New YES students success stories
Our current ambassadors are making us beyond proud!
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Adam Ghrayzi
All the way from Btater, Lebanon, to Rochester, New York, Adam participated in cross country for his first time ever and moved up all the up to Varsity for running a 5k in less than 18 minutes. He also has been spending his time volunteering with his host dad at a recreational center where they teach kids about plants, vegetables, and insects. They also teach them how to plant and water vegetables.
"I'm trying my best to make the most out of the weather here and trying to get people to remember me."
Mahdi Hallal
Being placed in Rochester, NH, Mahdi has gained multiple skills that improved him on a personal and social level. He came out as Santa during Christmas for a family in need. He managed to answer calls with an enthusiastic spirit that gave him the pleasure to see others happy and grateful, especially little kids. This helped him put in 300 hours of community service. He also discovered his passion in sports where he helped get his track team to the 2nd place in the 4 X 400 meters relay, and his futsal team in achieving 3rd place in the Beantown cup tournament that includes 80 teams.
"I learned that Christmas is not only about receiving, it's more about giving and sharing."
"My adventure as a youth ambassador for Lebanon gave me the key to the treasure of my curiosity, thus giving me better knowledge and view about the diversity of the world. I am eager to bring this knowledge back to my home country, and make an impact that will make the world a better place."
"My exchange year is literally the best thing that ever happened to me."
Maroun Mezher
From Ain el Remmeneh to Federal Way, WA. Proudly presenting Lebanon 50 times so far, Maroun has been engaging well in his Federal Way, Washington community. He has done more than 120 hours of community service, became a leader at his church, a drummer in 4 bands, and conducted a band performance.
"When I first came I never believed I will even have one friend, and now I'm a leader at my church, a drummer in 4 bands, I'm conducting a band performance. On top of that, I have an A in all my classes."
Nada Bassyouni:
Nada is placed in South Carolina. She had the chance in Lebanon to learn how to play the violin. However, her Orchestra class in South Carolina not only gave Nada the opportunity to learn, but also to play in her 1st concert, and now she’s preparing for her 2nd one.
"When I came to SC I had the chance to join the orchestra class which they taught me how to play it in such a short time and I was able to play in the concert ."
Nesrin Diab
From Nabatieh, Lebanon to San Antonio, Texas. Nesrin describes being an exchange student is probably one of the greatest things that require a lot of work. She joined tech theater, and it turns out she enjoyed helping backstage. She helped direct and manage two plays at her school, design parts of the set, and was even a part of the hair and makeup team. She was part of the Model UN in San Antonio, and one of her favorite classes is architectural design which she plans to major in. This class really gave her a glimpse about architecture, its required skills, and needed creativity. Volunteering with the Habitat for Humanity also helped Nesrin know more about team work, planning, and patience that comes with construction.
"Just because you moved across the world doesn't mean life will stop throwing obstacles your way. But at least this way you get to grow, and find out who you really are. And it doesn't really change you, it just helps you become a better version of the same exact person you were when you got here."
Thalia Salloum:
From Beirut to Hammoud, Indiana, Thalia made sure to get the maximum of her experience. She won 1st place three times in a row in her Dance team at Morton High School making it to regionals then state. She believes this took her out of her comfort zone, and that the experience taught her punctuality and the American team spirit. She also performing Hip Hop and Jazz routines.
"Competing helped me get out of my comfort zone and perform in front of a huge audience, taught me punctuality, gave me the opportunity for new experiences and helped me gain a new American team I now call family. "
"Realized we've come a long way, a year that taught me love, tolerance, showed my strength as an individual. It taught me the meaning of "home" as peace and intimacy with the people around you rather than a particular place."
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