STEVEN (U.S.A)

Volunteered From JULY 2021 TO SEPTEMBER 2021

2021 Shortly after leaving my job, I had an “itch” to combine my love for world exploration and my ongoing desire to engage in meaningful community work. Habibi Center was the first organization that I found on my search, and I felt an immediate connection with its mission and vision for refugee youth. While I have prior teaching experience with both youth and young adults, I had never worked with refugees before, let alone volunteered abroad. Neither held me back in reaching out and expressing my interest in the opportunity. Within days of connecting with Stephanie over Skype, I was booking my flight to Athens and preparing for what would soon be a life-changing experience. My first day at Habibi Center was eye-opening and set the tone for the duration of my time there. At first, I was nervous. It was a new environment for me with unfamiliar people. The moment that the students walked through the door, though, an incredible amount of excitement, humbleness, and hopefulness overwhelmed my heart and mind. The students expressed an immeasurable commitment to their learning, and the teachers empowered their students to work hard, challenge themselves, laugh, and be part of the Habibi Center family. Soon enough, I felt that I had become a part of a family here, too. Each day, I looked forward to waking up, preparing my lessons, and learning with my students. Some lessons were easier, while others were more challenging. I learned very quickly, though, that I did not need to settle for easy with my students. They were fully capable of being challenged in their learning, and they were ready for the challenge. I recall my second day as a teacher, after our first lesson about parts of the body, I challenged my students to “teach” and “quiz” each other on what we had learned the day before. One at a time, I asked them to come to the front of the class and teach. They were shocked at first, asking themselves, We’re students, why are we teaching? Soon enough, they found a love in learning not only from their teacher, but from each other, too. Fast forward to my sixth week at Habibi Center, one of my classes was learning to write short stories. Their first stories were rough around the edges and showed so much potential, and the improvement in their story writing after just a couple of weeks was truly incredible and a testament to the students and their eagerness to learn. One day, I assigned them a series of pictures to write their story about, and they were challenged to write a story with someone else in the class. As I observed my students writing their stories together — learning, laughing, and growing with each other — I experienced a personally profound moment; I love Habibi Center, I love my students, I love the teachers who I work with, and the thought of leaving them in a couple of weeks pulled at my heartstrings in a way that I had never felt before. I was going to miss it all, so much. While I am writing this from the U.S.A., I am grateful that my time with Habibi Center is not coming to an end. I look forward to continuing to support Habibi Center from abroad, until I am able to return to Athens. Stephanie, Alex, and Camille — Thank you for welcoming me into Habibi Center. Your leadership and selflessness are the reason why so many refugee youth are able to have a safe and welcoming home at Habibi Center to learn, grow, and thrive. You have become lifelong friends of mine. Anita, Matthew, Chloe, Alëna, and Gladys — It is a privilege to be able to teach alongside such passionate and devoted individuals. Your leadership inside the classroom is the reason why our students will be able to reach their fullest potential. You, too, have become lifelong friends of mine. To my students — Thank you. I hope you learned as much from me as I learned from you. You truly changed the course of my life forever. Your resilience is unmatched, your curiosity is admirable, and your strength to turn your dreams into reality will take you wherever you want to go and be in this lifetime. I love you all so much. Best wishes, always and forever.