Before getting to Cyndi's reflections on seeing two of her alumni during our workshop; please take a minute and watch this short video where Cyndi discusses that benefits of being able to see alumni in their home country.
Here is Cyndi's Story:
I have only been a World Link coordinator or three years, and for two years I have been fortunate enough to have students from Georgia place in my cluster. On the diversity immersion trip I then was lucky enough to see both of those students in both of the countries that we had visited-- Georgia and Turkey,
Mariam Nozadze was a student in my cluster just last year (2013-2014). And even in the 10 months it has been since I have seen her she has grown and changed immensely. She carries herself with confidence and she speaks English without hesitation. She is bold and fearless and looking forward to attending university in Germany. She was one of the younger students on the FLEX program. She only just turned 17, and she is still in high school in Tbilisi Georgia. And although she is not yet active with the alumni program she is hoping to become more in the future. She said sometimes it seems as if her exchange year was only a dream, and being around other FLEX students will reinforce the idea that you can make change based on your experiences in America.
After leaving Mariam in Georgia I was very sad, but I also knew I was one of the lucky coordinators--I have a Georgian student who was attending university just outside of Istanbul. Natig Kurbanov was a FLEX student placed in Belleville my first year as a coordinator (2012-2013). Natig took several days off of school to visit us in Istanbul. He has always been a dreamer and it is wonderful to see his dreams become a reality through his hard work and determination. He accredits this vision to participating in the FLEX program where he was able to see firsthand how to organize groups of people and mobilize them for change. Here is Natig's story:
Mariam Nozadze was a student in my cluster just last year (2013-2014). And even in the 10 months it has been since I have seen her she has grown and changed immensely. She carries herself with confidence and she speaks English without hesitation. She is bold and fearless and looking forward to attending university in Germany. She was one of the younger students on the FLEX program. She only just turned 17, and she is still in high school in Tbilisi Georgia. And although she is not yet active with the alumni program she is hoping to become more in the future. She said sometimes it seems as if her exchange year was only a dream, and being around other FLEX students will reinforce the idea that you can make change based on your experiences in America.
After leaving Mariam in Georgia I was very sad, but I also knew I was one of the lucky coordinators--I have a Georgian student who was attending university just outside of Istanbul. Natig Kurbanov was a FLEX student placed in Belleville my first year as a coordinator (2012-2013). Natig took several days off of school to visit us in Istanbul. He has always been a dreamer and it is wonderful to see his dreams become a reality through his hard work and determination. He accredits this vision to participating in the FLEX program where he was able to see firsthand how to organize groups of people and mobilize them for change. Here is Natig's story:
"I returned from United States on May 2013. Since then, I have got accepted to study in both Georgian-American University in Tbilisi, Georgia and Anadolu University in Eskisehir, Turkey. I left Georgia to study Computer Engineering in Turkey as it was a better opportunity. I joined several school clubs and communities, trying to maintain active lifestyle I had in U.S. I have been actively participating in marketing and technology workshop organized by Intel Inc., IBM and Google. As part of Computer club I have been part of organizing team of several events. I later joined Google Developer Group Eskisehir, with whom we organized several events to raise awareness of latest technology and empower both male and female developers. I have volunteered by helping school clubs and other communities on their events. On holidays, I would join American Councils in Tbilisi at their events and also participated in Konrad Adenauer Foundation's South Caucasus Parliament as part of European Union workshop.
I was inspired in United States, to spend my free time for good cause. I learned the ways I could affect people's lives to create a better world for everyone. My host family has influenced me a lot, but it is also that the FLEX and World Link pushes us to be active. Like, monthly reports. I felt obliged to find a way to fill those empty spaces with some good stuff. So I felt obliged to look for ways to volunteer and participate in different events, such as Speech tournaments or Model UN.
Our program constantly reminds us that we can do anything as long as we try and that there are ways to solve all sorts of problems. Basically, after the program we are trained to the point that we can not only survive but thrive anywhere on the Globe."
As a coordinator, it warms my heart and lifts my spirits to be able to work with such inspiring young people. I am fortunate and grateful to work with World Link. I am also filled with gratitude to World Link and the Department of State for the opportunity to be able to meet with my alumni and see the impact they are having on the world.
As I send this year's students home, I truly know now that is it not good-bye, it is merely see you later. Our paths will cross again, and I will be excited to see these amazing young people work to make the world a better place.
Written by Cyndi Oberle-Dahm; Local Coordinator, Illinois.
As I send this year's students home, I truly know now that is it not good-bye, it is merely see you later. Our paths will cross again, and I will be excited to see these amazing young people work to make the world a better place.
Written by Cyndi Oberle-Dahm; Local Coordinator, Illinois.