Commitment to Service
Service work fosters empathy, cultural understanding, and collaboration, essential qualities for engineers working in diverse and interconnected environments.By actively participating in service initiatives, we can contribute to building a more equitable and sustainable world, ensuring that our engineering endeavors are driven by the genuine needs of people and aligned with the principles of social responsibility.I have developed a profound commitment to service work and have documented my experiences on this page.
Institute for Human Services (IHS) - Honolulu, Hawaii
Prepared and served meals in the Honolulu men’s homeless shelter, helped in the administration department to sort the patients' mental health data
The experience opened my eyes to see the complexness of homelessness and how it affects all parts of the individual's life. I got to understand the importance of service work and the impact it has on the people you help. The little you do for others can go a long way for them.
Through the work being done in the mental rehabilitation center and teaching center, I got to see what exactly makes someone self sufficient and ready to be integrated back into society again. The change in their mindset was a huge factor which showed me how powerful the brain is and the importance of what we feed our mind.
Bowery Mission, Manhattan, New York
From this experience we witnessed the challenging and complexity of homelessness. It is not just the physical aspects but also the mental and emotional effects it has on the people and those they know, as well as the difficulties they experience in attaining the resources they need such as therapy for instance. We were able to hear the various stories of those affected and how these organizations had helped them. Therefore, helping communities is not just about giving them physical resources but also providing them with the necessary skills, resources and guidance so that they can be integrated back into society and eventually become self-sufficient.
Huellas de Pan
- Cancùn, Mexico
We volunteered at Huellas de Pan, an institution in Cancún that has a feeding program for children in the area. The children in the area are battling malnourishment and lack of balanced diets due to poverty so the company was started to bridge that gap and give school going children an opportunity to get nutritious meals for breakfast and lunch. They have a facility close to a school, so the children are taken there in between classes. They also collect toys and other donations such as clothes to give to the children. Throughout this journey, I encountered incredibly kind and supportive individuals, leaving me with a deep appreciation for their community. Given my aspirations to become a pediatric surgeon, it was especially gratifying to collaborate with an organization focused on children's well-being. Without a doubt, I would eagerly return to contribute further to the community there.
Mount Meru Hospital
- Arusha, Tanzania
Last summer (August 2023) I got the opportunity volunteer as a medical intern at Mount Meru Hospital in Arusha, Tanzania. I worked in the labor and delivery department, the pediatric wards and the emergency room.We also volunteered at the Osiligi Children’s home and the Karibu Foundation daycare.
This experience holds special significance to me as I broadened my knowledge and skill set shadowing the physicians who gave me the opportunity to deliver babies and perform and interrupted suture on a minor injury. Immersing myself in a different culture with people who live a different lifestyle was eye-opening and witnessing the different problems the community faced helped build my empathy muscle and see things from a different perspective. The opportunity to learn form healthcare professionals and witness the impact they had on their patients revealed to me what type of healthcare professional I want to be in the future.
​I want to be able to open my heart to my future patients, to inspire hope in them and to show compassion, for the best care comes from a place of understanding another’s struggle and feeling it with them even if it is not physically.
New Life Children's Home
- Nairobi, Kenya
During my time volunteering at New Life Children's Home in Nairobi, Kenya, I had the privilege of providing care and support to abandoned and orphaned babies.
This remarkable children's home offered a nurturing environment where I could not only attend to their basic needs but also foster their development and well-being. From feeding and nurturing infants to teaching toddlers how to take their first steps and introducing them to the world of learning through reading, every interaction was an opportunity to make a positive impact. Moreover, engaging in play and companionship with these children was a heartfelt way to convey the message of love and belonging, reassuring them that they are cherished and valued members of our community.
