part of this and I’m very thankful for it.

Labib Rahman, YES Bangladesh, 2014-2015:
President Barack Obama came to our school, Central High in Phoenix, on January 8, 2015. He arrived at our school at 11AM and gave an interesting speech on housing. Yes, on housing, but he made it sound interesting with a story and his deep sounding voice, which is so charismatic. I also got the chance to shake his hand for a moment and when I did, I ceased his hand for a few seconds. They were moments that I will probably treasure for the rest of my life. It was like an unseen dream unraveling itself in those moments. I also got a few pictures of him and some videos recording my handshake with him. I hope to meet him again soon because this experience was truly amazing!

Evanildo Bambama, YES Mozambique, 2014-2015:
On January 8, 2015, I had an opportunity to see the president of the United States. It was one of my best moments in the U.S. It was an amazing experience. I was so excited to see him and could not control my excitement. During the speech I was so impressed with his skills of speaking in public and persuasion. Obama is a person of strong opinions and he expresses his views energetically and that is one of the things that I admire about him. I was glad to be there because I knew that I was really lucky to be watching his speech and not everyone in my school got the chance! He is one of the people who really inspires me. At the end of the speech, I was so happy and thanked God for that amazing opportunity and asked him for more opportunities like that!

Jauna Al-Dlaigan, YES Saudi Arabia, 2014-2015:
It was something unbelievable other than coming here in the U.S. - seeing their president. It was something huge. It was a shock. I still can’t believe that he picked Central High School from all the other schools. The security was crazy. I’ve never experienced anything like this. Honestly, I’m never going to forget this huge part of being here!

Khalil Shaheen, YES West Bank, 2014-2015:
It was an awesome experience for me. Getting to see President Obama is something that I've never expected in my life. Some teachers told me that they've never been to a speech given by a president of the United States in their entire lives, and when they told me that then I knew how lucky I am to have this moment and get to see President Barack Obama.


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