Diverse Perspectives
I have always had a very significant interest in viewing the world from the perspectives of others and experiencing the vast amount of culture beyond my own. Due to the fact that I was able to attend a private school from grades one to twelve, I was given multiple opportunities to travel to different countries and participate in the humanitarian work that was needed there. Even after my graduation from that school, I was able to make connections with like-minded people who wanted to offer their services to whoever needed them. It was through these connections that I have had the privilege of spending time in the different countries of five different contents.
About Mexico
In the ninth grade, I joined a team of 30 students for a trip to Mexico. This was definitely not a vacation and did not offer any promise of relaxation. All of us who signed up to spend our spring break away were traveling to Mexico in order to work with an organization that built houses for families in some of Mexico's harshest slums. This trip was more than just an opportunity for students to humble themselves for a family in need, it was a time for them to develop as adults, caring human beings and learn from the people of that country.
I have since had the privilege of taking part in two more humanitarian trips to Mexico. I have been able to get to know the loving and caring families that have received a new home. I have been exposed to true wealth in familial love and community and have been shown the rich culture of Mexico through its people, food, markets, and cheap sangria.
This humanitarian trip fostered some of the aspects of the BC Core Competency, Social Responsibility. Students were encouraged to build relationships with the surrounding community by participating in both building the house and playing games with the kids in the neighborhood. Students worked directly with the family to build a relationship with them and accommodate any of their needs. The family that was receiving the house would often cook lunch for our team. This exposed many of the students to food which they had never eaten before and allowed them to see what the people of this city valued.
About Kenya
In my senior year of high school, I traveled to Kenya, Africa with a group of 11 other students. Our mission was to build a school in the remote village called Kijabe. There we spent ten days working with the local people to continue the yearly expansion that my high school, Regent Christian Academy, had started two years prior. While there, we were able to visit the already functioning classrooms and observe the teachers interacting with the students. Up until two years before, many children in Kijabe were not receiving an education because of the unreasonable distance they would have had to travel to do so. Building this school with the help of the people of Kijabe allowed for us to see the value in education, something which western students often take for granted. It also allowed us to recognize our privilege and better understand the perspectives of those from a completely different culture and continent.
An aspect of the BC Core Competencies that this trip emphasized on was Social Responsibility. My peers and I worked collaboratively with each other and with the locals to build something which would benefit much more people than just ourselves. It also allowed us to gain an appreciation for the differing perspectives of those that lived in Kijabe.