Three students from a rural village in this tiny island nation of Samoa are just two days away from stepping on board an airplane that will fly them to another hemisphere! They will be stepping foot on a continent for the first time in their lives, and in a country where everyone is raised to believe that anything is possible if they work hard enough for it.
Although they’ve seen America through T.V. and books, to live amongst a completely different culture will still be a real shock. They will be challenged in ways they’ve never been before, but it will all be in an effort to better them and make them more accepting of others and more motivated to make a difference in this world.
One of the biggest shocks for them might be the weather. None of them have ever experienced a temperature below 70 degrees in their lives. Even though the forecasted high for their arrival date is supposed to be in the 40s, relatively warm for Michigan in mid-December, this will still be brutal to their system. We’ve arranged for them to have warm clothes to help them with this adjustment.
Over the past few days it has been amazing to see how many people have become aware of this program here in Samoa. Last weekend when hitchhiking, the people that stopped to give me a ride commented on how I was the one taking three kids back to the U.S. Another day I was standing at a stoplight in town and a man and women sitting in their car in an adjacent parking lot called me over. I asked what they wanted and they said they had read my editorial in the Samoan Observer about the program. They expressed how excited they were for the kids and how much they supported the program.
The students also told me that their friends at school were asking about their trip and why they were going. Yesterday the students and I went to TV3 for our second interview where we talked about the latest preparations and plans for the program once we arrive in Michigan.
All of these occasions to make the program known are moments to inspire. They are moments to inspire others, especially youth, to work hard for a dream and then accomplish it. It doesn’t have to be a trip to another country, but something that is important to them and something that may require them to put forth more effort than they’ve ever been challenged to put forth in the past.
Saulo, Milo and Neueli are ready for this. They’ve been waiting a long time for this week to arrive and now things are moving fast. There are still last minute tasks to complete, but for the most part, things are in place and we will be ready to leave on Friday evening!
As the program starts, I invite all of you to check the blog as I plan to keep it updated daily with new posts. I thank all of you have given support to this program. This trip would not be happening without the generosity of so many people. You know who you are, and we thank you!
The boys and some of their family helping pick up rubbish in a neighboring village as part of a fundraising activity last week.
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