My very first Blog post!

Hey Everyone! My name is Ryan Lim, I am currently a freshman at Mills High School in Millbrae, California and I am 15 years old. I would describe myself as a big dreamer, younger I always dreamed of success and my future profession. I dreamed of being an Animal Planet Network Host, a surgeon, a zoologist, and now my dream is to study Mandarin in China! I am almost done with my first year of Mandarin, and it was love at first word for me. After watching my dedication and enjoyment for Mandarin, my teacher sent me an email that contained what was to me, an opportunity. An opportunity to follow my dreams and expand my knowledge with Mandarin. I am completely in love with the culture and language of China. Even though I am Chinese, I would say that I do not know much about my culture and before this year, I didn't understand any Chinese at all. I am fascinated with China because to me, it is a long lost part of me waiting to be discovered and expressed. Living in China for four weeks and studying Mandarin would be the summer of a lifetime, and I believe, my only chance to see the real China.

I expect to gain a better understanding of Mandarin, life long friends, new members to my family, an experience that shows me the everyday life in China, and a better sense of who I am. On top of all of that, I hope to gain assets like independence, an ability to cope with difficult situations, better communication, and better people skills. I am willing to give countless hours of service for AFS, because I believe that AFS can create bonds between people and cultures one student at a time. That is really important to me, because AFS has helped me out with the financial side of the experience very much. To show my appreciation, I would gladly volunteer for AFS and strive to share my knowledge to those around me about AFS and its mission.

I received a scholarship from AFS for my academic and community involvement. I am greatly appreciative towards AFS and the people who helped me get my scholarship.

To jumpstart my fundraising efforts, I am having a garage sale and selling things that I have grown out of, like my old bicycle. I also plan to send out emails telling family and friends about this blog and ask them to donate as much as they can to help support the cause. I am also looking into the idea of an email newsletter or raffles. With the topic of donating in mind, I would like to remind you to donate to my cause by clicking the ChipIn button. No donation is too small, and every dollar counts! Your donations would be greatly appreciated and would help me reach my dreams!