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Juliana's Fundraiser for Gambian Exchange Program

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Update:
I'm excited to share that I will now be running the Boston Marathon on October 11, 2021!
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My name is Juliana Green and I am a senior at Natick High School. I am running the Boston Marathon this April to foster a cultural exchange program at my school. 

My passion for human rights, globalism, and international development led me to participate in a new exchange program with ten other girls from my high school this past summer. We traveled to the Starfish International School in The Gambia, West Africa. Starfish is an after school and summer program that provides Gambian youth with supplementary education and skills to create better opportunities for themselves. Starfish was designed by a Gambian woman to combat the cultural norm of young girls dropping out of school to be forced into marriage around age 14. In just ten years, Starfish has seen huge success. The program has allowed young girls to serve their community and change Gambian culture surrounding the role of women. 

I spent two and a half weeks at Starfish, living in dorms and doing everything together with 12 Gambian students my age. The full cultural immersion and connections I made led me to fall in love with The Gambia. I learned so much about myself and I enjoyed sharing my new knowledge and unique experience with my peers in Natick. Assuming we obtain visas, my 12 Gambian friends will be coming to Natick this April to complete the latter half of the exchange program. I am so excited to welcome my Gambian friends into our community. 

When the opportunity to run for this exchange arose, I knew I had to take it. Although this will be a huge challenge for me, I am so excited to run for a program that I truly believe can change the world. This exchange program is instrumental in connecting communities across continents, promoting acceptance of diversity, and preparing students to solve global challenges. I am so excited to watch this program grow and enrich the experience of all students at Natick High School and prepare them to be global citizens. 

The money that I fundraise will foster the Gambian Exchange Program at Natick High School, allowing low income Natick students to travel to The Gambia in the future, funding field trips with the Gambian students while they are in Natick, and exploring other opportunities to expose Natick students to cultural experiences to become global citizens. I am so grateful for all donations and I am truly appreciative of everyone’s support as I take on this challenge. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to me at [email redacted]. If you are interested in learning more about Starfish International and the Gambian Exchange Program, please visit the following links:
Starfish International 
Gambian Exchange Program 

Thank you so much,
Juliana Green
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Donations 

  • Niki Battikha
    • $50 
    • 4 yrs
  • Anonymous
    • $175 (Offline)
    • 4 yrs
  • Anonymous
    • $47 (Offline)
    • 4 yrs
  • Anonymous
    • $26 (Offline)
    • 4 yrs
  • Anonymous
    • $125 (Offline)
    • 4 yrs
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Organizer and beneficiary

Juliana Green
Organizer
Natick, MA
Natick Exchange Program
Beneficiary

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