Ben is a senior at Elsie Allen High School and co-president of their Interact Club, which spends most of its time cleaning creeks, supporting causes and mobilizing his peers to leverage their skills for the public good.

Ben’s leadership in service to his school and community was recently recognized by the Press Democrat when he became one of 10 Sonoma County students to receive the Community Youth Service Award*. The winners were selected from competitive pool 141 nominees and each received a $1,000 scholarship.

According to Ben, helping others is a passion he will take with him into his future.

“I wish to create a movement to unify this generation of thinkers, workers and world-changers in taking on the challenges of this world and pulling others along with them, while being a medical practitioner,” he said.

*To read more about the Community Youth Service awards, click here.

ben's story

Did coming from a harsh background drive me into being the person that I was? Perhaps. Born of Vietnamese blood and bred within the confines of an unsanitary refugee camp, my early life served as the test of will; not only for me but for my parents, who had risked their lives on their perilous journey from Vietnam to Hong Kong and finally to the United States of America. I cannot recall the horrible events that passed within the steel walls of the camp, but my parents certainly do. Before Summer Search, I pictured my way of giving back to my parents as following on their road to what they believed to be success, which essentially was that of a robot who only cared about school. As this robot, I marched from objective to objective, only wanting to complete the next goal. Consequently, this mentality drove me into an antisocial state, rendering me with few personal friends and limited meaningful connections with others. Though I did indeed deviate from their path of success, by doing things such as community service and taking leadership positions, I, in a sudden twist of irony, ended up doing exactly as they have done years ago in their lives. Such realizations through the effort of both my parents and Summer Search have allowed me to see the world in a new light, one certainly of less suffering and more compassion.

Last summer will always remain an unforgettable memory. I embarked on a month long journey into the exotic realms of Thailand and Cambodia in South East Asian. I toured with my memorable group of eighteen students and two instructors through the captivating and exotic locales of Thailand and Cambodia. Without a doubt, the pinnacle of my stay in these lands resided within the remote village of Baan Pok in rural northern Thailand. These two unforgettable weeks of my life allowed me to fully immerse myself within another culture and live as one of their people. From working long hours on our service project of building a community building to eating the food, my group lived and breathed Thailand like no other tourists. The significance of this trip, however, was not in my mere learning of the culture, but of my recognition that  I  could personally connect to other people in such a way that I felt a sense of attachment to them beyond that given by acquaintances, but that which is given to one’s own kin. Though we met as complete strangers, we left bound by an eternal promise to never forget one another.

Simply put, the connection between me to my group and the villagers was fueled by compassion. I found myself eager to be around them and make sure that they were happy. Rather than caring just for my own self, I went out of my way to make sure everyone felt comfortable. This empathy stood in stark contrast to relationships at home. Though I do have very close friends that I share my life with, I never truly felt so attached to them in that I would take a bullet for them. In some respect, our situation forced us to accept one another, but in other ways, our own growth during this trip allowed for us to become more compassionate.

My awakenings on this trip allow me to envision life beyond its bounds. Current friends became closer friends and strangers became acquaintances. From this epiphany to the next, I carry within me the spirit to enjoy what life has to give and give back that which I have been given.