“The miracle is not that we do this work but that we are happy to do it”

By Rashid, CCI Greenheart High School Exchange Student

Rashid is an exchange student from Pakistan who was placed in Washington state. He is a YES student, sponsored by the Department of State. He has been an active member of the Greenheart Club with a total of 115 volunteer hours! Read about Rashid’s experience in the United States below.

My name is Rashid. I am an exchange student from Lodhran, Pakistan, a very small but beautiful district of Provence Punjab. Currently, I am living  in Marysville, Washington. I am living with a family that is not only open-hearted and most loving but also most generous too.  My curiosity about different cultures brought me here. I am studying at BIO-Med high school Marysville and also improving my skills in English. Since I have been here, I have done lots of thing to carry a bundle of memories with me back to Pakistan.  But one of my most fascinating experiences was volunteering. It inspired me a lot. It’s been my personal experience that whenever I help people I become very happy, especially when they appreciate it.

I volunteered  at several places and accumulated 115 volunteer hours! Mostly I volunteered at the food bank ” Seeds of Grace”, St. Philips Church and Everett Historical Theater. My very first volunteering experience was at the food bank. We worked to distribute food to people. When I introduced myself as an exchange students, I was amazed to see how people responded! That was a great experience.

The volunteering activity that I loved the most was cooking dinner at St. Philips Church. In this way we got to meet such diverse people in the community and we also got to talk to them. It was especially fun to talk to those who already knew something about  Pakistan. Sharing experience with them and talking about both cultures made volunteering most fun for me.   I have always been passionate about volunteering because it has changed my perspective so much.

Now, I’m almost done with my exchange year and ready to go back to create a difference in my own country. I’ve learned a lot of stuff that I will share with the people in my community in Pakistan. I want to say thanks to U.S. Department of State for providing us with such a golden opportunity to change our lives and make our future more secure.

Say “YES” to creating a difference.