Liza has spared no time jumping into volunteering, already completing 40 service hours! She believes that volunteering makes the world a better place and it is also an amazing opportunity to become an active community member and contribute. Her host mom stated, “Liza is a very ambitious girl, her will and determination are unparalleled to any other exchange student we have ever hosted.”
Liza volunteers on a weekly basis in a local animal shelter, A ReJoyceful Animal Rescue, where she helps walk the dogs, feed the kittens and cats, organize the shelter, and clean up. She also volunteered at St. Hubert’s festival, where she helped by serving food, organizing activities, and cleaning up. Liza also volunteers as a teaching assistant and seized the opportunity to incorporate Georgian art into an art-focused class for children.
Passionate about sharing her Georgian culture, Liza has already completed five country presentations and created a Georgian music playlist for her host community. Liza enjoys studying at her U.S. high school and has joined the swim team, DECA club, and student council, through which she is currently working on organizing homecoming activities.
Liza spearheaded a workshop to engage 40 of her peers on the situation in Ukraine. She was inspired by the same “Color-Up Peace” workshop she attended back in Georgia, led by FLEX alumni (who gave her permission and access to online materials). “[It] is a visual art-for-peace project, in which a workshop helps peacebuilding in the world through individual and team working.” This interactive workshop sparked conversations about what she and her peers could do to help Ukraine and how they can be changemakers in the world.
For World Clean-Up Day, Liza organized a clean-up in her host community with her environmentalist friends from high school. “I am very enthusiastic about environmental issues,” Liza remarked. “We are so happy that we managed to make the planet rid of up to 100 kilograms of garbage, so the ground is breathing freshly!” Mother Nature thanks you, Liza!
Congratulations, Liza!
