Why Project Hope?

Hi!  I’ll be on the USNS Mercy in July and August traveling to Vietnam and Cambodia.  Before any of the Shenandoah University students begin their adventures I wanted to add…

The Top 3 Reasons 

I Applied to Project Hope 

(and why you should jump at the chance 

to apply if the opportunity presents itself)

1.       Global Citizenship 

Thank heavens for the Internet!  It has connected us and fostered the idea that we are all citizens of the world.  As such, I feel a duty to do what I can to help people, not only in the United States, but in other countries as well.  With three years of pharmacy school under my belt, I’m looking forward to applying what I’ve learned in the classroom to make a positive impact.  Plus I’ll be a part of fostering good relations with other countries.

2.       Get out of my comfort zone   

Living on a ship for five weeks is definitely getting out of my comfort zone.  Just look at this picture of what the bunk beds are supposed to look like!  

I would also classify myself as a shy person and I’ll only know one other person on the ship.  That being said, what better way could there be for me to meet great people with a desire to help others! 

“A ship in a harbor is safe, but that’s not what a ship is built for.”

3.       See the world 

Until March of this year, I had never been on a plane.  I’m looking forward to seeing more of the world.  My hope is that Project Hope will afford me insight in the cultures of Vietnam and Cambodia. 

As a side note, I had planned to learn Vietnamese so that I could speak with some of the patients.  This occurred before I learned about the tones involved in Vietnamese.  Sadly they all sound the same to me.  I’ve decided to be contents with hello (chào) and goodbye (tạm biệt).  I’ll be extremely thankful for the translators!  If you learned Vietnamese as a second language, I bow down to your extraordinary language learning skills!